Daniel Craig and Ruth Nega in “Macbeth”: a theatrical review

Theater goers can be confused when they enter the Longacre Theater to see a new Broadway play. Macbeth With Daniel Craig and Ruth Nega. The stage is devoid of scenery, the back wall of the theater is exposed. Actors dressed in street attire roam the stage, several cooking at one end. In the wards, more of them stand and chat amicably. If you look closely, you’ll see Craig hugging one of them and whispering words of encouragement in his ear. Surely we went to dress rehearsal by mistake?

Unfortunately, the answer to this question will be no. Instead, we’re there to witness director Sam Gold’s latest insanely inconsistent attempt to breathe new life into a classic. Perhaps we should have referenced the product’s marketing, where the stars’ and director’s names are clearly represented, while Shakespeare is nowhere to be found. In hindsight, this is commendable because it belongs so much more to Sam Gold. Macbeth than peas.

Before the play begins, we will have a folkloric performance by actor Michael Patrick Thornton, who plays Lennox. He gives us some information about the work we are going to see, in the process his name is missing. “Oh, I guess I shouldn’t say that,” he says shyly, referring to the “Scottish play” curse supposedly inflicted by witches that promises disaster for anyone who dares to perform in a theater. Thornton then raises the bar and invites us to repeat the title silently and out loud, a request abused by the audience.

If the director’s intention was to prove that the curse is alive and well, it comes to light. Forget that the production was forced to cancel many performances because several of its actors, including Craig, tested positive for COVID. This sad reality has affected many performances since the theater resumed. Or rather, that’s all Macbeth It’s so incredibly misleading and ineffective that you can practically hear the witches whispering in the background. And I don’t mean those on stage.

It would be wrong to say that production suffers from an abundance of bad ideas because ideas are not found. Plus, it was as if the director had rounded up his incredibly diverse cast and told them to decide on a few concepts and let him know what they had in mind. Any member of the public who is not very familiar with the play might think this Shakespearean child is seriously exaggerated.

Speaking of hype, maybe it’s time to add gold to the list. Although he has done an excellent job with works as new as fun house, Film s doll house part 2His background with the classics, especially Shakespeare, leaves much to be desired. By presenting a tense and moving staging othello In a play that Craig also starred in a few years ago in his plays villageWith Oscar Isaac and King Lear, starring Glenda Jackson, was widely considered a disaster. This last attempt is located directly in the last field.

Macbeth This is one of Shakespeare’s shortest and least challenging plays, but you can’t understand it in this play, which seems endless. The show guide provides a backstory and guide to the characters the actors play, which is helpful as almost all of them have dual and triple roles to completely confusing effect. Don’t look for general clothing help that doesn’t offer both “fashionable clothes” and “whatever artists wear”. The commentary of the play’s two playwrights suggests that the “simplicity and flexibility in which the language of the play carries narrative and expressive weight, confers a high level of imaginative participation.”

This is a wonderful theory if we assume that actors exert this expressive weight in conveying language. Not so, unfortunately. On paper, dropping two anchors seemed pointless. Craig performed excellently and muscularly as Iago at Gold’s othelloAnd Nega with his myriad Hamlet vision manifested itself in the products he saw in the Brooklyn St. before the pandemic. Both can be seen here at sea. Craig Macbeth generally appears to have a mildly troubled midlife crisis, and while he speaks the language effectively, he shows little emotional connection to words. When he utters the catchphrase “tomorrow, tomorrow and tomorrow”, the phrase “sound and anger mean nothing” has never been more appropriate. The less Nega conveys his character’s cruelty and mad ambition, the more he finds himself with a torn wife who had until now She watches television from the sofa with her husband.

Support players don’t fare much better, although that might not be their fault as many of them have done an excellent job in the past. Paul Lazarus is no less a king than King Duncan, which doesn’t make him a great reporter after Duncan’s death. Stripping off his fat suit and wearing only his underwear, he stands in front of the curtain as if it has fallen and mutters, “Ouch, bird,” a sentiment the audience will wholeheartedly agree with.

Asia Kate Dillon so convincing of her heavily restrained hand on Showtime BillionHe makes little impression as Malcolm, except for his light purple hair. Of the rest, only Amber Gray (hedestown) How Feminized Bank and Granta Coleman manage to distinguish themselves in the role of McDuff.

To provide a suitable evocative atmosphere, many actors are running around with portable smoke machines which unfortunately are ineffective because we can still understand what is happening on stage. Gold also relies heavily on Galen Leah’s horror movie music for horror effects, though the high-pitched chords when Macbeth kills Duncan makes us think about watching it. Psycho Rather than. After committing one of his murders, the festive Macbeth opens a can of beer (light, of course; James Bond can’t physically drink ordinary things), in one of many silly-sounding anachronistic touches. but hey what is it Macbeth Without some laughs?

There is no scenery on the stage (it would be Well Bourgeois), except for a few simple chairs for Macbeth, indicating that the Scottish kingdoms were buying from Design Within Reach. The attire is particularly brutal, Craig was forced to wear a green velvet blazer, showing he’s going for a “Volare” and more of a winter coat, which is less indicative of Thane of Cawdor than a willing pimp. Transformed into one of the costumes, Nega wears a 1960s-style layered dress that Charo found very chic.

At the end of the piece, the performers sit on the stage, pass the cups of food, and continue on happily with the sweet pleasure as if they were tired from the exertion. But if anyone needs an award after this exciting production, this one is for the viewer.

Location: Longacre Theatre, New York
Cast: Daniel Craig, Ruth Nega, Che Ayende, Philip James Brannon, Lizzie Brooks, Jared Canfield, Grantam Coleman, Stevie Ray Dalimor, Asia Kate Dillon, Maria Dizzy, Ronald Emily, Ebony Flowers, Amber Lauer, Paul G Bobby Mackenzie, Peter Smith Michael Patrick Thornton Danny Wolohan
Director: Sam Gold
Playwright: William Shakespeare
Executive Producer: Patrick Dali
Scenography: Christine Jones
Costume designer: Suttirat Larlarb
Lighting designer: Jane Cox
Sound Designer: Mikaas Sulaiman
Original Music: Gaelyn Lea
Presented by Barbara Broccoli, The Schubert Organization, Michael G. Wilson, Frederick Zolo, Christian Anderson, Keith Anderson, Brian Carmod, Patrick Milling-Smith, No Guarantees, Brian Anthony Morland, Annapurna Theater, Berdel Productions, Bob Boyett, Caledonia Productions, Empire Street Productions, Jeffrey Finn, John Gff Mini Cooper, James L. Nederland, RDR Productions, Daryl Roth, Orin Wolf