George Rennie presents:
A tragicomic exploration of Hamlet’s unseen fool
Written and performed by George Rennie
Directed by Lisa Millar
11-16 June — 19:00 (+14:00 on 14 Jun)
The Glitch
Excavating the untold story of Yorick, the deceased court jester and famous skull in Hamlet, George Rennie’s soul-searching solo show flips Shakespeare’s most performed play on its head to reflect on comedy, ambition and the search for a performer’s identity.
Following a critically acclaimed run at Edinburgh Fringe, this high-spirited, existential ghost story uncovers the hidden tale of the King’s personal entertainer, asking whose stories get to be told and reclaiming tragedy for the quirky and queer.
Yorick is waiting in the wings. Or is it purgatory? After stumbling upon Elsinore through a mysterious door, an ill-fated attempt to reignite Hamlet’s theatrical spark rekindles long-buried passion of Yorick’s own, blurring the line between performance and personal truth as he accidentally wreaks havoc on the Danish court.
With audience interaction, heartfelt songs and light-footed humour, Hamstrung weaves in and out of Shakespeare’s narrative, shedding new light on the events of the original and exposing the precarity and invisibility of history’s forgotten fools.
George says: “It’s so exciting to be bringing this playful, twisted and beautiful story back to a stage in London after the madness of Edinburgh Fringe. The negative space around Yorick has so much to say about status and identity in the performing arts, and his manic drive to make people laugh at whatever cost captures the existential angst underlying many comic performers. I can’t wait to dazzle and provoke audiences and hope that people feel the full spectrum of emotions with him, from mirth to madness to melancholy.”
George Rennie, is a writer, performer and theatre-maker whose work centres joy and playfulness, leaning towards humour and integrating poetry, irreverence and interaction. Previous projects include Oliver Page’s screwball comedy, Mating in Captivity (King’s Head Theatre 2019), online family adventure Up, Up, Up and Away! (Creation Theatre, Mercury Theatre 2020), paranormal psychodrama Spirit Box (Pleasance Islington for London Horror Festival 2021) and, most recently, Jekyll and Hyde-based supernatural family drama Entwined, presented at Omnibus theatre as part of their Engine Room scheme (2025).
The Glitch is run by VAULT Creative Arts, a multi-award-winning, internationally renowned arts company, and the previous producers of VAULT Festival — London’s largest festival of performing arts. They build meaningful, low-risk opportunities for the UK’s best emerging talent to grow, develop, and make ground-breaking work. They do this by creating exciting, extraordinary cultural events in unexpected locations, breathing new life into these spaces and filling them with creativity.
Company Information
Written, Performed and Produced by George Rennie
Director Lisa Millar
Set Designer Damien Stanton
Lighting Designer Benedict Esdale
Sound Designer Lucas Button
Costume Designer Laura Rose Moran-Morris
Associate Director Sarah Dellar
