‘Rosencrantz and Guildenstern,’ Served Lite

Tom Stoppard and the Bard go way back. Thirty years before he co-authored “Shakespeare in Love,” Stoppard first achieved prominence as a playwright with “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead,” retelling “Hamlet” through the eyes of its most peripheral characters.

The conceit’s cleverness still holds up in Theatre 40’s revival. But while director Beverly Olevin’s staging clearly conveys Stoppard’s love affair with broad farce, it’s less successful with the play’s darker, more cerebral currents.

In Shakespeare’s play, Rosencrantz (Mark Bradford Hill) and Guildenstern (Ed F. Martin) are, of course, the obsequious couriers bearing King Claudius’ order for Hamlet’s execution. Stoppard turns them into existential clowns reminiscent of Samuel Beckett, pondering the nature of existence, life and death in dialogues with the chief player (Maria Spassoff) of the troupe Hamlet enlisted to catch the conscience of the King.

Spassoff capably handles a favorite Stoppard theme--the juxtaposition of theatrical pretense and real life--especially when the characters attempt to do battle with prop weapons (a joke Stoppard recycled in “Shakespeare in Love”). But the sparkle is lacking in the more philosophical exchanges.

An even greater challenge is investing Stoppard’s intellectual puzzles with emotional content, and here again the production is only partially successful. Martin’s hangdog demeanor evokes a measure of sympathy, despite his character’s callous rationalization of their deadly mission, and at times Hill is touching in his puppy-like desire to please his friend. But the points of emotional entree are few and far between in an interpretation that often settles for the safe and obvious.

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* “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead,” Theatre 40, 241 Moreno Drive, Beverly Hills. Fridays, Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Sundays, 2 p.m. Ends Feb. 20. $12. (323) 936-5842. Running time: 2 hours, 15 minutes.