Director Steinbern's Notes

Hamlet and Ophelia will be closely engaged and fully interested in each other and nothing else. The sensuality must be real in order to keep the groundlings interested in the play. The characters must touch each other sensually, repeatedly. The tone and attitude of the characters must be real, while Hamlet is using this scene as a scheme to publicize his insanity. This scene's dirtiness serves many purposes and ultimately keeps the crowd interested while also completeing Hamlet's goal of getting polonius more angry with him and displaying his insanity to the world.