William Shakespeare’s play “Hamlet” is considered by some to be the single greatest story ever written. “Hamlet” has it all: ghosts, sword fights, suicide, revenge, lust, murder, philosophy, faith, manipulation, and a climactic bloodbath worthy of a Tarantino film. It’s a masterpiece of both high art and sensationalism, the only play I’ve seen performed live three times. Not everyone likes “Hamlet,” of course. One of its detractors was Soviet premier Joseph Stalin. Stalin’s hatred for the play has almost become a thing of legend, in part because it’s unclear precisely why Stalin hated the play. Entire academic papers are dedicated to answering the question. In his autobiography “Testimony,” the famous Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich suggests that Stalin saw the play as excessively dark and potentially subversive. “[Stalin] simply didn’t want people watching plays with plots that displeased him,” Shostakovich wrote. “You never know what might pop into the mind of some demented person.” …