Macbeth
-An Introduction-
Macbeth: An Introduction
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Macbeth is among the best-known of
William Shakespeare’s plays.
Shakespeare’s shortest tragedy.
Believed to have been written between 1603
and 1606.
Macbeth: An Introduction
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It is frequently performed at both amateur
and professional levels, and has been
adapted for opera, film, books, stage and
screen.
Often regarded as archetypal, the play tells
of the dangers of the lust for power and the
betrayal of friends.
The Many Meanings of Macbeth
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A historical thriller
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a fast-moving, action-packed
murder mystery demonstrating
that crime doesn’t pay
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A psychological study of
a murderer’s mind
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A play of political and
social realism
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how oppressive and
hierarchical society can corrupt
individuals
A play of illusions
the effect of the mysterious or
supernatural on humans
A play of ideas or themes
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for example, “appearance
versus reality”
A tragedy
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the fall of a great person
brought about by a fatal flaw in
their character
The Real Macbeth
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king of Scotland
(1040–57).
He succeeded his
father as governor of
the province of Moray
c.1031
was a military
commander for
Duncan I.
(Right: portrait of Macbeth)
The Real Macbeth
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In 1040, Macbeth killed Duncan in
battle and seized the throne.
Possibly of royal descent himself,
he acquired a direct claim to the
throne through his wife, Gruoch;
she was a granddaughter of
Kenneth III, who had been
overthrown by Duncan's ancestor
Malcolm II.
(Right: portrait of Duncan I)
The Real Macbeth
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Macbeth represented northern elements in the
population who were opposed to the ties with the
Saxons advocated by Duncan.
Macbeth was defeated in 1054 by Siward, earl of
Northumbria, who regained the southern part of
Scotland on behalf of Malcolm Canmore, Duncan's
son.
Malcolm himself regained the rest of the kingdom
after defeating and killing Macbeth in the battle of
Lumphanan. He then succeeded to the throne as
Malcolm III.
The Real Macbeth
William Shakespeare's version of the story
comes from the accounts of Raphael
Holinshed and Hector Boece.
“The Scottish Play”
There are many superstitions centred on the
belief that the play is somehow “cursed”.
“The Scottish Play”
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Explanation #1
Shakespeare is said to have used the spells of
real witches in his text, purportedly
angering the witches and causing them to
curse the play.
“The Scottish Play”
Explanation #2
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Struggling theatres or companies would often put
on this popular 'blockbuster' in an effort to save
their flagging fortunes.
However, it is a tall order for any single
production to reverse a long-running trend of poor
business.
Therefore, the last play performed before a theatre
shut down was often Macbeth, and thus the
growth of the idea that it was an 'unlucky' play.
“The Scottish Play”
Explanation #3
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Theatre companies may have used Macbeth as a back-up play
if they were to lose an actor and were not able to perform the
production originally planned for the performance.
Macbeth requires fewer actors (when doubling of characters
for actors occurs) and has the least amount of text for the
actors to memorize.
Macbeth may have been the play kept in theatre companies'
back pockets, just in case some bad luck were to occur prior
to any planning of a performance.
“The Scottish Play”
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A large mythology has built up surrounding
this superstition, with countless stories of
accidents, misfortunes and even deaths, all
mysteriously taking place during runs of
Macbeth (or by actors who had uttered the
name).
Many actors will not mention the name of
the play aloud, referring to it instead as "The
Scottish play".
“The Scottish Play”:
A Chronology of Misfortunes
Here are some of the gory particulars:
Beginning with its first performance, in 1606, Dear
Will himself was forced to play Lady Macbeth when
Hal Berridge, the boy designated to play the lady
with a peculiar notion of hospitality, became
inexplicably feverish and died. Moreover, the bloody
play so displeased King James I that he banned it for
five years.
“The Scottish Play”:
A Chronology of Misfortunes
When performed in Amsterdam in 1672, the
actor playing Macbeth substituted a real
dagger for the blunted stage one and with it
killed Duncan in full view of the entranced
audience.
“The Scottish Play”:
A Chronology of Misfortunes
As Lady Macbeth, Sarah Siddons was nearly
ravaged by a disapproving audience in 1775;
Sybil Thorndike was almost strangled by a
burly actor in 1926; Diana Wynyard
sleepwalked off the rostrum in 1948, falling
down 15 feet.
“The Scottish Play”:
A Chronology of Misfortunes
During its 1849 performance at New York's
Astor Place, a riot broke out in which 31
people were trampled to death.
“The Scottish Play”:
A Chronology of Misfortunes
In 1937, when Laurence Olivier took on the
role of Macbeth, a 25 pound stage weight
crashed within an inch of him, and his sword
which broke onstage flew into the audience
and hit a man who later suffered a heart
attack.
“The Scottish Play”:
A Chronology of Misfortunes
In 1934, British actor Malcolm Keen turned
mute onstage, and his replacement, Alister
Sim, like Hal Berridge before him, developed
a high fever and had to be hospitalized.
“The Scottish Play”:
A Chronology of Misfortunes
In the 1942 Macbeth production headed by
John Gielgud, three actors -- Duncan and two
witches -- died, and the costume and set
designer committed suicide amidst his
devilish Macbeth creations.
“The Scottish Play”:
A Chronology of Misfortunes
The indestructible Charlton Heston, in an
outdoor production in Bermuda in 1953,
suffered severe burns in his groin and leg area
from tights that were accidentally soaked in
kerosene.
“The Scottish Play”:
A Chronology of Misfortunes
An actor's strike felled Rip Torn's 1970
production in New York City; two fires and
seven robberies plagued the 1971 version
starring David Leary; in the 1981 production
at Lincoln Center, J. Kenneth Campbell, who
played Macduff, was mugged soon after the
play's opening.
“The Scottish Play”:
A Chronology of Misfortunes
Even brave and talented actors like Glenda
Jackson to Ian McKellen don’t refer to this
haunted play by name, but instead call it
“That Scottish Play” or simply “That Play”;
everyone, it seems, will get the message, in a
flash.
“The Scottish Play”
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Several methods exist to dispel the curse, depending
on the actor.
One is to immediately leave the building the stage is
in with the person who uttered the name, walk
around it three times, spit over their left shoulders,
say an obscenity then wait to be invited back into the
building.
Another popular "ritual" is to leave the room, knock
three times, be invited in, and then quote a line from
Hamlet.
Yet another is to recite one of Shylock's monologues
from The Merchant of Venice.
Witches & Witchcraft
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A witch-mania
characterized the
Elizabethan era.
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Most people believed in
witches and circulating
pamphlets containing
tales of witches and
witchcraft were the
equivalent of today’s
popular newspapers.
Henry Fuseli, The Three Witches
Witches and Witchcraft
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Witches were said to have “diabolical” powers. They could:
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predict the future
bring on night in the daytime
cause fogs and tempests
kill animals
curse enemies with fatal, wasting diseases
cause nightmares and sterility
take demonic possession of any individual
raise evil spirits by concocting a brew
It was believed that witches allowed the devil to suck their blood.
Accused witches were examined for the “Devil’s Mark” - a red
mark on their body from which the devil had sucked blood.
Witches and Witchcraft - Misogyny?
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Between 1560 and 1603,
hundreds of people, nearly all of
them women, were convicted as
witches and executed
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In 1604 an official Act of
Parliament decreed that anyone
found guilty of practicing
witchcraft should be executed
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Those who confessed to being
witches did so under torture or
because they were in the grip of
delusions recognized today as
psychiatric disorders.
The Witches
AKA the Weird
Sisters
Macbeth and Banquo meet the witches
(Act I, scene iii) by Johann Heinrich
Fussli
Portrayal in the 2006 film version
of Macbeth
Painting by William
Rimmer depicting the
witches’ conjuration of
an apparition
(Act IV, scene i)
The Witches
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They tell Macbeth that he is destined to be
king, and urge him to do bloody things.
The word weird comes from the old English
word “wyrd” which means fate
The Witches
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Their character is
modeled after Norse
mythology- the Norns
(three Fates)
the name Urðr (Wyrd,
Weird) means "fate" or
simply "future",
The norns- by Arthur Rackham
The Witches
The witches were also modeled after the
Three Fates of Greek and Roman mythology
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They controlled the metaphorical thread of life of every mortal and
immortal from birth to death .
The names of the three Parcae (Roman Fates) were:
Nona - spun the thread of life from her distaff onto her spindle. Her Greek
equivalent was Clotho;
Decima - measured the thread of life with her rod. Her Greek equivalent
was Lachesis;
Morta - was the cutter of the thread of life. She chose the manner of a
person's death. When she cut the thread with "her abhorrèd shears",
someone on Earth died. Her Greek equivalent was Atropos.
The Witches
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Represent darkness, chaos and confusion.
“Fair is foul and foul is fair”- a contradiction.
Evil is good, while good is evil.
The Witches
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“Double, double toil and trouble” – they cause
more grief for the mortals around them.
The witches never actually tell Macbeth to
kill Duncan, but merely tempt him with the
idea of becoming king.
What theme of temptation might
Shakespeare be representing here?
Images of Macbeth
Creation Theatre CompanySummer 2006 production,
Oxford, England
Roman Polanski’s 1971 film
Poster advertising a performance
at The University of Texas at
Austin
What are your thoughts on the
mood of this poster? What
techniques are used to evoke this
mood?