OCC to stage Hamlet

Orange Coast College theatre arts instructor John Ferzacca has adapted Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” into an experimental, pared-down version of the tragedy that will be staged at Orange Coast College from March 17-21.
 
Performances, directed by OCC theatre arts professor Alex Golson, are Wednesday through Saturday, March 17-20, at 8:00 p.m. in the Drama Lab Theatre, with a 2:30 matinee on Sunday, March 21.  
 
Advance tickets are $10 for general admission, $5 for OCC students and seniors at the OCC Bursar’s Office.  Tickets can be ordered by phone at (714) 432-5880, ext. 1, or at www.occtickets.com.  Tickets will be $11 at the door.
 
The 90-minute production takes some intriguing, mysterious turns that explore some questions Shakespeare left unanswered.  Why is Ophelia crazy?  Why is Hamlet so angry?
 
“It was great fun to write,” Ferzacca said, adding that “if you’re a Shakespeare purist, you’ll hate it” despite the fact that every word in the production was penned by the master playwright himself. 
 
Ferzacca took liberties with the plot and tossed in some mystery and intrigue.  Costumes worn by the characters represent all periods between Shakespeare’s Elizabethan time and present day.  Actors selected their own attire based on each character’s personality.
 
Ferzacca, who officially retired in 2003 after teaching and directing theatre arts at OCC for 33 years, still teaches two acting classes part-time at the college.  During his career, “I got to direct every play I ever wanted,” he said.  Now he is spends his time writing.  
 
Ferzacca has published five plays and two screenplays, including “The Failure to Zigzag,” which was staged by the Laguna Playhouse in 1978 and later adapted for a CBS movie. “ZigZag” has been produced more than a dozen times across the country, including a campus production in 1991. Ferzacca hopes to find the same success with his abridged “Hamlet.” 
 
OCC’s “Hamlet” has a 26-member cast, including 10 speaking roles.  Alex Duremdes, Huntington Beach, is Hamlet, and Erin Fitzpatrick, Fullerton, plays Gertrude.  The cast also includes Aaron Drake, Tustin; Danica Houchen, Huntington Beach; and Adam Wilson, Newport Beach.