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Flora Dixon as Lady Macbeth (Photo: Sarah Lines)
Hiring period costumes and war equipment was never going to be enough for 3Bugs Fringe Theatre. In this brilliant production of Shakespeare’s supernatural tragedy, they took things one step further and hired a house.
They could not have found a more atmospheric, appropriate and downright ingenious location. Guided by an usher, groups of 25 followed the action round the rooms and grounds of a genuine Tudor manor, through bedrooms, kitchens and dining rooms complete with the museum’s furniture and props such as real bread and chicken. The resulting audience experience was of being a fly on the wall in the lives of some of literary history’s greatest characters. Anything but static, the production brought the audience to the story rather than the story to the audience.
At around an hour and a quarter, it might have been titled ‘Macbeth: The Best Bits.’ However, this decision from directors Elmina Ferguson and Daniel Pitt was a wise one and not at all to the detriment of the production. All the best scenes were included without compromising the audience’s attention span and sore feet.
Not that the audience would have had difficulty concentrating with the captivating cast. Macbeth’s terrified rages and moments of passive weakness were well played by David Gray, while the Three Witches (Kelsey Barr, Natalya Paul and Jess Smith) spooked arriving audience members in character before the play had even started. Wandering the grounds dressed barefoot in billowing nightdresses, their curious body language made for a unique portrayal. Of notable mention also the bloodcurdling murder scene of Lady Macduff (Johanna Clarke) and Hannah Parker, who shuffled along convincingly in the background in the minor role of the Gentlewoman. The most illuminating performance, however, came from the beautiful Flora Dixon, whose Lady Macbeth was at once tragically human and intimidatingly evil. Expertly flicking between sobbing and laughter, Lady Macbeth became a scheming, female Jekyll and Hyde. Her interpretation of the ‘Out Damn Spot’ soliloquy demanded a tangible attention from an emotional and affected audience.
An awesome outdoor battle scene ensured mouths were definitely hanging open by the end. Swords and crew from the Battle Re-enactment Society, spectacular choreography and the eerily-lit outdoor setting provided a thrilling and memorable end point to the drama.
All hail 3Bugs…
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