By Robert W. Bethune
The whole can be less than the sum of the parts. So it is with "Macbeth" at the Michigan Shakespeare Festival.
There's plenty of blood, a little very tame sex, and scary Grand Guignol stuff. People pull out swords, stare anxiously into the air, get loud, get soft, get bloody, kneel, hug, kiss, swear oaths, et cetera. All that external stuff is OK, but there isn't enough underneath it. Too much of the production is emotionally perfunctory. Do we just not believe in this kind of evil any more?
There are strong moments, particularly Macduff's outcry for his murdered family (Paul Molnar) and Malcolm's self-denigration to Macduff (Nathaniel Nose). The ghost of Banquo (Tommy Gomez) made my stomach turn.
Pamela Lewis (Lady Macbeth) has a wonderfully dark, ragged voice, but reads the character more as a vicious scullery-maid than a vicious woman of the elite. David Blixt (Macbeth) finds terror while he's covered with Duncan's blood, but is otherwise a remarkably calm and conscientious regicide, despite the text. Blixt and Lewis have little chemistry together. Despite minor sexual contact, I could not see a man and wife, let alone a couple deeply, emotionally intertwined.
There are interesting directorial touches from John Neville-Andrews. "Tomorrow and tomorrow" becomes a suicide note from Lady Macbeth. The Porter has fun insulting the audience, who enjoy it very much. The murder of Macduff's family is intercut with the scenes between Malcolm and Macduff, so that when he cries out against their deaths, their bodies are on stage. Hecate's speech is given to Lady Macbeth.
All the murder victims show up at the end in bloody smocks. Unfortunately, they look like sloppy butchers at the corner grocery rather than murder victims.
REVIEW:
'Macbeth'
Michigan Shakespeare Festival at Jackson Community College's Potter Center, Jackson. Plays in repertory through Aug. 4. Tickets: $23-$26. For information: 517-796-8600 or http://www.michshakefest.org
