The Shakespeare Book of Lists

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Chapter 6

 

Shakespearean Actors

 

 

101 Hamlets

 

Laurence Olivier said, “Hamlet, in my opinion, is pound for pound the greatest play ever written.”  Most scholars and theatergoers agree.  And they all agree that the role of Hamlet is perhaps the most challenging.  Joseph Papp, founder of the New York Shakespeare Festival, counseled all actors, “You haven’t graduated until you’ve played Hamlet.”  The following actors have graduated.  They represent different eras, different countries, and different venues, but they all have climbed that Everest of the theater—Hamlet.

 

1.      Ira Aldridge

2.      Judith Anderson

3.      Ian Bannen

4.      Alan Bates

5.      Jean Louis Barrault

6.      John Barrymore

7.      Sarah Smith Bartley

8.      Simon Russel Beale

9.      Sarah Bernhardt

10.  Thomas Betterton

11.  Edwin Booth

12.  Junius Brutus Booth

13.  Kenneth Branagh

14.  Richard Burbage

15.  Richard Burton

16.  Richard Chamberlain

17.  Tom Courtney

18.  Charlotte Cushman

19.  Daniel Day-Lewis

20.  Stephen Dillane

21.  Maurice Evans

22.  Charles Albert Fechter

23.  Ralph Fiennes

24.  Albert Finney

25.  Richard Fontana

26.  Edwin Forrest

27.  David Garrick

28.  Vittorio Gassman

29.  Mel Gibson

30.  John Gielgud

31.  Kenneth Griffith

32.  Alec Guinness

33.  Harry Hamlin

34.  Ethan Hawke

35.  Alan Howard

36.  Leslie Howard

37.  Tom Hulce

38.  William Hurt

39.  Henry Irving

40.  Derek Jacobi

41.  Alex Jennings

42.  Stacy Keach

43.  Charles Kean

44.  Edmund Kean

45.  John Kemble

46.  Stephen Kemble

47.  Val Kilmer

48.  Randall Duk Kim

49.  Ben Kingsley

50.  Kevin Kline

51.  Anton Lesser

52.  Eva Le Gallienne

53.  Fritz Lieber

54.  Michael MacLiammoir

55.  Alec McCowen

56.  Ian McKellan

57.  William Charles McCready

  1. Raymond Massey
  2. Burgess Meredith
  3. Ernest Milton
  4. Keith Michell
  5. John Neville
  6. Stephen D. Newman
  7. Chris Noth
  8. Laurence Olivier
  9. Peter O’Toole
  10. Richard Pasco
  11. Mandy Patinkin
  12. Michael Pennington
  13. Ronald Pickup
  14. Christopher Plummer
  15. Jonathan Pryce
  16. Michael Redgrave
  17. Roger Rees
  18. Ian Richardson
  19. David Rintoul
  20. Richard Risso
  21. Forbes Robertson
  22. Mark Rylance
  23. Asko Sarkola
  24. Maximilian Schell
  25. Paul Scofield
  26. Martin Sheen
  27. Noble Shropshire
  28. Sarah Siddons
  29. Morgan Smith
  30. Innocenti Smokhtunovsky
  31. Barry Sullivan
  32. Joseph Taylor
  33. Michael Tolaydo
  34. Glynn Turman
  35. Robert Vaughan

93.  Diane Venora

  1. John Vickery
  2. Christopher Walken
  3. Sam Waterston

97.  David Warner

98.  Orson Welles

99.  Oskar Werner

100. Nicol Williamson

101. Zapatka

 

 

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