The dog days of summer are almost behind us, and September is set to bring earlier sunsets, fall colours, and an exciting new face to our Mainstage Acting Company!  

We’re wishing Nadeem happy trails as he embarks on an exciting new project back east—and we’re also thrilled to be welcoming Chirag Naik back under the tents! Chirag will be joining us for his fifth Season at Bard, and starting September 2, he’ll be taking to the BMO Mainstage in the role of Hamlet. 

Read on to learn more about Chirag and how he discovered his own Hamlet within this unique rehearsal process! 

Can you tell us about yourself and what first drew you to acting?
I’m a pretty easygoing guy! I’m passionate, I’d like to think I’m kind, and I’d say that I am not afraid to speak up when I feel it is necessary. I would call myself an empath that does his best to understand and respect those around me. My draw to acting and performance came from the utter joy and awe that it inspired in people. As a kid I discovered quickly that people come alive in storytelling, whether it is when they are earnestly listening, and/or in my case, actively telling it. I was a very high energy kid and acting not only satisfied that quench for activity but it also activated a deeper curiosity for what makes people tick and why the world operates the way that it does. 

You’ll be stepping into the role of Hamlet in September. What has it been like to discover your own Hamlet within this current production?
I have been in love with the play Hamlet for over 20 years now, since I read it the first time and played the title role in a summer theatre camp. It stuck with me and I knew at that time that I needed to find my way back to it later in my life. Here I am now in this beautiful and unusual rehearsal process. This has been a different process than a typical rehearsal since I have not been as regularly involved with my castmates. Thankfully, I’ve worked with lots of the incredible actors in this cast before and we all work well together!

It has felt isolating at times and yet that has been beneficial in its own way for making discoveries. Hamlet himself is under great duress of feeling alone and abandoned so there’s something of a kinship to be embraced in that experience. That being said, the separation of watching my castmates’ decisions from the outside has given me a unique bird’s-eye view that as actors we don’t normally have. On the first day of rehearsal Stephen Drover said (in his own words) that given how iconic this play is, a new production’s job isn’t always to turn a show on its head but simply to shift the perspective and allow audiences a new way in. Having that bird’s-eye view has offered me the ability to respect what they have built while shifting the perspective once more.

How has it been working with Stephen and Nadeem during this process?
Working with Nadeem and Stephen Drover is always a pleasure. While I have worked with them both before, this is once again a different process that requires a lot of respect. I have to respect their work that they have built while respecting my own interpretation. We all understand mutually that Hamlet is a role that requires a great deal of one’s self. It requires the entirety of an individual. My characterization of Hamlet and Nadeem’s will both provide unique vulnerability and understanding by virtue of us being entirely different people. It’s exciting as a performer and I hope for audiences too, with how that shifts the play in a framework that has already been built.

What are you most excited for audiences to experience with your approach to Hamlet?
I really hope that there are audience members who will choose to watch both Nadeem and myself. There is so much interpretative work that happens inside of any play but especially Shakespeare. As actors we often watch each other work and think “Wow, I didn’t think about it like that!” It will be fun to give audiences that same sense of wonder with how different one actor’s interpretation can be from another. I mentioned Hamlet wrestling with his isolation: it undeniably affects all of his relationships in this show. I think of his father, his mother, his uncle, his partner Ophelia, and in a perfect world, what could have been his potential family in Polonius and Laertes. I’m excited for audiences to see the shifts in those relationships and how that might affect their interpretation of the show as a result.

Many people hold a pre-existing idea of what Hamlet is and what it might mean to them. I’m excited to both meet those ideas and also give them new considerations that they may not have imagined. The heart of this piece, is a man in grieving. And everybody grieves differently.

Is there a moment that stands out to you from your Bard experience this Season?
I haven’t actually stepped onto the stage to perform yet so it might sound silly, but I’ve got two. When I knew I would be playing Hamlet I walked into Sen̓áḵw/Vanier Park where the tents would be set up. I stood where the Mainstage tent would be, and I recited a couple of Hamlet’s soliloquys. That was a special moment. 

The other moment was Opening Night of Hamlet. I have the utmost respect and love for my castmates, and I was so very proud of them. I know how arduous this process can be and seeing the fruition of all their work come together so magically filled my cup. Watching the show stoked my fire further and it made me even more excited to join them.  

When you aren’t in rehearsal or performing, how do you like to spend your time?
I love sports! Hockey is my number one to watch and follow. I don’t get to play it as much as I used to, but I play other sports. Basketball, tennis, golf. Honestly, I love it all. I am a very competitive person. I’m on a softball team (along with a few Bard members in fact) and we are about to head into the playoffs! 

On the other hand, I also love Dungeons and Dragons. A group of my best friends have been playing a campaign together for about seven years now. And we are almost at the finish line now! 

Thanks so much for chatting with us today, Chirag!  

Be sure to catch Chirag in Hamlet, running on the BMO Mainstage until September 20. Get your tickets now by visiting our Season Schedule!