Hull New Theatre – until 9th February 2019
Reviewed by Catherine McWilliams
5*****
This National Theatre production of Macbeth is full of fetid air, ambition, madness, intrigue and self-preservation. The production is set in a world which can’t be too far away from ours in terms of years but this is a world full of chaos, where feral characters and gangs are clearly the norm. A world where life is cheap and the ability to align yourself to the right gang a necessity for survival.
The story of Macbeth (Michael Nardone) is of a man who meets some witches who make a prediction that he will be King, encouraged by his wife Lady Macbeth (Kirsty Besterman) he then kills the King and takes the throne. Anything then becomes necessary to him to hang on to his crown and rid himself of his enemies. However Macbeth and Lady Macbeth clearly retain some element of humanity as they sink into madness over what they have done.
I have seen several productions of Macbeth over the years, but this production is the one that makes it all make sense and indeed very plausible. The world of this production is so clearly one of survival of the fittest, a world with no room for sentimentality, a real dog eat dog world.
Rae Smith’s set is stunning, bleak but so atmospheric. The buildings reminding me of World War 2 pill boxes, but it is the little touches – belongings in plastic boxes and a generator that make this world real. Moritz Junge’s costumes are spot on, semi military, but clearly with an element of what could be scavenged to be worn. Lighting (Paul Pyant) and sound (Paul Arditti) complete this world, being particularly effective when the witches are on stage.
This is a talented cast working very effectively as a whole, handling the fights and the silences well. The Director Rufus Norris is not afraid to use silence and stillness in this piece, providing a contrast to the chaos.
Michael Nardone is excellent as Macbeth, portraying his doubts and ambitions beautifully. His “madness” when he sees the ghosts is never over the top, he has just the right touch. His tenderness when he holds his dead wife is breathtaking, equally when he shrugs her aside to get on with the battle.
Kirsty Besterman’s Lady Macbeth is ambitious and pushy and totally believable when she is persuading Macbeth to commit murder. Her descent into “madness” is stunning, no over the top hysteria, a beautifully judged performance.
The production begins with the witches on stage and what a way to begin. Elizabeth Chan, Hauk Pattison and Evelyn Roberts are wonderfully malignant witches, slinking and slithering around the stage, the stuff of utter nightmare.
There were inevitably a lot of school children there last night, but like the rest of us they were totally engrossed in the performance – this production should be required viewing for all those students studying the play.
Shakespeare may have written Macbeth hundreds of years ago but it still has resonance today, this production shows only too clearly a world that could occur very quickly if things break down and whilst there may be no murder, there is still plenty of “back stabbing” going on at the moment.
This is a production that needs to be seen, a classic and very unsettling production and one that I suspect will be talked about for years to come. “Macbeth doth murder sleep” – so very apt for this production.