sweet prince
’62 Center for Theatre and Dance at Williams College
1000 Main St
Williamstown, MA 01267
April 28th, 2026 – 7:00 pm
North County Shakespeare Festival
FREE ENTRANCE
Full Information HERE
sweet prince is the latest work presented by Junkyard Shakespeare, premiering in its new form on April 28th, 2026 at 7:00 pm as part of Elsewhere Shakespeare’s North County Shakespeare Festival.
sweet prince is a one-woman, hour-long theatrical adaptation of Shakespeare’s Hamlet. This production uses a pared-down version of Shakespeare’s script to investigate depression, what it means to be “mad,” and grief. At the same time, it joyfully invites members of the audience to participate as the missing characters, disrupting the separation of actor and audience, and challenging bystanders to become participants.
According to the actor, Hilary Dennis, she loves “playing in the meta space.” In Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet recruits actors to help him prove his uncle’s guilt. Can this Hamlet recruit members of the audience to help her successfully tell her version of the story? Will they act when called upon? Perhaps they’ll even experience a transformation, a spark of new courage, a curiosity to be. Dennis hopes they leave feeling differently about Hamlet, Shakespeare, and their own autonomy.
The production has been made possible thanks to generous donors that helped the team create and present the show at the Workroom at 33 Hawley St in Northampton in February 2025. Junkyard Shakespeare has been also supported by Mechanics Hall, Worcester, MA, who provided a home for a week-long residency in March 2026 that gave time and space to develop a new version of the performance.
