Macbeth

International Tour August 2011 - Spring 2012 Macbeth By William Shakespeare Something wicked this way comes... Remotegoat Carrick Biz Stage, Screen... ThePublicReview Oxford Theatre... Three Weeks

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Audience Feedback

 

A big thank you to everyone involved in Macbeth.  I was amongst that fortunate audience in Kendal last night. Such compelling performances on an uncluttered stage - I was on the edge of my seat!!  I have been going to the theatre for as long as I can remember and last night's play will be one of the ones that I will enjoy to rerun in my mind.  There were 2 school groups attending and it was great to see them drawn in and hear them talking afterwards - for those at a play for the first time - they could not have had a better introduction!

Thank you and all good wishes,

Leah

 

Congratulations to the whole company for last night's super performance of The Scottish Play in Stamford. The sound effects , lighting and set were
all superb, , as were the performances. lt was in marked contrast to a
muddled and painfully long - drawn out production we saw at a very
important theatre last year ! lt was a  good introduction to Shakespeare
for our two grand -daughters . The elder one has been bored by it at school but is now a convert , and the 12 - year - old who is a great reader and theatre enthusiast anyway, was wildly keen and said that it was really scary but not in a bad way.

What a great evening ! Sincerely,
Adrienne Leeder

If you could pick the perfect evening to see Macbeth – Shakespeare’s gory and ghostly tragedy – it would probably be Hallowe’en.
Year 10 drama students abandoned trick or treating for the night and headed for the Mumford Theatre in Cambridge to see ‘The Scottish Play’ by the Icarus Theatre Collective.
The language was definitely Shakespeare, the setting Shakespeare but the creepy special effects were very 21st century and perfect for October 31st.
Macbeth’s murder and mayhem were marked by pillars lighting one by one as he became embroiled in more and more evil.
And a little more blood would trickle down from the moon…
The setting was stark and the costumes understated so as not to detract from the language and the actors’ physicality.
The best part was the ghost scene with the audience seeing it both from Macbeth’s point of view (spectre present) and the other characters (spectre vanished).
A traditional much-performed play but the small company produced an imaginative version, making it very much their own.

Kit Turner, Student at Bottisham Village College

Can you please pass on to the cast and crew of the above production my thanks for such an amazing production last night.
With heavy snow forecast, the audience was sparse but that did not diminish the performance of this incredibly talented cast.
I brought along my 14 year old daughter who is just about to start studying Macbeth and she was entranced - the set, effects and sound were so atmospheric and as her very first introduction to Shakespeare it could not have been bettered.
I really was so impressed by every single aspect of the production and I really hope that it gets the plaudits it so richly deserves.
We nearly cancelled when we saw that snow was predicted, I am so very glad we didn't.
Thanks and well done.
Molly, Buxton Opera House, 9th Feb

I was part of a family group that was lucky enough to see your production of'Macbeth' at Stamford Arts Centre on Friday 3rd. My eldest niece is studying the play and her younger sister (12) hasn't seen any Shakespeare live onstage. We hoped that this version would prove a perfect introduction. We were not disappointed!
Vivid, economical, exciting, judiciously cut and acted with energy and
drive, we loved it - thank you all so much! I do hope you get the
enthusiastic and appreciative audiences you deserve as you continue your tour of the country. Your energy reserves must be huge!
I think my niece Bethia summed it up rather well when she said "Scary - but in a good way!"
Corinna Leeder

 

Thirty of our fifth year students had the opportunity to experience the magic of live theatre on Wednesday night last when they attended an excellent performance of Macbeth at The Source Theatre. Directed by  Max Lewendal, the Icarus Theatre Collective’s production of the ‘Scottish play’ has received much critical acclaim and having witnessed Wednesday night’s performance it is fair to say that those positive reviews are more than justified. The acting, particularly by  Joel Gorf, who played Macbeth, and  Sophie Brooke, who played Lady Macbeth, was of a very high quality and the company certainly succeeded in recreating the play’s atmosphere of eeriness and malevolence. The tension in the lead up to Duncan’s murder was almost palpable while other highlights included the porter’s comic interlude and the excellently choreographed battle scenes. It was certainly enjoyed by the students who attended and it should be hugely beneficial in improving their knowledge of and appreciation for the play they will be answering on in next year’s Leaving Cert English exam.

CBS Thurles Secondary School, www.cbsthurles.ie

Just wanted to say how wonderful your performance of Macbeth was at the Key Theatre, Peterborough last night, enthralling and griping from start to finish! My wife and my 12 year old daughter both loved the performance too, you have a very talented company of actors.

Paul Groom

 

Last night was an excellent performance by everyone involved, the ovation at the end was more than deserved.
Paulie Pentelow, Facebook

 

My name is Jennifer Neill and I am Head of Drama at Banbridge Academy and I recently took my A level class to a performance of Macbeth in the
Marketplace Theatre in Armagh.  We were really very impressed by the quality of the production, from the props and staging to the superb acting. The students were motivated by the innovative directorial decisions regarding the characterization of the witches, Hecate and were most impressed by the versatility of the actors, in particular Lady Macbeth and Macbeth. It was impressive to see a production of Macbeth which captured the horror of the script without appearing melodramatic.

Jennifer Neil

 

Utterly stunning performance tonight from start to finish. Heartfelt congratulations and humble thanks to all involved! I was front row centre tonight and I'll be there again when you return with Romeo and Juliet. Can't wait!

Nick Carroll, Facebook

 

Great show tonight...loved it, as did daughter...well done to the team on a great job!! Excellent production and cast were fantastic!!...;))

Sean Toal, Facebook

 

Dear Icarus,

I'm writing with feedback from the production of Macbeth which I
watched last night at The Corn Exchange in Newbury. What a fantastic
evening out!

I was unable to run a full year trip to this play -  but I did my best
to advertise it throughout the school and encourage students to go
themselves with parents.

However, I was able to take a small number of Free School Meals
students whose families would not have had the means, or possibly the
interest, to provide luxuries like theatre trips for their children.
In particular I took a pair of potentially difficult 15 year old twins
boys. They had never been to the theatre before and had no idea how to
behave or what to expect - and they were even nervous at the thought
of meeting the more middle class students there. I was worried that in
long speeches they might be bored, and wondered how they would react.

Amazing! They loved it! The set and soundtrack was immediately
engaging, the performance physical and varied enough to keep interest
even when longer speeches were not understood (by these boys). They
jumped in all the right places - got involved with the plot and the
characters (especially Lady Macbeth whom I thought was excellent) -
and talked about the play all the way home.

Thank you so much for a really successful evening! It's always a risk
taking these kinds of students to these kinds of activities - but I
feel that a light has been switched on in these boys' lives. Please
pass on my thanks to director, cast and set designer. And please add
me to your mailing list. I shall be looking forward to another Icarus
production in the not too distant future.

Yours
Sarah Seath, Head of English, and Able Pupil Co-ordinator - The Downs School, Compton

 

And what a fabulous, passionate performance it was. Thanks for a brilliant evening, very clever and I especially loved the start to the second half.

Rebecca Allsop, Icarus Theatre Collective Facebook Page

 

A brilliant production. Top notch acting, set design and costume. Full of blood curdling action and loads of emotion..
Simon Moore, edfringe.com


Really good-- dark and dramatic and full of energy. Great set and costumes. Well worth seeing; if you are looking to choose one version of Macbeth at the Fringe, this is it.
Robin Richardson, edfringe.com


The range of these actors is phenomenal. Perhaps the best show this year on the Fringe. I was blown away by the sheer passion, especially Lady Macbeth, but, all were good and I will go see any show you put on next year. Whatever it is, will be brilliant.

Jen Butler, edfringe.com


Traditional interpretation and well adapted for one act. Macbeth and Macduff need special mention. Fine performances. Very good set. Set text for next summer's GCSEs so a must for the 15/16 year age group.

Jayne Oconnell, edfringe.com


Seeing The Scottish Play . . . in Scotland? How could it get any better?

The Icarus Collective is producing Macbeth at The New Town Theatre and it is well worth seeing. It is a straight-up, no-holds-barred production of the play.

This is Shakespeare's Macbeth, not an adaptation. While there are the cuts needed to bring the play down to about an hour and 15 minutes, it is already famously one of Shakespeare's shortest plays, allegedly due in part to the perceived impatience of James VI (Scotland)/James I (England) before whom it was performed.

The highpoints: Real credit goes to the art direction of the play. The costumes and sets are entirely in black, red, and white. The sets, while minimal, are highly effective. Keep an eye on the full moon as the play progresses.

There is a great physicality to the entire play. The fight scenes towards the end are brilliantly choreographed and performed.

The actors did a splendid job of bringing the script to life. The cast totals seven playing multiple roles each. Veteran Shakespeare fans should have no trouble keeping them straight, but if you're not familiar with actors playing as many as different parts in the same play, keep an eye on how they dress and behave. With one notable exception (Banquo), if they're killed and you see the actor again you can safely bet they are playing someone else.

While I would credit the entire cast, Joel Gorf is a believable Macbeth who projects his lines with crystal clarity. Sophie Brooks plays a particularly evil and ambitious Lady Macbeth - and later a particularly mad one. Matthew Bloxham played a sympathetic Banquo.

The witches are nicely disgusting without the use of special effects or makeup.

Incidentally, this is one of about 5 different Macbeth's being shown at the Festival. I cannot speak to the others, having not seen them, but understand from the festival literature that this is the one truest to the original.

All in all, the Icarus Theatre Collective's Macbeth has been a high point of our week at the Festival.
Gregory Mersol, edfringe.com


Having read and studied a lot of Shakespeare, Macbeth is by far my favourite play. Unfortunately I had never had the opportunity to see it performed on stage before, and so when I saw it was being performed during the festival I was determined to put this right. Luckily, this performance did not disappoint.

The acting was outstanding, as was the choreography for the fighting. I particularly enjoyed when they re did a scene so you saw it from both Macbeth's perspective and the perspective of the other characters.

The only slight criticism I have is that as it is a small cast some actors played multiple roles and there were a few occasions when it wasn't clear that they had changed roles, so maybe this could have been made a little clearer using costume/props.

Overall though I really enjoyed it and would encourage people to go and see it.
David Barrett, edfringe.com

 

Twitter Feedback

 

B Cook: Fantastic production and superb performances by all. The quality of acting from Joel Gorf as Macbeth and Sophie Brooke as Lady Macbeth make this a must-see production.

Becki Wood, Bexibooxxx @icarustheatre: I agree. All performances were super but Sophie Brooke & Joel Gorf were outstanding. -- icarustheatre (@icarustheatre)

Becki Wood @ Bexibooxxx: I realise now, after watching Macbeth last night, that I found the woman playing Lady Macbeth..inspirational! :)

`*MathewJames*@*mathewmouse@*icarustheatre*: Stunning show at theatre Severn this evening. Thank you!'

Susan Marine @suziemarine *@icarustheatre: Really enjoyed Macbeth last night...excellent performances by all involved. My teen is now planning to re-read play! :-)   

Susan Marine @suziemarine: Wonderful to see my teen so enthusiastic about Shakespeare after seeing Icarus production of Macbeth last night!

Deirdre Bennet @uno2much: Just watched Macbeth with my son and daughter, 14 and 12. Passionate performance, emotional...Brilliant! We loved it, thanks.

Deborah C Foulkes @ Angelicdemons: Just watched a fantastic version of Macbeth by @icarustheatre. The performance reminded me why this is my favourite play.

Steve Johnson @livsdad: Also, enjoyed an inspired production of Macbeth by @icarustheatre collective last night; worth checking out if they're near you!

Kimberley Musson @kimbee7: Just been to see macbeth in worthing. Some great acting... Seriously :)