Talkin Broadway
- Highly Recommended
"...The actor assumes 23 roles over more than two hours, with one intermission, and it's a fascinating performance that requires concentration on the part of the audience."
Washington City Paper
- Highly Recommended
"...As a lifelong runner some years’ Izzard’s junior whose joints have hummed, and on many days belted, a chorus of pain every moment of every day since I hit my 40s, I can’t fathom how that’s possible. The way Izzard has spent the past couple of years—performing a solo Hamlet that will reach its 250th performance during its current engagement at the Shakespeare Theatre Company’s Klein Theatre before moving on to Australia and New Zealand—sounds less taxing. Easier on the knees, certainly."
Washington Blade
- Highly Recommended
"...Izzard's energized take on Hamlet is terrific. The way her powerful public persona bleeds into the work without taking over is exciting, and a uniquely accessible way to enjoy Shakespeare."
Stage and Cinema
- Highly Recommended
"...Eddie Izzard’s Hamlet is far from a traditional staging of William Shakespeare’s tragedy. Instead, it becomes a riveting solo performance—an exercise in precision, imagination, and endurance. Portraying every role alone, Izzard crafts a theatrical experience that feels both pared down and surprisingly expansive, proving how much can be achieved with minimal means and maximum skill."
MD Theatre Guide
- Highly Recommended
"...Eddie Izzard’s “The Tragedy of Hamlet,” a WestBeth Entertainment production presented by Shakespeare Theatre Company at the Klein Theatre, offers one compelling answer. This limited engagement, part of a North American tour following acclaimed runs in New York, Chicago, London, San Francisco, and Seattle, features Izzard performing all 23 characters in a streamlined adaptation created with her brother, Mark Izzard. The result is a roughly two-hour version of Shakespeare’s tragedy that feels both intimate and monumental."
The Georgetown Dish
- Highly Recommended
"...Eddie Izzard simply uses Hamlet as her vehicle to showcase her amazing talent. She could do any show, and you don’t want to miss seeing her."
BroadwayWorld
- Highly Recommended
"...Those familiar with Eddie Izzard’s illustrious stand-up career will already be intimately aware of her gift for effortlessly stepping in and out of an endless array of absurd, instantly recognizable characters. In Hamlet, this distinct style comes across as a razor-sharp weapon, finely honed over decades, with which Izzard cuts to the very heart of one of the most familiar works of the theatrical canon. So convincing is her Hamlet that the question very quickly transforms from “how does one person perform such a play” into “how was this play ever performed any other way?”"
A Theatre-Goer's Thoughts
- Highly Recommended
"...What separates Eddie Izzard’s performance from the rest is that Izzard isn’t just playing Hamlet, she is playing 23 separate characters in a script adapted/edited by Mark Izzard, who is Eddie’s brother. Mark Izzard has performed a yeoman’s task by whittling Shakespeare’s script from what usually lasts for 3+ hours to a more manageable 2 hours and 15 minutes or so. I am not so familiar with the original that I could tell you what was cut and what language was modernized in the process."
The Washington Lobbyist
- Highly Recommended
"...Several performances are already sold out or nearly gone — do not wait on this one! Izzard’s Hamlet is essential viewing for anyone serious about the live stage in this city. Book now and witness a performance that will be talked about for years."
DC Theater Arts
- Highly Recommended
"...What’s refreshing, too, is Izzard’s sense of humor, both verbal and physical. There are so many moments to choose from — ironic line readings, pregnant pauses at just the right moment — but for my money, her take on Rosenkrantz and Guildenstern is a highlight (and no, I’m not going to spoil it for you, you’ve got to see it for yourself). She even manages to make the grave-diggers funny, and in my experience, this is the toughest of all tough sells."
