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Macbeth
Presented by:
Eagle’s Nest Theatre
Venue: Studio 2,
Northcote Town Hall
Reviewer:
Daniel Coghlan
Date Reviewed:
Tuesday 18th August 2009
Eagle’s Nest Theatre Company’s latest production of Macbeth
has been advertised as, “Shakespeare as it should be – no frill,
plenty of thrills & chills.” This is exactly the approach that the
company has adopted, performing Macbeth as it may have been
in the early 17th century.
This traditional approach allowed the audience to reflect on the
characters’ journey into inner conflict and, in some cases madness,
rather than on the regal costumes, dazzling effects and modern
adaptations that are seen in many contemporary Shakespeare
productions.
Most of the acting performances demonstrated a strong knowledge of
the text and of Shakespearean verse. Jason Cavanagh as the title
role was a stand out, creating a completely three-dimensional
characterisation of the tragic king. Elizabeth Slattery gave a
fantastic performance as Lady Macbeth, revealing the dark
motivations of her character that eventually lead to her absolute
derangement.
As always with productions of Macbeth, the three witches were an
exciting breath of fresh air. Kendy Gable, Poppy Tremayne and
Stephanie Evison-Williams portrayed each ‘weird sister’ with their
own individual nuance. Poppy Tremayne also appeared as the role of
Lady Macduff, a scene of intense emotion that is often overplayed.
Her performance in this short scene was excellent and it was
disappointing that her talents were limited to only few scenes.
The whole cast worked well as an ensemble, giving the impression
that the onstage relationships were comfortable and real. This was
especially evident in the chemistry between Cavanagh and Slattery,
as Macbeth and his wife, and the unnerving bond between the three
witches.
Sean Kavanagh’s direction definitely supported the actors’
performances. Scenes were mostly blocked appropriately so that a
large number of people were positioned carefully on the small
performance space, although occasionally someone’s lines were
recited from behind another actor. Also, the idea to have the
witches transform the set between each scene reinforced their power
and influence over the play’s action.
Despite the already basic staging, an even more minimalist approach
could have benefited the production. Robbie Lingham’s set consisted
of cardboard structures in the shape of castle walls, towers and
forests. These often distracted from the performance and caused
scene transitions to be slowed down. The opening of Act IV involved
a bare stage except for the witches’ cauldron, which allowed a
much-improved focus on the story line and the actors. The costumes
were strong in some areas, for example the witches’, Porter’s and
regal costumes but were undermined by other anachronistic costumes,
for example tweed coats, dresses and high heels that resembled the
fashion of the 1950s.
The lighting design was very effective in conveying different
locations and moods. The use of a red spotlight was successful in
distinguishing characters’ soliloquies and asides from the rest of
the dialogue. A brilliant soundscape was presented by Daniel Nixon,
which heightened the tone and emotions of the scene. However, the
contemporary scene transition music was somewhat distracting even
with some links to their preceding scenes being evident.
Despite this, Eagle’s Nest Theatre Company’s production of Macbeth
was upheld by dedicated and endearing performances, which allowed
the genuine strength of Shakespeare’s original psychological tragedy
to shine through.
Daniel is a theatre enthusiast and casual actor who is currently
studying Journalism and Drama & Theatre Studies at Monash
University. He has trained with the NIDA Young Actor’s Studio 2007
and also performed in a number of pieces including the role of
Everyman in NIDA’s Everyman and Frederick Fellowes in Noises Off.
With the aim of pursuing a career in theatre journalism he regularly
attends and reviews both mainstream as well as lesser-known or
advertised productions. He keeps a record of these reviews in his
blog:
www.audiencegreenroom.blogspot.com.
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