Gertrude in stiletto’s! A ghost-sighting party in Cons! Director Taibi Magar’s decision to stage Hamlet in modern dress in her current production brings this tragedy a striking immediacy.  The usurping Claudius, in his crisply tailored suit, could be a conniving CEO and the switchblade wielded by Hamlet as he contemplates killing Claudius echoes more an urban alley brawl than a sword fight.  You enter The Gallery Players‘ theater to a spare set: and empty stage painted navy blue, a staircase and a small platform attached to the back wall.  But Ms. Magar’s theme becomes immediately clear when Francisco and Bernardo enter with flashlights as they seek the ghost of Hamlet’s father in the darkness outside Elsinore castle.

Among other touches of modernity, the prologue of the mousetrap, Hamlet’s play-within-a-play trap for Claudius, is done in techno-interpretive dance, and after the intermission the players literally set the stage by carrying on stage lights and a microphone.  And not to spoil all of fun, Hamlet’s black tee shirt and jeans were not the only other surprise in costume designer Allison Crutchfield’s black and white palette.

Broadway’s Jeremy Bobb (Is He Dead?, Translations) was a captivating and energetic Hamlet — sulky, conniving and a deft swordsman.  Stephen Pilkington portrayed the character of Horatio very well and ended the play very dramatically.  Brendan Averitt was a sleek and commanding Claudius, Sidney Fortner gave Gertrude a lively archness and E. C. Kelly was a spookily ethereal ghost.  Kimberly Gray’s Ophelia was both worldly sister and innocent daughter in her familial discussions of Hamlet’s possible interest in her but by the play’s end had blossomed to a convincing madness.

The Gallery Players Theatre started in 1967 with goal of bringing high quality theatre to Brooklyn at affordable prices.  They are now well ensconced in their home on 14th Street in Park Slope which, while certainly atmospheric, could be enhanced by air-conditioning on a hot summer’s evening.  Hamlet ran from July 22 through August 1.