Macbeth at Illinois Shakespeare Festival

 Shakespeare’s Macbeth is among the most storied plays ever. Set in Scotland and England, the play follows the fortunes and downfall of a Scottish warlord as his ambition creates a sea of blood and guilt.

Illinois Shakespeare Festival has featured Macbeth a number of times, this production represents the festival’s directorial debut at the festival of Corey Allen. The Weird Sisters start the play on a plain stage in the midst of a drifting fog. Their costumes of rags and movement cause the vision to penetrate their shape, but to no purpose. The lighting, sound design, blocking add to an atmosphere of doom and or foreboding.

Enter Macbeth and Banquo, fresh from a victory over Macdonwald, Thane of Cawdor, and leader of the forces of Ireland and Norway. Greg Beam plays Macbeth in a partial kilt that evoked a timelessness of utility and grace. The scene, though, is almost stolen by Jordan Coughtry, in similar attire, as Banquo.

It is true, I think, that Shakespeare wrote powerful supporting characters. And in many productions characters like Banquo become audience favorites. We identify with these characters when they are powerfully acted, and Coughtry is powerful. We, the audience, are fully on board with a human and sympathetic Banquo acted by Coughtry.

But this is a Shakespearean tragedy and soon Banquo is dead, replaced by Macduff, played by Nate Cheeseman. Again, the audience is soon identifying with Macduff.

Jessica Dean Turner (L) as
Lady Macbeth, Greg Beam (R) 
as Lord Macbeth. Photo: Pete
Guither. 

But Macbeth has people in his corner too, notably Lady Macbeth, played by Jessica Dean Turner. An understated villain, Lady M moves through subtle costume changes, while remaining largely above the river of blood she encourages her husband to create.

I’ll try to summarize one of the highlights: seeing the costume of Greg Beam as King Macbeth. A floor-length kilt, with slits front and back, it was elegant and flowing. Of all the wonderful costumes by Nannette Acosta, this costume belongs on the cover of Vogue. Blocking, an issue in many recent ISF productions, was much less an issue in this performance. Some of the sound was muddied during the performance of the Weird Sisters, but overall, the sound design improved. And the lighting, as I mentioned earlier, was evocative and suggestive.

• Macbeth written by William Shakespeare.
• First performed at The Globe Theatre in 1606 (e).
• Illinois Shakespeare Festival

• Ewing Manor, 48 Sunset Rd., Bloomington, IL 61701 (55 miles from Krannert Center

  for the Performing Arts)

• Social Media:

• Illinoisshakes.com

• facebook.com/IllinoisShakes/

• instagram.com/illinoisshakes/?hl=en
  

• Tickets: $27-$48. Season tickets, student and group discounts

  available.
  

• Through August 3rd.
• Reviewed by Patrick Boylan

Nya Garner, Jocelyn Maher, and Sophie Anne Miller as
the Weird Sisters (The Witches).