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Recently, we’ve had the pleasure of seeing a production of William Shakespeare’s iconic tragedy Macbeth at La Boite Theatre, directed by Courtney Stewart and Lisa Fa’alafi. In the production’s programme, the co-directors explain: ‘This production of Macbeth is a reimagining that places the Witches at the centre of the story, allowing their voices to reverberate through the text in an entirely new way.’ But was this production successful in conveying that?
While the Witches were a linking device, entities that intertwined their supernatural world with Macbeth’s natural world, it is hard to see the vision of this version revolving entirely around them. The programme gives the impression that this is a retelling, making the Witches the main characters. However, it rarely diverts from Shakespeare’s original script. This makes it hard to see the Witches as the focal point because it’s still Macbeth’s story, and he is still the main character.
Although the production remained mostly faithful to Shakespeare’s script, it deviated from the original ending, providing an abrupt new one. If you are familiar with Macbeth, this can come as a bit of a surprise, especially since the performance rarely deviates from the original, save for a few reshuffles of lines by minor characters. The reason for this change in the ending is an anti-violence one; as the programme states, ‘we urge you to question the cycles of violence and ambitions that continue to shape our world…’ The new ending evidently emphasized anti-violence, but, as the play is quite violent and much of the script remained unchanged, this sentiment was somewhat lost.
The costuming was simple yet effective, with military costuming providing an emphasis on the war and death that is core to the Shakespearean tragedy. Costuming did most of the heavy lifting in differentiating between the characters played by the three very talented actresses, Nicole Hoskins, Roxanne McDonald, and Mel Ree. However, if you are unfamiliar with Macbeth’s storyline, this might be tricky to keep up with, especially since there are very little to no mannerisms or voice differences between the characters.
Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s relationship being portrayed as sexually driven was very powerful and something rarely expressed in traditional theatrical depictions. It framed their relationship and Lady Macbeth’s coerciveness in a different light, which was refreshing to see. In La Boite’s production, we see a literal power struggle where Lady Macbeth straddles and flips Macbeth onto his back, thus holding power over her husband. The production also didn’t villainise Lady Macbeth, which was a nice change from other versions.
The lighting and sound design were clever and well-executed. The phantom dagger from the wings and blackouts created snapshots of Banquo’s struggle against the assassin and the massacre of Macduff’s family, making for some very powerful visual storytelling. The thunder and lightning elements were incredible. The thunder was so loud that people in the audience jumped or gasped, and even though they were expecting it after a few times, it was still confronting and entrancing for the viewers.
The play was brilliant for those well-versed in Shakespeare, like we are (both of us being English literature nerds), but may be tricky to follow as a viewer who is unfamiliar with Shakespeare’s classic play. This being said, La Boite’s Macbeth is a brilliant and engaging interpretation of a classic tale.
Written by El Bancroft and Mollie Matthews
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