Teatro La Plaza reimagines Shakespeare’s 'Hamlet'
Eight actors with Down syndrome bring their own lives, desires, and frustrations to Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” in a contemporary production from Peru’s Teatro La Plaza, coming to the Center for the Arts for two performances on Wednesday, Oct. 7, and Thursday, Oct. 8, at 7:30 p.m.
Rather than a conventional staging of Shakespeare’s play, Teatro La Plaza’s “Hamlet” uses the original work as a framework for the performers to share their own stories, experiences, and perspectives. Performed in Spanish with English supertitles, the production combines portions of Shakespeare’s text with personal storytelling, humor, movement, music, and dance.
At the heart of the production is Hamlet’s enduring question: “To be or not to be?” For the performers, that question becomes a starting point for considering what it means “to be” in a world that often overlooks them and how society values people with Down syndrome, particularly when efficiency, productivity, and conventional ideas of beauty and perfection are held as measures of human worth.
Created and directed by Teatro La Plaza founder Chela De Ferrari, “Hamlet” has received international acclaim, with performances in 20 countries and more than 50 cities. The production has appeared at major venues and festivals around the world, including the Edinburgh International Festival, where it played a sold-out run; Chicago Shakespeare Theater; and London’s Barbican Centre. The Guardian praised its “charm, humour and imagination,” while The Stage called it “a joyous affair.”
Founded in Lima, Peru, in 2003, Teatro La Plaza is a theatre creation space that investigates and interprets reality to build a critical point of view in dialogue with its community. The company presents new works as well as classics through a contemporary lens, creating productions that question, provoke, and surprise while examining the complex nature of human beings and the world around them.
De Ferrari’s recent work has focused on adapting and directing Shakespeare, including “Richard III” in 2013, “Much Ado About Nothing” in 2016, and “Hamlet” in 2019. In 2024, her production of Anton Chekhov’s “The Seagull,” featuring visually impaired actors, premiered at the Avignon Festival and the National Drama Center of Spain. She most recently directed “Ser Hamlet,” a documentary about the creative process behind “Hamlet.”
Please note that the production includes a simulated gunshot, loud sound effects, haze effects, and flashing lights.
Teatro La Plaza’s performances at Virginia Tech are supported in part by a gift from Thomas and Martha Olson.
Related activities
Following each performance, audience members can engage with the actors of Teatro La Plaza during a post-performance discussion.
During their visit, the performers will participate in a panel discussion about artistic excellence and professional inclusion, exploring what it means to lead as a neurodivergent artist in the 21st century and sharing insights into their professional journeys and creative processes.
Presented as part of National Disability Employment Awareness Month in partnership with ADA and Accessibility Services of the Office for Civil Rights Compliance and Prevention Education, the panel discussion will be held in the Cube at the Center for the Arts as both an in-person and a livestream event on Monday, Oct. 5, from 2:30-3:45 p.m. The event is free and open to the public, but online registration is required to attend in person. A video embed of the livestream will be available on the Center for the Arts’ website on Oct. 5 at 2:30 p.m.
During their visit to Blacksburg, Teatro La Plaza performers will also engage with students across campus and the community, exploring Spanish language and Peruvian culture with Virginia Tech students in Spanish Grammar, Composition, and Conversation; dramaturgy and personal narrative with students in the English course Hybrid Forms; and the intersection of performance and politics with Ph.D. students in the Alliance for Social, Political, Ethical, and Cultural Thought. The performers will also explore musical theatre with students in Montgomery County Public Schools’ Virginia Tech On-Campus Transition Program.
Tickets
Tickets are $30 for general admission and $10 for students and youth 18 and under. Tickets can be purchased online; at the Center for the Arts box office, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday; or by calling 540-231-5300 during box office hours.
Venue and parking information
The performance will be held in the center’s Anne and Ellen Fife Theatre, located within the Street and Davis Performance Hall at 190 Alumni Mall. Convenient parking is available in the North End Parking Garage on Turner Street and in downtown Blacksburg. Find more parking details online.
If you are an individual with a disability and desire an accommodation, please contact Jonathan Boulter at least 10 days prior to the event at 540-231-5300 or email jboulter@vt.edu during regular business hours.
