Geraldine Hakewill and Jai Courtney in the MTC’s Macbeth. Photo by Jeff Busby
Simon Phillips’ latest Macbeth for the MTC (his previous staging of the play was presented in 1989, during his tenure as the company’s Artistic Director) is visually rich but emotionally wanting; a fast-paced take on the rise and fall of the Thane of Glamis, whose vaulting ambition – spurred on by supernatural forces – leads him into murder, regicide and tyranny.
The production begins strongly, with the three witches (Shareena Clanton, Jane Montgomery Griffiths and Kamil Ellis) already on stage as the audience enter, seated prosaically at a bus stop – which is soon destroyed as a bomb explodes, illustrating both the witches’ chaotic and disruptive power, and the production’s war-on-terror inspired aesthetics. Later, thanks to these three actors doubling in key roles, it seems like the witches are lurking everywhere, hiding in plain sight like members of a terrorist cell and urging events on to their inevitable, bloody conclusion.
This early scene has so much promise: the importance of time in the play is evoked wordlessly and cleverly (even those unfamiliar with the play will surely think of timetables and disrupted journeys as they watch on), and the production’s contemporary setting works a treat as the witches pull out mobile phones to respond to their familiars: ‘Paddock calls.’
It’s when the play moves on to its next, visually striking sequence and introduces its Macbeth (WAAPA-trained Hollywood actor Jai Courtney, best known for films as Terminator Genisys and Suicide Squad) that this production stumbles. Put simply: Courtney has the robust physicality to convince as a brutal Scottish warlord but he lacks the acting skills to convey the character’s ambition, imagination, and ‘black and deep desires’. His delivery of Shakespeare’s verse is workmanlike but lacks poetry, and his limited range is especially noticeable opposite Geraldine Hakewill’s Lady Macbeth (who impresses in a performance that balances ferocity with fragility). Lines such as ‘Oh, full of scorpions is my mind, dear wife!’ are delivered with exaggeration rather than conviction; Nor is there strong chemistry between the two.
Tonally the production feels like an action movie rather than a drama, despite some fine performances from some of the remaining cast – most notably Griffiths, who shines in every scene she’s in, in the dual role of Witch and Nurse. Robert Menzies delights as the Porter while also bringing conviction and gravitas to the roles of King Duncan and the Doctor; it’s a shame neither he nor Griffiths have more stage time. Dan Spielman’s intense Macduff compels, Kevin Hofbauer makes an excellent Banquo in his MTC mainstage debut, and the production’s culturally diverse casting is to be applauded.
Shaun Gurton’s set designs – ranging from a burnt-out war zone to a sumptuous banquet scene – impress, unlike Ian McDonald’s sound design, which is as unsubtle and intrusive as a bombastic Hollywood film score. The array of militaristic costumes by Esther Marie Hayes are generally fine, though highlight some occasionally awkward sartorial choices: Lady Macbeth’s red dress marks her a little too obviously as immoral (though it also helps her stand out amidst a generally gloomy colour palette) while the decision to dress the Murderers as hoodie-clad junkies – rather than, say, battle-hardened soldiers of fortune, who might be more in keeping with the tone of the production – grates. It’s never a comfortable feeling hearing a well dressed opening night crowd laughing at depictions of the Australian poor.
The production moves at a cracking pace, but often feels like it’s skating across the surface of events rather than truly getting to grips with the horror and intensity of proceedings. One moment late in the piece illustrates this all too well: the murder of Lady Macduff and her son. Phillips crafts a genuinely shocking image here, but rather than let us linger on it, follows it up with a cartoonishly choreographed shooting, which drains almost all menace from the scene. Indeed, most of the fight scenes are poorly staged, the final confrontation between Macbeth and Macduff almost ludicrously so.
While visually rich and displaying flashes of engagement and intensity, overall this Macbeth underwhelms. It has sound and fury in abundance; what it lacks – to quote another poet – is passionate intensity.
2 ½ stars out of 5
Melbourne Theatre Company presents
Macbeth
By William Shakespeare
Directed by Simon Phillips
Set Designer: Shaun Gurton
Costume Designer: Esther Marie Hayes
Lighting Designer: Nick Schlieper
Composer: Ian McDonald
Voice & Text Coach: Leith McPherson
Associate Director: Dean Bryant
Cast: Jai Courtney (Macbeth), Geraldine Hakewill (Lady Macbeth), Rodney Afif (Ross), Shareena Clanton (Lady Macduff/Witch 2), Kamil Ellis (Fleance/Witch 3), Tom Hobbs (Malcolm), Kevin Hofbauer (Banquo), Robert Menzies (Duncan/Porter) Jane Montgomery Griffiths (Witch 1/Nurse), Dan Spielman (Macduff), Dylan Watson (Donalbain/Seyton), Lachlan Woods (Lennox)
The Sumner, Southbank Theatre, Melbourne
5 June – 15 July 2017
