Macbeth

Macbeth

Classic Stage Company

October 26, 2019

Photo courtesy of Classic Stage Company

The Classic Stage Company has produced a heart-racing, one hour and forty-minute rendition of Shakespeare’s Macbeth.  Director John Doyle cuts right to the insatiable lust for power that drives the play, then overshadows it with the overwhelming sense of guilt that brings the downfall of the characters.  The cast of nine seamlessly move the action forward, skillfully portraying noble loyalty, voracious cunning, and vengeful retribution. 

Macbeth (played by Corey Stoll) is sought after by the three weird sisters (played by the ensemble) to predict his rise to power.  When his wife, Lady Macbeth (played by Nadia Bowers) hears the news, she devises a plan to hasten the events.  She manipulates her husband to kill King Duncan (played by Mary Beth Peil) to gain the throne.  He does the deed as planned and finds it only one of many slaughters to come.  He hires assassins to kill his friend Banquo (played by Erik Lochtefeld) in order to secure his position as king.  When the ghost of Banquo haunts him, Macbeth is propelled to visit the three weird sisters for an answer to its meaning.  Their revelations fuel Macbeth’s thirst for power and hide the clues to his imminent downfall.

Corey Stoll as Macbeth
Photo courtesy of Classic Stage Company

John Doyle’s choice to have the three weird sisters played by the ensemble is truly inspired.  The theater echoes with their unsettling verse and their evil is existent within every person on stage.  He ends the play with the same lines and formation as the opening, showing how this driving force of selfishness is ever present and seductive as events shift and move forward.

Corey Stoll portrays Macbeth as an honorable man, lured into making choices from which he cannot escape.  His character is changed after the murder of Duncan.  His physical and emotional transformation is clear and strong.  He spends the remainder of the play masking his emotional state as he continues to cause harm.  As he says to Lady Macbeth, “False face must hide what the false heart doth know.”  

Nadia Bowers as Lady Macbeth
Photo courtesy fo Classic Stage Company

Nadia Bowers is powerful as Lady Macbeth.  She conjures forces within herself to construct her plan and moves on it with unwavering determination.  Her mad scene is focused and unnerving.  Barzin Akhavan is strong as Macduff, and Raffi Barsoumian is passionate and innocent as Malcolm.  Mary Beth Peil is imposing as Duncan, and Erik Lochtefeld is loyal and gentle as Banquo. 

This production of Macbeth is boldly conceived and masterfully interpreted.  It is playing at Classic Stage Company through December 15.  If you are a Macbeth fan, as I am, you will truly enjoy it.

Domenick Danza

Sleep No More

Sleep No More

The McKittrick Hotel

July 21, 2018

Photo courtesy of Sleep No More

If you have not heard about or seen Sleep No More, you need to go on line, read more about it, and get a ticket.  This site specific work takes place at the McKittrick Hotel in Chelsea.  Created by Punchdrunk, a British theatre company, the production first premiered on March 7, 2011.  Sleep No More adapts the story of Shakespeare’s Macbeth and combines it with the styling of noir films to create an immersive, environmental masterpiece told through movement and dance.

Photo courtesy of Sleep No More

When you enter into the hotel, you are immediately transported to a different time period.  You walk through room after room of the four story building on your own.  You are encouraged to explore.  You are not allowed to speak.  Characters appear and slowly and meticulously act out their drama, then disappear.  You follow them into other rooms where they encounter different characters and continue their story.  The action begins to intertwine.  The scenes are dimly lit, emotionally driven, precisely timed, and intensely choreographed.  Your mind connects the images to the story of Macbeth.  All your senses are engaged as the mystery and suspense builds to a stunning climax.   

Photo courtesy of Sleep No More

This was my first immersive theatre experience, and I intend to return to Sleep No More very soon.  Since it takes place on numerous floors and rooms simultaneously, you cannot take in the entire experience at one time.  There were certain characters and plot lines that I did not get to see.  I recommend you refresh your knowledge of the characters and plot from Macbeth before attending.   

Domenick Danza

Macbeth

Macbeth

The Seeing Place Theater

The Paradise Factory

December 10, 2016

Photo courtesy of
The Seeing Place Theater

The Seeing Place Theater’s Macbeth is a compact and powerful one hundred minutes of Shakespeare.  They are an “actor driven company” with a strong ensemble that is well showcased in this production.  Director Brandon Walker has a clear vision and insightful understanding of this play.  His bare bones, modern dress approach intensifies the choices made by the main characters and magnifies the effects their actions have on their sense of self.

When Macbeth’s fate is mysteriously foretold, he feels justified taking action to insure his rise to power.  He and Lady Macbeth fall prey to their own greed and sense of entitlement, and are haunted by their deeds.  As the prediction of his downfall begins to unfold, Macbeth has no choice but to fight with his life.

Brandon Walker & Erin Cronican
Photo by Russ Rowland,
courtesy of The Seeing Place Theater 

Brandon Walker portrays Macbeth as a flawed man who makes bold choices knowing full well where they might lead.  Erin Cronican’s Lady Macbeth is solid and sure of herself with the ability to both lead her husband when he is unsure, and follow him when he is decisive.  Together they are riveting.  The audience follows their clear journey of choices and guilt, motivated by their need for power and recognition.  The ensemble is equally commanding.  There are strong performances by Tim Anderson as Macduff, Joshua George as Malcolm, Marcus Peterson as Ross, Olev Aleksander as Banquo, G.W. Reed as Duncan, and the three witches: Jane Kahler, Lisa-Marie Newton, and Candice Oden. 

The Three Witches
Lisa-Marie Newton, Jane Kahler, & Candice Oden
Photo by Russ Rowland,
courtesy of The Seeing Place Theater

With seating on three sides of the small performance space at The Paradise Factory, the audience is placed in the middle of the action.  There is no set, yet the lights, designed by Duane Pagano, envelop you in a highly effective, haunting atmosphere.  The program notes set a clear frame for viewing the performance.  “With Macbeth we ask the questions: What do you feel you are owed in this world?  What are you willing to do to get it?”  

The Seeing Place Theater’s Macbeth is playing at The Paradise Factory, 64 E. 4^th Street, through December 22.  Tickets are an affordable $15.  It is a seamless and faced paced production.  Be sure to see it!

Domenick Danza

Macbeth

Macbeth

The Drilling Company

Shakespeare in the Parking Lot

August 1, 2015

Photo courtesy of
The Drilling Company

The Drilling Company is batting a thousand this summer with their twenty-first season of Shakespeare in the Parking Lot.  Macbeth opened on July 30 in the parking lot behind The Clemente Soto Velez Cultural and Educational Center (located at 114 Norfolk Street - east side of Norfolk Street between Delancey and Rivington Streets).  The production, directed by Jesse Ontiveros, had a very strong and haunting opening weekend.  It has a limited run, so don’t miss it.

Dan Teachout is solid as Macbeth.  His guilt-ridden downward spiral into destruction is clear and complex.  As Lady Macbeth, Sheri Graubert portrays an insatiable hunger for power that leads to obscure madness.  Together these two actors lead the audience into the depths of Shakespeare’s most haunting play.  Other strong performances are Lucas Calzado as Malcolm, Veronica Cruz as Lady Macduff, Kineta Kunutu as Hecate, and, for most needed comic relief, Bill Green as the drunken Porter. 

Macbeth (Dan Teachout) and the Witches
(Gracie Winchester, Kineta Kunutu, and Llewie Nunez)
Photo by Jonathan Slaff and courtesy of The Drilling Company

Costumes, by Lisa Renee Jordan, and set, by Leontine Greenberg, are simple and effective.  Sound design, by Anna Grossman, adds just the right texture needed to transform the informal parking lot into a dark castle, a witch’s forest, and a bloody battlefield.

Macbeth runs Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 8:00 PM through August 15.  Admission is FREE, so get there!  The final show of the Shakespeare in the Parking Lot season will be The Taming of the Shrew at Bryant Park September 4 – 20.  Mark your calendars!  It is sure to be another classic sensation from The Drilling Company.

Domenick Danza