Review: MACBETH, The Duke’s Theatre Company - Wilton’s Music Hall
Amidst their UK summer tour of mostly open air venues, The Duke’s Theatre Company bring their minimalistic, modernised version of the Scottish Play to Wilton’s Music Hall. This production of Macbeth, directed by Robert Shaw Cameron, promises to send chills down your spine through convincing and startling portrayals of madness and magic in this small but mighty company of powerhouse actors.
Robert Shaw Cameron’s direction of the mystical Witches is certainly abstract and experimental. The production, overall, intertwines modernistic and symbolistic elements with Shakespearean language, and the use of voiceovers and sound overlapping the Witches chanting is certainly an example of using modernistic theatrical tricks to elevate the creepiness of Shakespeare’s language. It is also notable that in the early scenes, not all three witches are present onstage at the same time, but use of voiceover strengthens the force and mightiness of their character. At times, the use of this voiceover technique means lines get distorted or lost, making their general presence more powerful than the words they deliver, but always adding to the haunting nature of their supernaturalness in a way that makes these characters truly memorable.
There are moments when we do see all of the Witches onstage at the same time and when this happens, what is most striking is their physicality, separating them from the human presences in the show through clear movement which almost feels like contemporary dance. A powerful visual image includes when their bodies all clump together and move in unison to create a beating heart. Shaw Cameron also chooses to incorporate the Witches into the final scene of the play through voiceovers, an unexpected choice that continues to haunt the audience with superstitions right up to the final seconds of the action.
Jessica Curtis’ set and costume design is simplistic to meet the demands of outdoor touring theatre, and works equally well to create a multifunctional minimalistic base backdrop in this indoor venue. Using an almost entirely black costume design really cements the feel of a united company, whilst contrasting this with more striking features and props to amplify the bloodiness of this production. Nowhere is this more arresting than the end of Act 2 Scene 2 when Macbeth and Lady Macbeth exit the stage with their hands ‘dripping’ in red material. Curtis’ set and many of the key props consist solely of metal poles, creating the impression of almost a construction site. Using these poles to represent daggers and Birnam Wood allows for a highly sensory experience, particularly in fight scenes where the clanging of the metal creates a soundscape to articulate the ‘sound and fury’ of one of Macbeth’s most memorable lines.
Marilyn Nnadebe depicts the iconic Lady Macbeth, adding real depth and psychological complexity to this character. Nnadebe showcases a diverse range of raw emotions to solidify the female lead’s character trajectory, through raw ambition, power hungriness, jarring madness and lust, creating convincing onstage chemistry with her counterpart, another brilliant actor Finnbar Hayman who highlight’s Macbeth’s ambitious nature through the entire production.
Subsequent to the success of the summer tour visiting countless iconic locations including several castles, The Duke’s Theatre Company will take its production of Macbeth on its first indoor Autumn tour, which feels like the perfect continuation of the haunting qualities of this show.
A chilling and symbolic take on a classic Shakespearean tragedy filled with gripping portrayals of madness and chaos.
**** Four stars
Reviewed by: Heidi Downing