of the accoutrements of their living space, taking the time to use the keys, vials, cabinets, miniature portraits, mirrors, and so on in a way that makes the action suggested by the text clear and at the same time anchors the manner of theatrical presentation in a highly formalized, perhaps slightly exaggerated, way. Where a highly mannered presentation is concerned, it is not too obvious an injunction to say that the characters should take the time to employ their props with enough of a flourish to allow the person in the back row to understand what is being used, how, and why.
Similarly, Claudius goes about the castle, to the play, to the duel, to the funeral, "attended." There must be some ceremony attached to his going from place to place, just as there is an element of decorum that must be attached to all persons on stage who are members of the court in one capacity or another. Flourishes of trumpets may be sounded offstage, but when they do sound, that is a clue that the king is not simply going to saunter in and plop down on the thron
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