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Reviewed by:
  • Macbethby Berkeley Repertory Theatre at the Roda Theatre
  • Carla Della Gatta
MacbethPresented by Berkeley Repertory Theatre at the Roda Theatre, Berkeley, California. 02 19– 04 10, 2016. Directed by Daniel Sullivan. Scenic design by Douglas W. Schmidt. Costume design by Meg Neville. Lighting design by Pat Collins. Sound design and original music composed by Dan Moses Schreier. Video design by Alexander V. Nichols. Fight direction by Dave Maier. Dramaturgy by Barry Kraft. Production stage managed by Michael Suenkel. With James Carpenter (Duncan/Porter/Doctor), Scott Coopwood (Lennox), Gene Gillette (Bleeding Captain/Seyton), Conleth Hill (Macbeth), Christopher Innvar (Banquo/Siward), Eddie Ray Jackson (Donalbain), Korey Jackson (Macduff), Billy Eugene Jones (Ross), Adam Magill (Malcolm), Rami Margon (Witch), Frances McDormand (Lady Macbeth/Witch), Nicholas Pelczar (Angus), Tyler Pierce (Fleance), and Mia Tagano (Lady Macduff/Witch).

When tickets for Berkeley Repertory’s production of Macbethwent on sale, they sold out almost immediately. Though some of the excitement was perhaps due to the rarity of seeing a Shakespearean play on Berkeley Rep’s stage, as this was only their sixth in the last thirty years, it primarily stemmed from the announcement that Frances McDormand and Game of Thronesstar Conleth Hill were cast as the leads. With two highly lauded actors headlining the project, director Daniel Sullivan did not stage the play with an elaborate concept or make any significant changes to the text. A bare-bones Macbeth, with sparse sets and props, the production left the actors and the action to dominate the stage.

As spectators entered the theater, images of blue and black clouds projected on the scrim signaled nighttime. The audience quieted and a voice over the intercom warned of the use of strobe lights during the performance. A forest image materialized on the back scrim, and the lighting illuminated a textured bark design on the wings. The three weird sisters came onto the stage. Dressed in thick beige robes akin to those of destitute scavengers, they moved ably through the forest. The opening line, “When shall we three meet again?” (1.1.1), was spoken by the First Witch, who was nearly unrecognizable in the heavy costuming and [End Page 521]headpiece. But the sound of her voice quickly identified her as Frances McDormand.

The double casting of McDormand as the First Witch and Lady Macbeth placed her onstage for a greater number of interactions with Macbeth, and with the cast as a whole, than any actress usually has in this play. Her face and body were not always discernable, as the costuming of the weird sisters changed frequently, but her presence became a mainstay throughout the production. Although Macbeth speaks more than twice as many lines as Lady Macbeth and the First Witch combined, McDormand was made central to the action through her double role and through the staging. She was the first person onstage at the start of act one, she was onstage as the production ended, and she was the only person onstage as the curtain came down for the intermission. The performance’s first half ended with Lady Macbeth seated alone at the banquet table facing the audience, wringing her hands with uncertainty. McDormand’s silent curtain line functioned as an eerie precursor to the sleepwalking scene and emphasized her fate, rather than Macbeth’s.

In addition to McDormand being double-cast, several other actors took on multiple roles. James Carpenter portrayed a sincere Duncan and a regretful Doctor, but it was his third role as the Porter that vivified the show. Employing a Scottish accent for this character, carrying a clanging set of keys, and moving with great physicality, he served as demonic comic relief amidst the brewing tragedy. His tall and lanky Porter, seemingly fearless, became frightened by the sounds of approaching birds and dropped his coveted keys. Although the red lighting produced a demonic effect, he exclaimed, “But this place is too cold for hell” (2.3.13–14) with fervor, causing the audience to laugh. When delivering Shakespeare’s only knock-knock joke, Carpenter posed the question to the audience rather than answering it himself. The audience responded with “Who’s there?” and roared with laughter. Barry...

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