84. Macbeth - RST

This is one of those productions that completely blew me away and I’m not sure if I’ve completely sorted out my thoughts and feelings about it yet (though that might partly be down to cramming so much theatre in to such a short time frame). It’s an incredibly clever production. Whilst Michael Boyd may not be as impressively flashy as Rupert Goold or as able to completely re-envision a play; I find his depth of understanding no less imaginative or magical and with Macbeth he has combined his cleverness and inventiveness with a strong emotional core and an intensity that left me shaken and shaking by the end. In fact my main problem with writing this review has been working out how to elaborate the wealth of interconnecting concepts and where to begin.

58. Macbeth - Belt Up at Clerkenwell House of Detention

Macbeth was one of the Shakespeare’s I studied at school and I vividly remember (being the only one in the class who apparently could speak verse) reading both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s parts out loud. It’s made this one of those plays that I’m irrationally fond of, but so far I’ve somehow managed to only see the play once before, with Song of the Goats slightly unusual lyrical approach last year, a situation I was keen to remedy. Belt Up have also been on my list of troupes to catch for a while after hearing interesting things. So hearing that Macbeth and Belt Up were combining themselves with the creepy Clerkenwell House of Detention not far from where I worked, I couldn’t resist.