Review: FAT HAM, Swan Theatre

What if, instead of being based in a castle in Denmark in the late Middle Ages, Hamlet was set at a backyard barbecue in the United States in modern times? That’s exactly what audiences witness in James Ijames’s Pulitzer Prize-winning Fat Ham, which follows Juicy (Olisa Odele), a young, queer black man confronted by the ghost of his father, Pap (Sule Rimi), who tells him he must kill his uncle for revenge. The show, directed by Sideeq Heard, is making its European debut at the RSC.

The play begins with Juicy and his friend, Tio (Kieran Taylor-Ford), setting up the backyard (designed by Maruti Evans) for a barbecue to celebrate the marriage of Juicy’s mother, Tedra (Andi Osho), and his uncle, Rev (Rimi once again), only a week after the memorial service for his father. Both young men see the ghost of Pap, but it is Juicy who is given the task of killing his uncle, after the ghost reveals to his son that it was Rev who had him killed. Juicy, however, wants none of this, instead wanting to focus on obtaining a degree in Human Resources and escaping the plans his father has put in place for him to take over the family’s barbecue restaurant. 

Juicy, Tedra and Rev are joined by family friend Rabby (Sandra Marvin) and her children, Opal (Jasmine Elcock) and Larry (Corey Montague-Sholay). While Opal is clearly meant to represent the Shakespearean character of Ophelia, she is definitely not Juicy’s love interest, instead being proud of the fact that she loves women and dreaming of opening a shooting range-themed buffet restaurant. The friendship between Opal and Juicy is a beautiful representation of queer solidarity, but there is also something between Juicy and Larry, a military man who wishes he could be as soft as his friend. 

One of the joys of Fat Ham is how different it is from its source material, while still referencing Shakespeare’s work and having the same themes of family, grief and what comes after tragedy. The show flies by in only 95 minutes, taking Shakespeare’s longest play and packing it into one act.

The differences between the two works are immediately made clear by the opening scene, with Tio (the comic relief of the play) watching pornography and using a balloon to practice for his own potential career in the porn industry. That’s not to say that there aren’t any similarities, if not nearly identical moments.  Juicy has several monologues that come straight from Shakespeare’s script, including the line that perfectly ties the two plays together - “That’s the rub!”

As this is based on Hamlet, however, there are still moments of darkness between the highlights of hilarity. It’s clear that Pap was an abusive father to Juice and husband to Tedra, which makes it difficult for Juicy to explain why he is mourning his death and even considering killing Rev. Rev is also not the kindest man, forcing Juicy to fight him and threatening his new bride when she tries to protect her son. But both Juicy and Tedra have darkness in themselves, each doing questionable things as they are trapped in cycles of violence and inherited trauma. A game of charades leads to one of the most intense moments in the play, with Juicy trying to force Rev to reveal what he has done and leading to unexpected consequences for not only him but other characters as well. 

The most interesting aspect of the show is the way it plays with -and at times destroys - the fourth wall. When Juicy is giving Shakespearean monologues, the lights (designed by Bradley King) go dark, with only a spotlight on the character. He holds a microphone from a karaoke machine (If I had a nickel for every time Radiohead has been referenced in an RSC production of Hamlet this year, I’d have two nickels. Which isn’t a lot, but it’s weird that it’s happened twice, right?) and speaks directly to the audience, something none of the other characters are able to do - at least in the beginning. Others seem to be aware of the audience, however, with Tedra asking Juicy to tell “them” the truth about her, acknowledging how outsiders might see her and confronting them. There is also a moment in which the audience is encouraged to participate by clapping that feels out of place and is never really explored. 

Ultimately, Fat Ham is a queer and joyous adaptation of Shakespeare’s Hamlet that explores what it means to escape tragedy, choosing happiness over revenge. Ijames has created a fresh and fierce new take on the Danish prince, bringing Hamlet into the modern world with a reflection of modern culture and the effects trauma can have, even centuries later. 

Fat Ham runs until 13 September at the Royal Shakespeare Company’s Swan Theatre.