Production on Hamlet V began at the end of March 2025, but very early on it became clear that this would be a physically demanding production—one where movement, precision, and controlled violence would be just as important as text.

After initial table reads and audio recordings, the company launched into Stage Combat 101 in May and June, a foundational phase that shaped the entire production. With multiple confrontations woven throughout the play, and with key characters such as Hamlet, Laertes, Rosencrantz, and Guildenstern deeply involved in physical storytelling, fencing and stage combat were not optional—they were essential.

The cast trained intensively to make every duel safe, exact, and visually compelling. Footwork, timing, distance, and trust became core rehearsal language. What might appear effortless on stage required hours of repetition, discipline, and focus, and every actor involved took the challenge seriously. These sessions didn’t just create fights; they built confidence, ensemble awareness, and a shared physical vocabulary that carried through the rest of rehearsals. Following Stage Combat 101, the actors broke for the summer with a clear task: learn lines and retain the physical precision demanded by the fights. Meanwhile, the production team continued shaping the world of Hamlet V, working on sets, props, and costumes to support the action unfolding on stage. When rehearsals resumed in September, the groundwork laid in the spring paid off. Fight scenes could be integrated smoothly into full runs, allowing actors to focus on emotional stakes without sacrificing safety or clarity. As rehearsals moved onto the stage, the fencing sequences gained scale and intensity, becoming some of the production’s most striking moments.

Later in the process, the cast also completed a Singing 101 workshop to support the show’s musical elements, but it was the early commitment to stage combat that set the tone for Hamlet V: bold, dsciplined, and physically alive.