Macbeth Wore Jungle Combat Boots: Door Shakespeare's MACBETH

At some point during the performance, I had begun to wonder whether or not I'd ever seen a production of Macbeth that I was satisfied with. I know I'd probably written positive reviews of the show in the past. (I seem to remember quite liking James DeVita in the title role at APT some time ago) but I've never been completely satisfied with a production of Macbeth. Generally considered to be one of William Shakespeare's greatest works, the play has a very palpable energy about it that doesn't feel terribly deep to me. With Macbeth, Shakespeare is foreshadowing the works of Michael Bay and James Cameron. There isn't a whole lot of intricacy or originality here, but Shakespeare puts it together in a highly commercial package which continues to be successful to this day. 

The play makes an appearance outdoors in rotation with Love's Labour's Lost this summer in Door County as Door Shakespeare brings it to its intimate outdoor stage. Directed by Jason Economus, the play stars Reese Madigan in the title role. He and the rest of the ensemble do a pretty good job of bringing the basics of the tragedy to the stage. There was kind of a lot in the way of me enjoying it personally, though. 

First off--the bloodiness and aggression of war is brought to the stage through the use of obviously blunt Kendo stick-style swords which are also used to represent rifles. (Period ambiguity in the costumes as well--Macbeth wears jungle combat boots, for instance.) Without any clear definition, the sticks feel kind of generic and the rest of the production design doesn't quite bing forth the reality of the brutality in a way that makes that ambiguity feel at all dangerous or formidable. This is a play set in a dangerous world, but we only see vague shadows of the brutality of that world. And the shadows that we see aren't all that convincing to me. 

The problem of the lack of visceral danger represented in the production is dwarfed by the problem of intensity in Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Here they are shown almost immediately to be quite aggressive. They are physically aggressive with their affections. Macbeth doesn't seem particularly torn about what he's doing. He's not struggling against his fate or questioning it all that much and those moments which he might be feeling some sense of self-doubt come across as a mixture of annoyance and frustration here. The way Madigan came across to me was more of a cliched, traditional villain than a character of any complexity. As a result, there's a kind of beautiful aggression and ambition that plays out over the course of the tragedy, but without it being tempered by any significant sense of psychological vulnerability, there's nothing to contrast ambition and aggression against.

To be sure, this is a way to play Macbeth. And I could even see how it might be satisfying to some people. I think I need more of a turmoil to assert itself behind the portrayal of the title character early on before I can really be drawn-in. And that didn't happen for me here. 

The rest of the cast does a pretty good job. Danny Junod plays a formidable Banquo. David Folsom is appropriately intense as Macduff. Bret Tuomi has a weary regality about him as King Duncan. Jeff White musters a youthful sense of authority as Malcom. Director Jason Economus gets to act drunk in a few scenes as porter and guard. 

The witches are kind of classy here . . . each distinct and placed at different perches throughout the audience Carley Cornelius has a saturnine beauty about her as one of the sisters. Kate Zehr seems like a dark and somber imp as one of the sisters. Casey Wortmann seems dazzlingly ravaged by dark forces as another sister. They carried themselves in a way that was powerfully transcendental. The costuming and make-up helped a little bit, but opening night there were gasps during one of the three sisters' exits as a bat from one of the surrounding trees flapped into view and followed them offstage. I can relate to the bat wanting to hang out with those three characters. It probably just thought Cornelius and Wortmann and Zehr were really cool in the roles and wanted to say something. 

As usual, outdoor theatre throws in a few surprises like that. Shortly after the final climactic scene in the tragedy, there was what appeared to be ghostly whit luna moth fluttering a crazy arc through things. Kind of a nice touch there. Certain soliloquies were accompanied by the right amount of breeze through the trees to make it all feel electric in the right ways. And with a new lighting set-up featuring work by designer Jason Fassl, those scenes that happened after dark were absolutely beautiful in places. 

Door Shakespeare's Macbeth runs in rotation with Love's Labour's Lost through August 17th at Björklunden in Baileys Harbor in Door County. For ticket reservations, call 920-839-1500 or visit Door Shakespeare online.