What does the question “to be or not to be?” mean? 86 year-old director Olģerts Kroders stages his fourth production of Shakespeare’s Hamlet at the Valmiera Drama Theatre. The theatre is more than merely his occupation, for he not only works there but also spends all of his time in it. The film depicts his routine and the rehearsal process up until the premiere, and provokes a dialogue using the four actors who have all played Hamlet in the different productions. Kroders’s life and the lives of the actors tell the history of Latvia and the fates of different generations.
He lives and works in a world that contains only him, or so he thinks. Each day is spent exactly in the same way, stamping boxes, not asking where they come from or where they go. But an unexpected guest’s sudden arrival leads to a dangerous discovery – perhaps outside of his small world there is something more?
Seagulls and sea, a breakwater and otherwise nothing but wasteland and cold wind. On the concrete, a chic handbag, scattered high heels and long legs in a tight miniskirt. Vika, a famous model, lies shivering on the cold ground after a heavy night drinking, left behind by a guy in a convertible. Little Mika finds her: she also dreams of becoming a model and Vika is her idol.
