Macbeth

Synopsis

The Scottish Play - theatrical types consider saying its name to be unlucky! Thrust into power by his overwhelming desires and an over ambitious wife, Macbeth finds his only security is to murder and murder again. From "When shall we three meet again" to "is this a dagger I see before me" this is a powerful Shakespearean drama.

Our Review:

17 February 2005

After the introspection of the Almeida’s production, it’s almost a relief to turn to a Macbeth who is palpably a man of action. It seems unfair to comment on the two together, but when two major productions open so closely together, they invite comparison.

Dominic Cooke’s production hurries, without an interval, to its grisly conclusion, with Macbeth, as he fears he will be, hounded like bear in a pit. It’s an abject end: even though there’s an inevitability about it, where Macbeth isn’t even accorded the minor triumph of killing young Siward. Macbeth is already a short play but here the action is compressed even further, a process paralleled by Robert Innes Hopkins’ backdrop concertinaing on to the stage.

There are some good performances throughout: Greg Hicks is an actor with an physical fluidity whose balletic movements reveal the physicality of the man. He’s certainly no slouch at verse speaking but at least there’s the understanding that ...

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Latest User Review

81.86.234.43) - 4 March 2005:

Despite initial misgivings, Hicks came through in the end with a sinewey portrayal of a morally weak man overcome with ambition. Projection from all actors bar MacDuff suffered due to the size of the space they had to work within - to the point where you could barely hear what the witches were babbling on about. Liked the idea of the mephastophilian aide lingering around at the end of scenes. Malcolm's acting was as surprising as seeing a cow tieing its own shoelaces......

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