But one theater group in New York City is trying to level the status quo when it comes to which private parts are allowed to be seen in an entertainment setting. This summer, Torn Out Theater put together an all-male cast to perform Shakespeare's "Hamlet" in a very public setting — two New York City parks. This summer's series of au natural plays comes after Torn Out Theater presented another Shakespeare, "The Tempest," with an all-female cast in summer 2016. After hearing (mostly from men) that a nude play for men wouldn't work, because "no one wants to see a naked man," Torn Out director Pitr Strait told DNA Info he was inspired to give the people what they said they didn't want: An all-male, mostly nude performance of "Hamlet.
The cast was sourced through a call that mentioned nudity may be required, and Torn Out made sure not to cast a slew of Chippendale's-esque men to traipse around naked in Prospect and Central Park. A few of the performers — most of whom have never stripped down for a performance before this one — talked about what it means for a troop of men to perform naked, wrestling in the dirt on a summer afternoon, and how it feels to shout "To be, or not to be" while nude in the middle of a public park.
"You look at ads like Victoria's Secret and the Sports Illustrated swimwear issue, things like that — that's how women are projected sometimes, as beautiful beings that are goddess-like. When it comes to men, people really want to see them fully-clothed, with beards, very manly. It makes people uncomfortable to see men fully nude, for whatever reason, I still don't understand it. Our main objective is to get people to understand that the male body is just as beautiful as the women's body, and there shouldn't be a barrier between the two." — Mike Press, performing as LaerteS.
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