All in all, though, I'd have to say I enjoyed the production. I almost always enjoy live theater (except when it's the Greeks. Yeech). And even though I'd probably be disappointed with the production if you built me a time machine and shipped me back to watch the King's Players at the great Globe itself, I always learn something from watching the Scottish Play.
Below are some production notes from the American Shakespeare Center's website. We'll use this as a springboard to our discussion tomorrow.
UNDERNEATH IT ALL…RUNNING THROUGH IT ALL…HAS TO BE…LOVE
~ If our production is not filled with big love, the story/tragedy doesn’t work.
~ If Macbeth is just an evil s.o.b., a) it doesn’t match the words and b) who cares about his thoughts/feelings/guilt/journey?
~ If Mr. and Mrs. Macbeth don’t love each other truly/madly/deeply, who cares about the ride that rips them apart?
• I want Macbeth to be as thoughtful/introspective/intelligent as Hamlet, but also a warrior who is part Henry V, part Titus, part Richard III, part Wolverine, and part Captain America.
• I want Mr./Mrs. Macbeth to be in an awesome/sexy marriage of equals.
• I want Macbeth’s heart to break when he gets the news that his Soul Mate/love-of-his-life is dead.
~ If Banquo and Macbeth DON’T love each other like the war-scarred, blood-brothers they are in the text, who cares about the descent into jealousy/doubt/murder?
~ I want Duncan to be a great king that everybody loves, including/especially Macbeth.
~ But I also want a deserving Malcolm rather than a nerdy weakling that we all think would make a horrible king.
~ I want three-dimensional characters who allow us to care about them.
IN THE END
~ We need to find the rhythms, the reasons, and the ride Shakespeare has written for us; then we can invite the audience to join us.
~ We can be great at playing the darkness, creating the supernatural, and grossing out the audience; but if we’re not great at finding the love, telling the story, and giving the audience characters to care about, then nothing else matters.
Jim Warren, Artistic Director and Co-founder
 |
| "He hath killed me, mother." |
This idea, I'm afraid, went way off the tracks. It's not supposed to be a funny line (although the scene between Little Macduff and his mother just before the murderers arrive, should be played for laughs. It functions much like the "Knocking at the Gate" scene).
Potentially, it could be devastating. What kind of sick person would use the corpse of a mother's son -- killed right before her eyes -- as a ventriloquist's dummy! Such is the state that Scotland has fallen into under this brutal tyrant, Macbeth. (And I'll guarantee you, there are people doing worse than this in the world right now.)
And finally, check out these tips for writing a successful essay, from the co-founder of the American Shakespeare Center.
1 comment:
Sadly, I think if the play didn't include the part with little Macduff being used as a dummy, half the audience would have stayed asleep through the entire thing. It was good in the sense that it is exactly the kind of humor high schoolers love, but otherwise I agree that it was a bit disturbing. I thought the play was pretty good, but it did drag a bit in the middle. I don't know if that was because we hadn't read that part in class yet or because it really did get a little too long. I really like the message that the director wanted to send about love, because really what else are we here for? Everything revolves around love, we can't deny that. What makes that fact even more amazing is that we are going through all the same issues that Macbeth went through...obviously not to the same extreme, but we can all relate to the feeling of power, lust, love, and jealousy.
Post a Comment