Macbeth
Last night, I ushered for the performance of Mac-what's-his-name (there's a bit of video here) at the Shakespeare theater. It's not a favorite play by any means, but this production of it was staged memorably. The company received a standing ovation at the end, which is relatively uncommon to see at that theater.
The play was performed "in the round," with seats on all four sides of a center raised platform. For the opening scene, the house lights were dimmed while a spotlight shone on a white circle in the middle of the stage. Blood pooled there in an ever-increasing puddle as more dripped from an unseen spot overhead. When the audience's attention was fully had, a knife came up from underneath the circle and slashed it open! Bloody hands then reached up through the gash, and everything went dark. When the lights came back on, the floor was solid!
Yes, this is one of those performances where it's obvious that the effort behind-the-scenes equals, if not surpasses, the effort by the actors on stage!
The costumes were ... sort of ... Scottish and Japanese and ... something else ... all at the same time. Pleated leather kilts! Tattoos all over the actors' bodies. Simple seaming. Lots of white and ivory, red, black, and gray. (Actually, those were the only colors used. Hmm.)
My favorite lines?
ROSS
39 Your son, my lord, has paid a soldier's debt.
40 He only lived but till he was a man;
41 The which no sooner had his prowess confirm'd
42 In the unshrinking station where he fought,
43 But like a man he died.
SIWARD
Then he is dead?
ROSS
44 Ay, and brought off the field. Your cause of sorrow
45 Must not be measured by his worth, for then
46 It hath no end.
Because of the staging "in the round," half of the audience was denied access to the usual exits for mid-show bathroom breaks, so part of my job was to escort patrons needing such a break through a really round-about backstage path that went through the prop shop and scenic storage. I'm glad that nobody had to leave, because that meant I got to see the whole play, but still, it was a really cool route and it would have been neat to creep down it in the middle of the show.
The play was performed "in the round," with seats on all four sides of a center raised platform. For the opening scene, the house lights were dimmed while a spotlight shone on a white circle in the middle of the stage. Blood pooled there in an ever-increasing puddle as more dripped from an unseen spot overhead. When the audience's attention was fully had, a knife came up from underneath the circle and slashed it open! Bloody hands then reached up through the gash, and everything went dark. When the lights came back on, the floor was solid!
Yes, this is one of those performances where it's obvious that the effort behind-the-scenes equals, if not surpasses, the effort by the actors on stage!
The costumes were ... sort of ... Scottish and Japanese and ... something else ... all at the same time. Pleated leather kilts! Tattoos all over the actors' bodies. Simple seaming. Lots of white and ivory, red, black, and gray. (Actually, those were the only colors used. Hmm.)
My favorite lines?
ROSS
39 Your son, my lord, has paid a soldier's debt.
40 He only lived but till he was a man;
41 The which no sooner had his prowess confirm'd
42 In the unshrinking station where he fought,
43 But like a man he died.
SIWARD
Then he is dead?
ROSS
44 Ay, and brought off the field. Your cause of sorrow
45 Must not be measured by his worth, for then
46 It hath no end.
Because of the staging "in the round," half of the audience was denied access to the usual exits for mid-show bathroom breaks, so part of my job was to escort patrons needing such a break through a really round-about backstage path that went through the prop shop and scenic storage. I'm glad that nobody had to leave, because that meant I got to see the whole play, but still, it was a really cool route and it would have been neat to creep down it in the middle of the show.