Theatre Review: Mac Beth
Mac Beth
2/11/23-3/11/23
Directed by: Lila Patterson
Written by: Erica Schmidt
Produced by: Isabel Alexander and Abby Kelly
Reviewed by Gretchen Mills
Macbeth, awash in purple light, takes a sip from his Hydro Flask before briefly checking his phone.
Erica Schmidt’s Mac Beth, a recontexualisation of the original play, goes leaps and bounds beyond Shakespeare. Led by a riveting and memorable performance from Macbeth (Hannah Shiblaq), this show, under the superb direction of Lila Patterson, is not one to be missed if you’re still mourning Halloween.
Although the acting was incredible, the costumes, set, props, and lighting brought the whole production together from the very start. Blue and red flares flashed on stage, with many characters using torches to project silhouettes onto the expansive walls of the Buchanan Theatre. The set of the lot, where the girls imagine Macbeth, was strewn with road signs and old furniture. A tyre becomes a witch’s cauldron, while Lady Macbeth (Clara Curtis) frantically scrubs her hands in an abandoned bathtub. The matching kilts and knee socks were a perfect touch to finalise the style of the show.
But above all, the cast was what made this production. While Schmidt’s script makes a few subtle changes, this is, in its essence, a performance of Macbeth where all of the characters are teenage girls, a reimagining that is difficult to make convincing. This cast had no trouble. Between screaming, giggling, and impressively realistic fighting, the complexities of adolescence and female friendship really did show through, despite the play being 400 years old. Whether it was the Banquo’s (Poppy Kimitris) ghost taking a selfie wearing Macbeth’s knitted crown, or Macduff, powerfully played by Louise Windsor, screaming across the stage with a blue flag, there was never a lapse in the drama and grotesque beauty of the production.
Along with Shiblaq, Curtis’ Lady Macbeth is a standout, equal parts manipulative drama queen and earnest ‘wife’. The Witches, (Ellen Rowlett, Laura Kibedi Makfalvi Varga, and Jess Payne) provide a strange sort of comic relief, skipping and chanting and throwing various items, including their own underwear, into the cauldron.
The UK premiere of this show is not one to miss, if only for the fact that Macbeth is crowned to Lady Gaga and killed to Lana del Rey. In collaboration with the University’s Charities Campaign, 100% of the profit is going to Fife Women’s Aid, adding even more relevance to this show about girlhood. I only hope that the cast can wash all of their shirts in time for tomorrow’s run.
