(WEST ORANGE, NJ) -- Luna Stage presents Shakespeare's Hamlet (Abridged!) in new 90-minute adaptation by Rajesh Bose from February 12 - March 8, 2026 on the MainStage. The play features 5 actors playing 16 roles, highlighting the humor and urgency of this taut, intimate, heartbreakingly political tragedy.
In a gender-bending casting choice, Valerie Terranova, who made her Luna debut in a critically-acclaimed performance of Bernardo Cubria's The Giant Void In My Soul, also directed by Bose, plays the title role.
"As strange as it sounds, I've always found Hamlet to be relatable in many ways," says Terranova. "When you strip away the obvious differences — the fact that he's a prince, for example — Hamlet is a person whose father has just died, whose country has fallen into the hands of a corrupt leader, and who is surrounded by people who seem ready to move on as if nothing is wrong."
"Hamlet is a story where private grief and political grief collide. The loss of King Hamlet is not only the loss of a father, but the loss of integrity, decency, and moral order. Claudius's rise feels like the collapse of those values," Terranova explains. "Somewhere in Hamlet's personal grief, I think he's just as overcome with the question: how can something so corrupt take hold while everyone simply allows it to happen?"
"That tension feels uncomfortably familiar right now," Terranova continues. "Many of us are carrying grief for a sense of moral center that feels like it's slipping away. Hamlet's political grief is intensely personal — just as it is for so many of us today."
Terranova is joined by Drew Hirshfield–most recently seen in Luna's Mrs. Stern Wanders the Prussian State Library–who plays Polonius, Rosencrantz, The Gravedigger, and Francisco. Erica Knight (Sense and Sensibility, Charley's Aunt, TV: "Gossip Girl") plays Ophelia, Laertes, and Guildenstern; Lucas Pinner (Peter and the Starcatcher; Richard III) plays Claudius, The Ghost, Osric and The Clown; and Lisa VillaMil (As You Like It; Henry IV at The Old Globe) plays Gertrude and Horatio.
Performances are Thursdays at 7:30, Fridays and Saturdays at 8, and Sundays at 3 beginning February 12 and running through March 8, with a special Older Adult Matinee on Thursday, February 19th at 1:00pm. Ticket prices range from $10-$50 and are available for purchase online. Group discounts and student matinees can be scheduled by emailing [email protected]. A limited number of Opening Night + Party tickets are available for February 14.
As part of Luna's commitment to equity and access, all Luna Stage programs and productions are Pay-What-You-Choose.
Luna Stage develops and produces vibrant plays about local and global experiences. This summer, Luna's commissioned world premiere RIFT by Gabriel Jason Dean made its international debut at Edinburgh's Traverse Theatre where it was honored with the 2025 Scotsman Fringe First Award. Other Luna world premieres include Tony Award-winner Matthew Lopez's breakout play The Whipping Man, which became one of the most widely-produced plays in the United States; Jenny Lyn Bader's Mrs. Stern Wanders the Prussian State Library, which had two extended runs Off-Broadway in the 2024-2025 season; three premieres by Obie-winner Nikkole Salter; and the Luna-commissioned The Ground On Which We Stand, which received the 2024 Giles R. Wright Designation for Excellence in African American History.
The company celebrates 15 years as an arts anchor of New Jersey's Valley Arts neighborhood, a traditionally-underserved region bridging the townships of Orange and West Orange. Luna received the JerseyArts People's Choice Award for Favorite Small Theatre in New Jersey, and is dedicated to eliminating barriers to participation and nurturing the next generation of audiences and artists.
