I decided to move down from the Festival Theatre balcony this year to take a seat in the orchestra. It was perfect--comfortable with excellent sight lines. Having a seat immediately adjacent to one of the voms gave a sense of being right in the middle of the action. I know where to look for a seat on my next visit.
The play was set in traditional eleventh-century Scotland. The set was compact and well-proportioned. It was designed as a forest, but not so much that it became difficult to imagine a castle when necessary. Trees, torches, upper and lower chambers--for such a small stage, dare I say it was lavish? The sisters' cauldron was placed over the opening in the stage so that items could be raised up from beneath to simulate levitation. Set changes occurred almost instantly in some cases. As Macbeth's henchmen attacked and killed Banquo and chased Fleance into the forest, there was a cut to black. The lights came up and suddenly the stage was a banquet hall with table and benches. Kudos to the stage hands who made this transition perfectly seamless!
The acting in this production was phenomenal. Ian Lake as Macbeth and Krystin Pellerin as Lady Macbeth were particularly noteworthy. They fit the roles, and the roles fit them. Lady Macbeth was psychotic from the outset, giving the audience little time to prepare. It made me wonder, as an aside, what her backstory must be. What happened to Lady Macbeth in her life before the play that turned her into such a character? Macbeth evolved from a likable hero to a loathsome villain, and Mr. Lake made it believable throughout. We were unable to see the dagger that leads him to murder, unable to get into his head to understand. At the dinner banquet, though, Banquo's ghost was visible to us, welcoming us into Macbeth's ever-deepening mental instability.
The three weird sisters were terrifically creepy. Their costuming, manner of speech, and a set of contact lenses made them literally chill-inducing. Their final appearance in the play (no spoiler here) was one that will stay with me for a long time.
The only criticism that I could levy is one of volume. While most of the dialogue was perfectly audible, some of Banquo's lines disappeared into the ether. I was only four rows back from the stage; I wonder how the lines sounded in the balcony.
The play moved at a brisk pace. It never felt long, and the 150 minute running time flew by. I wonder how the actors recover from such a quick and moving production. It took this audience member many minutes, and I was only watching! To all involved in this production, I can give only one word. Bravo!
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