Macbeth

Genre

Tragedy

Playwright

William Shakespeare

Shakespeare's Globe , London
6th March 2010

Macbeth at Shakespeare's Globe

It's many years since I studied Shakespeare's Macbeth but can still remember things like the 3 witches "when shall we three meet again" speech although I didn't remember the actual plot except that Macbeth was killed by a man who wasn't born of woman.
Loved the way the army came in at the beginnig on the wires and the staging was very imaginative .

The captions were not only helpful for following the dialogue but my husband who is not deaf said it was also useful for knowing who was actually speaking!

I have always loved Shakespeare and seeing a performance with captions was a revelation. I look forward to the next outing.

Submitted: 19/03/10

Current captioned productions at venue

Shakespeare's Globe , London
6th March 2010

Macbeth at The Globe

As a former Head of English who now trains English teachers you have never seen me move so fast to reply to a STAGETEXT email. Would I like free tickets to see Macbeth and The Glo.....YES! Who wouldn't? I often harangue and berate my students at the awful experience of being profoundly deaf, 3 tiers up and 100 metres away from unlipreadable actors doing something on stage with something and saying something and if only I could hear and see I might be able to enjoy the performance. The closest I get in my area is to go to Cambridge for the Shakespeare festival where the performance is 3 feet from me and at least I know all the words!

The Globe? I will openly admit to being on my hands and knees here so excuse me if I talk about the captions in a second and just thrill in the time machine experience of going to The Globe. We visited Borough market prior to the performance and the hemmed crowds, staggering assault on my nostrils and intense variety of people and food was an eviable precusor for stepping back 400 years. The actual building itself houses a wonderful gift shop with dreadful tat at outrageous prices and the usual mill of tourists. One could see professionals at outside performances armed with bags full of fleece blankets and warm attire whilst the novices looked worried in their fashion friendly skinny leggings. It must have been about 5 degrees out there with a tight sharp wind so I was glad to be wrapped up. I was not silly either and rented a cushion for my derriere. If you've not been to The Globe, then you won't know - the stage is almost bigger than the theatre itself. It looms gargantuan like a visitor from Brobdingnad on the shores of Lilliput.

The STAGETEXT caption screen (at last I talk about it) looked tiny in comparison. It was centre height to the right and probably a bit small for such a monolithic and cavernous venue, but in a way I liked the message - the performance is bigger than the lines. It fits with how we train English teachers - plays are for acting not for reading.

The performance itself was really interesting. Pre-show pictures featured Highlander-style broadswords so the traditionalists amongst us were hopeful of a purist performance. However, the opening borrowed from every Vietnam film cliche as it exploded into a zip wire rendition of the bloody sergeant. (I'm afraid in modern performances they tend to start with the sergeant rather than the witches for mis-en-scene reasons.) Sound rocked the stage as the deep masculine and miltary voices of the actors resonated around the all wood venue. I was hearing half the speeches and in the more obscure bits I could use the STAGETEXT captions to keep me going.

10 years of teaching Macbeth to Year 9s for SAT exams means I know half the speeches off by heart, but I still learned a great deal from this interpretation. OK, they were in military uniforms and there was a tremendous amount of movement as they used The Globe's space to its full potential, but otherwise the play was as true to its original as any other I'd seen. The witches were played by youngsters and this was heartwarming to see as they were playing in the big league and holding their own. Overall, the play worked hard to be original around the witches scenes successfully with some neat Hayao Miyazaki touches of billowing black cloth. I loved the updated porter scene who almost stole the show - particularly when he attacked teachers for their holidays - he was buffonery at its best.

What an experience eh? And all I had to do was watch an email pop into my box, read the first 20 words and then click reply without waiting for the rest to register! I urge anyone to go to a STAGETEXT performance, but also to go to the theatre. And in particular, go and see Shakespeare - it's the closest you'll ever get to walking back in time.

Submitted: 20/03/10

Current captioned productions at venue

Shakespeare's Globe , London
6th March 2010

Macbeth at Shakespeare's Globe

My allocated seat, B40, was not acceptable. I had a good view of the stage but the text screen was obscured behind the supporting pillar. If I shifted to my right, I could see the screen but not the stage. After complaining to the attendant, I was moved to the upper level where both the stage and screen were visible. I found the captions a great help except for times when sun came out. Using my programme as a sun shield solved the problem and the entire performance was a success.

Submitted: 20/03/10

Current captioned productions at venue

Shakespeare's Globe , London
6th March 2010

The performance was excellent but very much a '21st century' play! The position of captioning display could be closer to the stage, but I appreciated it might not be easy. The reason was that I had to move my head quite considerably to and fro from the stage. Nevertheless I enjoyed the performance.

Submitted: 20/03/10

Current captioned productions at venue