James Karas
Macbeth
by William Shakespeare
Directed
by Antoni Cimolino
Macbeth Ian
Lake
Lady
Macbeth Krystin
Pellerin
Banquo Scott
Wentworth
Macduff Michael Blake
Lady
Macduff Sarah
Afful
Porter
Cyrus
Lane
Continues
in
repertory at the Festival Theatre, Stratford, Ontario
until
October 30, 2016. www.starfordfestival.ca
**** (out of five)
The 2016 season of the Stratford
Festival is officially under way with a production of Macbeth directed by
Antoni Cimolino. With witches, apparitions and ghosts in the cast not to
mention battles, murders and madness, Macbeth
provides great opportunities for a director to parade his talents. The
Festival’s Artistic Director does not lose a single chance to display his
marvelous imagination, his attention to detail, his innate theatricality and
his ability to surprise us at every turn.
Krystin Pellerin as Lady
Macbeth and Ian Lake as Macbeth in Macbeth. Photography by David Hou.
Macbeth opens in the middle of a
battle (Cimolino’s idea) where the Three Witches agree to meet Macbeth upon the
heath. A well-played and well-designed scene without any attempt to overdo what
is already dramatic.
Cimolino and Designer Julie Fox
can orchestrate a scene change in the time it takes for the lights to go off
and on again. At the end of the scene where the murderers attack Banquo, for
example, in their botched attempt to kill him and his son in the dark, the
lights go down and on again. In that miniscule interval the scene has changed
from the murder venue to the brightly lit banquet scene with the table and
guests in place. One of many coups de théâtre.
The entrance of the ghost of
Banquo in the Banquet Scene is quite effective but Cimolino goes one step
further by having the ghost of Duncan, the murdered king walk on the table.
The scene where the apparitions
appear is staged skillfully with the frightful creatures rearing their heads
from a cauldron and the suddenly disappearing.
Cimolino is not quite as lucky
with his cast. Ian Lake is in his seventh season with the Festival but one
wonders if he is quite ready for the role of Macbeth. He spoke some of the
dramatic lines of the murderous king almost matter-of-factly. He rose to some
dramatic heights but his voice never resonated with Shakespeare’s poetic
language.
Krystin Pellerin had better luck
as Lady Macbeth perhaps because it is a shorter and more intense role. One
hopes for more intensity, however, when she berates her husband when he
hesitates to go through with the murder. She pummels him into submission in a
few lines and he agrees to go through with the heinous act like a faithful
puppy.
Members of the company in Macbeth. Photography by David Hou.
Cimolino adds a nice touch to the
relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. They meet in their bedroom upon
Macbeth’s return to his castle to announce the coming of Duncan. Macbeth takes
off his upper clothes to display his muscular body. There is a strong sexual
attraction between the two as well as a hunger for power.
The Porter (Cyrus Lane) is
supposed to be funny but that happens more in theory than on stage. In this
production he garnered a few genuine laughs.
Michael Blake delivers a solid
performance as Macduff. Sarah Afful as Lady Macduff and Oliver Neudorf as Young
Macduff get us through the scene before they are murdered with ease. It is a
scene that easily descends into bathos and saying that they did a good job at
it is no small compliment.
In the final scene, Macduff
produces Macbeth’s severed head and everyone celebrates the recognition of
Malcom as the new king. As the crowd gathers around Malcolm, we see the faces
of the Three Witches. We started with these weird sisters and they deserve
special mention as played by Brigit Wilson, Deidre Gillard-Rowlings and Lenise
Antoine Shelley. They are just what their attendant spirits and an attentive
audience ordered. And with them we are back where we started.
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