To the mileslong list of Shakespeare "concept" productions, add the strangely captivating "Hamlet" performed by New York puppeteer Dov Weinstein, and his cadre of thumb-sized plastic Ninja figures. The Tiny Ninja Theater show is at Empty Space Theatre through Sunday (as part of the Seattle International Children's Festival adult-oriented program, Seattle International Nights). And it is truly one-of-a-kind.

At this point, no spin on Shakespeare should surprise us. I've seen "Hamlet" performed by a cast of household utensils. And Weinstein's vaguely Japanese-influenced "Hamlet" is a very distant cousin of the Akira Kurosawa film "Throne of Blood" (a samurai reworking of "Macbeth") — by way of the junk-sculpture antics of such modern puppeteers as Paul Zaloom.

What makes this "Hamlet" more than a stunt, however, is its marvelously inventive, shifting scale, and Weinstein's commitment to honoring the classical text — even as he appears to be subverting it with pop-cultural knickknacks.

Theater review

"Tiny Ninja Theater Presents Hamlet," through Sunday at 8 p.m., Empty Space Theatre, Seattle; $12-$15 (206-684-7346 or www.seattleinternational.org).

For some of his hourlong abridgement of "Hamlet," our eyes are directed to minuscule stage tableaux one can barely see. But Weinstein also craftily employs two large video screens and a pair of wand-like "spy" video cameras no bigger than mini-flashlights, to give us scenes with cinematic close-ups, medium and long shots, from numerous, unpredictable angles.

This is all manipulated roughly but amazingly by Weinstein himself, while he also supplies the voices of the Ninja prince Hamlet, King Claudius and Queen Gertrude (played by happy-face "Smile" toys), a lacquered, vampy Ophelia doll, and other characters.

Those unfamiliar with "Hamlet" may well find that this version dashes along before you can really figure out what's going on. (The "To be or not to be" soliloquy lasts about 20 seconds.)

But the verse is well-articulated by Weinstein, in a variety of striking voices. And though it's a bit of a shock at first to realize those burnished, Gielgud-esque tones are coming from a barefoot guy in overalls with a platter full of plastic tchotchkes in hand, his reverence for Shakespeare's words lifts the piece beyond comic gimmickry. (There are laughs here, of course, but fewer than you might expect.)

So if this "Hamlet" isn't simply a mix-and-match postmodern sideshow, what is it? A real attempt to discover something new in a hallowed play? I'm still not certain. But I do know Weinstein is a multi-faceted and original talent, and I'd love to see what he does with the next classics Tiny Ninja plans to tackle: Chekhov's "Three Sisters" and O'Neill's "Desire Under the Elms."

Misha Berson: mberson@seattletimes.com