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By the pricking of my thumbs,
Superstitions Surrounding “The Scottish Play”
There are many superstitions
surrounding the play of Macbeth.
The title itself is said to be so cursed,
that actors should avoid saying
even its name and instead use the
euphemism “The Scottish Play.”
Some avoid quoting the lines from
the play, particularly the Wyrd Sisters
incantations, but generally, <strong>out</strong>side
of a theatre, the play can be spoken
of openly. Some companies require
that if an actor speaks the title of the
play in the theatre, he should leave
the building, spin around three times,
spit, curse, and then knock to be
allowed back in.
The origin of these superstitions? Some say the witches’ speeches are
actual spells, others say because there is more swordplay in Macbeth
than most other Shakespeare plays, there are more chances for
someone to get injured. There is also a legend that the play itself was
cursed because the first time it was ever performed, the actor playing
the lead role died shortly after the production. It is also said that the
original production of the play used actual witches and witchcraft,
and so the play is cursed!
Spotlight, Page 4
T
he shortest, and possibly bloodiest,
of Shakespeare’s plays, Macbeth
tells the story of a general, who on
receiving a prophecy that he will soon
be King, becomes so consumed with
accelerated ambition that multiple
murders and madness ensue.
Though not a complicated play,
Macbeth is powerful, brutal and
intense. Enthralling audiences for
many centuries it is as sure to ensnare
our sensibilities just as readily today
as it did 400 years ago.
The production this spring is directed
by Dr. Patricia Troxel, PCPA’s Resident
Literary Manager and Artistic Associate
and no stranger to the text. Although
she has dramaturged the play six times, taught the text numerous
times and seen the play more times than she can possibly remember,
this will be her first time as director. Choosing to set her production
in the historical period of the play’s events, PCPA audiences will find
themselves in the dark brooding lowlands of 9th century Scotland.
Director’s Notes
Patricia M. Troxel
– Literary Manager,
Artistic Associate,
Director; Macbeth
Macbeth 2010 is set in the original
historical period of the play’s events.
Traditional productions of this work
often choose to place it in the Elizabethan/Jacobean
period in England
but PCPA’s design team and director
found authentic 9th and 10th
century Scotland to be a far more
intriguing and visually arresting. Fred
Deeben’s costume designs reflect
both the period fashions and specific
markers of rank, social status, gender
and nationality. Since Macbeth
incorporates England and Norway
as players in the world of Scottish politics, Deeben has
selected specific styles and colors to represent those
national distinctions.
Dave Nofsinger’s environmental design for the set expands
the experience of the Marian Theater and places the
audience in the heart of the action. The events triggered
by characters’ choices happen with us, rather than to us.
As Shakespeare intended, we are drawn into the action of
the play through our ability to share the internal emotions
and thoughts of the principal characters. We are also part
of the natural world of Scotland; Nofsinger and director
Troxel drew their inspiration from the ancient ruins of the
Orkney Islands and the natural features of the Scottish
Highlands to interweave the unique world of stone and
wood that is still part of Scotland today.
And while Macbeth is a play that opens and closes in civil
war, it is very much a story of individual conflicts – an
exploration of the dual parallel of man’s choices. As a result,
the design team was also intrigued by the gladiatorial
arena. In this production, that image is a striking feature
of the set and reminds the audience of our potential
complicity in the <strong>out</strong>come of each set of choices.
For this staging, the team has also chosen to explore live
sound design – with an on stage percussionist. Live action
sounds will be heard through<strong>out</strong> the performance, with
director Troxel and sound designer Elizabeth Rebel creating
a vibrant and immediate experience for the audience. In
this play, the author specifically indicated the crucial role
of sound in telling his story; with our ‘live action’ technique,
sound is a character portrayed. All these elements
combine to support Shakespeare’s tale where “function is
smothered in surmise and nothing is, but what is not.”