Nature of the Arts
Mrs. Sharp name: period:
The play begins with the brief appearance of three Witches, planning to meet with Macbeth. The action then moves to a military camp where the Scottish
King Duncan hears the news that his generals, Macbeth and Banquo, have
Characters
Macbeth
Lady Macbeth defeated two invading armies, with Macbeth brutally murdering the opposing general in battle. On their way home from the battle, Macbeth and Banquo encounter the Witches, who predict that Macbeth will be made Thane of Cawdor and eventually King of Scotland. They also predict that Banquo will father a line of
Banquo
Fleance
Duncan
Three Witches kings, although Banquo will not be King himself. The Witches vanish, Macbeth and Banquo are shocked and interested to know more. Then, some of King
Macduff
English Army
Duncan’s men come to tell Macbeth that he has just been named Thane of
Cawdor. Macbeth writes to his wife to share his news with her, and his
Murder (all) uncertainty about what it means. He tells her that he is on his way home and that the King is coming to visit them that night.
Lady Macbeth does not share her husband’s uncertainty. She decides they should murder Duncan and make her husband King. Lady Macbeth talks to Macbeth and convinces him to commit the murder. While
Duncan is asleep, Macbeth murders him. To ensure there are no witnesses, Macbeth also murders Duncan’s two guards. When the King’s death is discovered the next morning by the other Lords, Banquo and Macduff included, everyone is outraged Duncan’s sons Malcolm and Donalbain flee to England and Ireland respectively, fearing that their father’s killer will murder them as well. Macbeth easily assumes the kingship.
Fearing the Witches’ prophecy that Banquo’s heirs will seize the throne, the new King Macbeth hires a group of men to murder Banquo and his son Fleance, but Fleance escapes into the night. Macbeth is furious: his troubled mind is further distressed at a banquet that night, when he is visited by Banquo’s ghost. When he sees the ghost, he talks wildly and is obviously upset by the murder he has just ordered. Lady Macbeth tries to soothe him and tells the guests that this is just a sickness he has had since childhood. She finally gives up and sends everyone away while she tries to figure out what’s wrong with Macbeth.
Macbeth goes to visit the Witches again. He is told he must beware of Macduff but that he is incapable of being harmed by any man born of woman; and that he will be safe until Birnam Wood comes to
Dunsinane Castle. Macbeth is relieved and feels secure, because he knows that all men are born of women and that forests cannot move. When he learns that Macduff has fled to England to join Malcolm, he orders the murder of Lady Macduff, her children, and all the servants of the house.
On hearing the news of his family’s slaughter, Macduff is stricken with grief and vows revenge, joining
Prince Malcolm, Duncan’s son, who has succeeded in raising an army in England. Meanwhile, Lady Macbeth, is having nightmares, is sleepwalking, talking to herself, and thinks she sees bloodstains on her hands. Macbeth is preparing for battle. As his enemies approach, Macbeth receives news that his wife is dead. Macbeth is left numb with fear when he learns the English army is camouflaged with tree boughs cut from Birnam Wood, fulfilling half of the Witches’ prophecy: Birnam wood is on the move. Despite the dire circumstances, Macbeth vows that he will not give up and that he will fight until the end. Malcolm’s forces are surrounding the castle, lead by Macduff, who is on the hunt for the murderous fiend. Macbeth is confronted by the vengeful
Macduff, who declares that he was not “of woman born” but instead had a caesarean birth and was from his mother’s womb “untimely ripped.” The two fight but the tyrant Macbeth is killed by the noble Macduff.
Malcolm becomes King of Scotland, like his father Duncan before him, bringing an end to this time of unease and murder.
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The play begins with the brief appearance of three Witches, planning to meet with Macbeth. WHOOSH! The action then moves to a military camp where the Scottish King Duncan hears the news that his generals, Macbeth and Banquo, have defeated two invading armies, with Macbeth brutally murdering the opposing general in battle. WHOOSH! On their way home from the battle,
Macbeth and Banquo encounter the Witches, who predict that Macbeth will be made Thane of Cawdor and eventually King of Scotland. They also predict that
Characters
Macbeth
Lady Macbeth
Banquo
Fleance
Duncan
Three Witches
Macduff
English Army
Murder (all)
Banquo will father a line of kings, although Banquo will not be King himself. The
Witches vanish, WHOOSH! Macbeth and Banquo are shocked and interested to know more. Then, some of
King Duncan’s men come to tell Macbeth that he has just been named Thane of Cawdor. Macbeth writes to his wife to share his news with her, and his uncertainty about what it means. He tells her that he is on his way home and that the King is coming to visit them that night. WHOOSH!
Lady Macbeth does not share her husband’s uncertainty. She decides they should murder Duncan and make her husband King. Lady Macbeth talks to Macbeth and convinces him to commit the murder.
WHOOSH! While Duncan is asleep, Macbeth murders him. To ensure there are no witnesses, Macbeth also murders Duncan’s two guards. When the King’s death is discovered the next morning by the other Lords,
Banquo and Macduff included, everyone is outraged WHOOSH! Duncan’s sons Malcolm and Donalbain flee to
England and Ireland respectively, fearing that their father’s killer will murder them as well. Macbeth easily assumes the kingship. WHOOSH!
Fearing the Witches’ prophecy that Banquo’s heirs will seize the throne, the new King Macbeth hires a group of men to murder Banquo and his son Fleance, but Fleance escapes into the night. WHOOSH! Macbeth is furious: his troubled mind is further distressed at a banquet that night, when he is visited by Banquo’s ghost.
When he sees the ghost, he talks wildly and is obviously upset by the murder he has just ordered. Lady
Macbeth tries to soothe him and tells the guests that this is just a sickness he has had since childhood. She finally gives up and sends everyone away while she tries to figure out what’s wrong with Macbeth. WHOOSH!
Macbeth goes to visit the Witches again. He is told he must beware of Macduff but that he is incapable of being harmed by any man born of woman; and that he will be safe until Birnam Wood comes to
Dunsinane Castle. Macbeth is relieved and feels secure, because he knows that all men are born of women and that forests cannot move. When he learns that Macduff has fled to England to join Malcolm, he orders the murder of Lady Macduff, her children, and all the servants of the house. WHOOSH!
On hearing the news of his family’s slaughter, Macduff is stricken with grief and vows revenge, joining
Prince Malcolm, Duncan’s son, who has succeeded in raising an army in England. WHOOSH! Meanwhile, Lady
M19.5

Macbeth, is having nightmares, is sleepwalking, talking to herself, and thinks she sees bloodstains on her hands. WHOOSH! Macbeth is preparing for battle. As his enemies approach, Macbeth receives news that his wife is dead. Macbeth is left numb with fear when he learns the English army is camouflaged with tree boughs cut from Birnam Wood, fulfilling half of the Witches’ prophecy: Birnam wood is on the move. Despite the dire circumstances, Macbeth vows that he will not give up and that he will fight until the end. WHOOSH!
Malcolm’s forces are surrounding the castle, lead by Macduff, who is on the hunt for the murderous fiend.
Macbeth is confronted by the vengeful Macduff, who declares that he was not “of woman born” but instead had a caesarean birth and was from his mother’s womb “untimely ripped.” The two fight but the tyrant
Macbeth is killed by the noble Macduff. WHOOSH! Malcolm becomes King of Scotland, like his father
Duncan before him, bringing an end to this time of unease and murder.
M19.5

Creating Your Own Whoosh!
With your group, you will create a retelling of the story (so far – no spoilers please!) from the point of view of a character you create. In Shakespeare’s version, we get the story primarily from Macbeth’s point of view, but this is a chance to see the story from another character’s perspective. Within your group, decide from whose point of view you should retell the story. Some possible options are:
 One of the other key characters such as Macduff, Banquo, or Lady Macbeth
 One of the minor characters, for example, Seyton (Macbeth’s servant), one of the murderers, Ross, or
Lennox
 An important character who only has a short life within the play, such as Duncan
 Inventing a new character of your own, for example, a fellow soldier of Macbeth’s who stays in the army, a court jester, a cook or other servant, an English soldier who marches toward Dunsinane with Malcolm, etc.
 A character who is dead, for example, Banquo’s ghost.
In addition, discuss with your group the reasons and context of why your character is telling the story and to whom.
Consider when your character is telling the story and under what circumstances.
For whatever character your group creates, make sure you develop his/her character traits and perspective on events. Be sure to know who he/she is, what is his/her relationship to the Macbeths, where your character’s story begins, where the character is when he/she is telling the story, what the most exciting things are from the perspective of your character, and how your character feels at the end of your version of the story.
As a group, work together to tell the story of the play from this character’s point of view. You should each take a turn telling the story, as the character you’ve created, from the beginning to the end. Each group member’s part should be 1-2 minutes long and should be told from the first person point of view.
Each group should create a short scene which sets the context for your story and allows the character you’ve created to speak the story within that context. Be prepared to present your scenes and tell your stories to the class as a whole.
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