Click here to read the full interview!
How the Nashville Shakespeare Fesitval created their ghost:
With the help of Sam Lowry, Belmont’s ghost tech aficionado,
the appearance of Hamlet’s dead father was elegantly displayed in the Troutt
theatre. Sam used the Adobe Creative Suite to edit still images, and then
processed those through Isadora, an interactive media software that projected
the ghostly figure on to the Troutt stage. For more information on Sam’s production,
watch the interview above!
How the ghost has been done in the past:
Before modern technology, actors simply appeared on stage like normal.
The audience believe the ghost should be portrayed by humans because of their
ability to move, speak, and look outwardly as if it were the dead king. A record
from 1619 reports an actor who stood under the stage and shouted the ghost’s lines.
In the 21st century, projections and light shows have been used to portray Hamlet’s
ghost, much like Belmont’s production. According to Shakespeare’s stage direction,
the ghost needed to be covered from head to toe in steel armour with only the visor
raised.
