Photo Source: Carol Rosegg
At times this device and some of Russell’s additional concepts work very well; at others they’re just confusing. I suspect that the prerecorded scenes with Duncan were made out of necessity, because of the actor’s schedule more than for artistic purposes. Easton delivers a credible monarch, but as he is never physically onstage, it dulls the impact of Macduff’s murder. In the case of the young boy playing little Macduff, the video scenes are effective. Russell stages his dialogue with his mother as if she is watching him on a baby monitor. Macbeth enters the shot and rips the camera connection out, causing the screen to go blank, to Lady Macduff’s horror. The tyrannical thane then arrives onstage, his hands dripping with blood. It’s a scary moment, and Russell’s production has its share of such innovative variations on traditional staging, but there are also more than a few missteps.
Russell gives the Macbeths a dead child, opening with Lady Macbeth watching videos of the once-happy couple attending their offspring’s funeral. What’s more, a huge picture of parents and baby is superimposed on the back wall throughout much of the action. This adds a more humane dimension to the title character’s drive for power, but Ty Jones’ and Melissa Friedman’s performances as the ambitious pair fail to reflect this subtext. The sad lady and lord in the pictures bear no resemblance to the bloodthirsty duo perpetrating Duncan’s murder, in order to gain Scotland’s throne. Both actors successfully convey the need for royal glory, but they make no connection to the new cause behind it that Russell has provided. Their silent scenes remembering the dead child seem to be totally separate from the rest of the production.
Other directorial choices are more effective, including having the three witches—here two men and a woman—play most of the other roles, such as the murderers of Banquo and members of Macbeth’s retinue. This shows that the supernatural trio, representing cruel fate, has a controlling hand in Macbeth’s destiny, despite his attempts to have the final say. But the device causes problems when one of the witches rapidly switches back and forth between Lady Macbeth’s doctor and Seyton, her husband’s lieutenant. James Wallert plays both as comic stereotypes, distracting from the more dramatic action of Macbeth dealing with his wife’s demise and the advance of Malcolm’s troops.
In spite of these miscalculations, Russell gives the play a rapid pace, and the small cast gets across the terror and intensity of the political intrigue and the horrors of brutal, unchecked ambition. Godfrey L. Simmons Jr. makes MacDuff a tough old bird of a solider, battling fiercely despite scars and limp. Lori E. Parquet endows his lady with a steely spine and a compassionate heart. Julian Rozzell Jr. is truly creepy as the most mysterious of the witches and gives equal satanic glee to his other roles, including the drunken porter and a craven killer. He even manages to makes some of Russell’s more bizarre choices work, such as having the trio make its famous brew in a Crock-Pot.
Presented by Epic Theatre Ensemble at the 47th Street Theatre, 304 W. 47th St., NYC. April 30–May 26. Wed. and Fri., 8 p.m.; Sat., 2 and 8 p.m. (Additional performances Thu., May 17 and 24, 8 p.m.; no performance Sat., May 26, 8 p.m.) (212) 279-4200 or www.ticketcentral.com.
