Hamlet

This year marks the 400th anniversary of the publication of Hamlet, the most sublime achievement of the Elizabethan stage. Like Hamlet’s ghost, a specter haunts the literary and theatrical worlds, intimating that Shakespeare is not the sole or principal author of the works bearing his name. New historical, scientific, and literary evidence suggests that Christopher “Kit” Marlowe—London’s leading playwright and a secret government agent—staged his death in 1593 to avoid torture and execution for heresy and sedition during a witch hunt led by the archbishop of Canterbury. Choosing to be rather than not to be, Marlowe appears to have gone under cover and composed Hamlet and other works in silent partnership with actor William Shakespeare. That is the conclusion arrived at in this compelling, thoroughly annotated new edition of the world’s most famous play. Recognizing Marlowe’s possible survival, London’s Westminster Abbey features a question mark by the date of his death in a new stained glass window in the Poets’ Corner, England’s literary shrine. The Globe Theatre has opened a permanent exhibit on alternative candidates to the Shakespearean laurels, including Marlowe. This is the first edition of Hamlet to trace Kit’s and Will’s story, explore its deeper roots, and suggest plausible historical resonances with such unforgettable characters as the Prince, Horatio, Claudius, Gertrude, Polonius, Ophelia, Laertes, Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, Yoric, and the Gravedigger. Volume 1 (ISBN 0-9708913-5-0) includes the text of the play, echoes with Marlowe’s earlier works, and a summary of the evidence for his role in the authorship. Volume 2 (ISBN 0-9708913-6-9) recounts Marlowe’s life, “death,” and literary resurrection, explores his collaboration with Shakespeare, and analyzes the play.