Laura Comer plays Gertrude (Hamlet's Mother) in Hamlet:

It's been a long time since I had the opportunity to get so emotionally involved in a character and a script. I credit an excellent director, talented cast and crew and, of course, a pretty fair playwright!
But, I'm having a little (recurring) problem with the Bard. If only he were not such a product of his time in his understanding of women. I/Laura believe in strong women who don't need men to be whole. Sure we love and enjoy men, but we are capable and moral decision makers on our own. Our Elizabethan playwright? He's not there with me and neither are his women. As Gertrude, I want to relate to her strengths, to believe in her moral, intellectual and even sexual "wholeness," her commitment to her son and her country. Shakespeare, darn the misogynistic genius, is taking me on a different journey through feminine weaknesses and moral ambiguities. Ay there's the rub. Poor Ophelia, Desdemona, Juliet, and Kate. Only the women in men's clothes seem to have the opportunity to be something other than victims and/or corruptors (OK, that's not really a word, I guess).
At the moment, Gertrude and I are uncomfortable together. I am struggling to embrace her insecurities and to consider the idea that her neediness, especially for Claudius, could lead her to betray her morals and even her son. Why is she so blind to the King's machinations? Why is she so willing to believe in Hamlet's madness? I suppose it's because she needs to be. And, Shakespeare needed her to be...for whatever reason-political, personal, professional? Because, despite the fact that Shakespeare gives us so many layers and truths about human nature, he couldn't quite show us trustworthy, independent women.
So, yeah. Noah and Marty and everyone else, your emotional intensity on stage made me FEEL stuff that didn't fit with my first, and personally preferable, impressions. I LOVE that! and I hate that! Ya'll rock. And, thanks to Liz for the questions that keep us on our "authenticity" toes.
We'll see where she goes!
It's SO challenging and fun to chew on this, isn't it?

Am I the bad guy? Or just the woman ultimately powerless to control her destiny?
OOOOOOOO! Deep. I'm sure many of you have different opinions about Shakespeare's women. I did too. This is new.