Review: Robert LePage Directs MACBETH at the Stratford Festival

After successfully changing the game back in 2018 with his innovative production of CORIOLANUS, Director Robert Lepage is back at the Stratford Festival with a production of MACBETH that is sure to be the talk of the town. Cinematic, inventive, and captivating from start to finish, this is unlike any production of MACBETH you have ever seen. And it works incredibly well.

LePage’s production is set in the world of biker gangs in the ‘90s, with the castle now being a motel, the Porter the motel clerk, and our main characters various members of biker gangs with their titles being patches embroidered on their leather jacks. I must admit that when I first heard that the Stratford Festival was going to do ‘MACBETH…but on motorcycles,’ I was a tad trepidatious. I enjoy a hot new take on a Shakespearean tragedy as much as the next person, but when an oft produced story is dropped into a very specific world, it runs the risk of having the audience sit there quietly thinking to themselves “but…why?” the entire time. This production succeeds at telling the tragedy of Macbeth without ever feeling like it has fallen into a gimmick. LePage and the company he has assembled are fully committed to this vision, and every choice and effect feels justified and earned.

As LePage points out in his Director’s Notes, the hierarchical and patriarchal systems that exist within biker gangs, as well as the seedy and illegal activities that have historically taken place in that world, fit right into the world of Macbeth. Manhood and masculinity is a pervading theme in MACBETH and LePage highlights the toxic masculinity that exists within these gangs, where violence is essentially a rite of passage. When considered through this lens, it’s actually a surprise this take on the Scottish Play hasn't happened sooner!

LePage’s vision goes beyond the biker setting and ‘90’s grunge-rock style music accompanying the transitions between scenes though. There are effects used in this play that are so spectacular and so clever, that audiences will be thinking about them long after the curtain call. One such effect is the frequent use of a giant mirror as a backdrop. The brilliance of this cannot be overstated, as it doesn’t just allow for creative effects for visions and ghosts and all things unnatural, it also works to make everything look bigger and vaster. – A forest of trees looks like it never ends; there are scenes with 5 actors on stage but it looks like an army, etc. Beyond this, there is of course the fact that mirrors and reflections are already symbolic in this play. One scene in particular that has always involved a mirror, is portrayed as literally as it is described in the text, and it is nothing short of visually stunning.

There are multiple moments – apparitions, wire work, clever transitions between scenes, etc. that I would love to gush about, but I genuinely do not want to spoil the surprise! I will say though that one set change is so quick and so clever that it elicits a loud chuckle and instant applause from the audience despite it occuring immediately after one character meets his untimely demise. This hardly takes the audience out of the action though, and it is much deserved.

For the cinematic presentation of it alone, it makes sense that this production is on the Avon Theatre stage, but beyond that, with the e-bikes and massive (I mean MASSIVE) sets utilized in this play, it simply could not be on any other stage. The motel set truly is something to behold. Separated into three pieces that come together like a giant puzzle, rotating at times between the interior and exterior, it is incredibly impressive. Stage Management and Crew are undoubtedly kept busy with this production and their skill is rightly acknowledged when they are all present on stage for the curtain call.

As impressive as the production value is, what elevates it is the cast. As Macbeth, Tom McCamus is excellent. I have seen him play many a Shakespearean King, and in all this time, I had not realized that what we have truly been waiting for is his turn as a grizzled elder biker. He sells this vibe well, with his gravelly voice further accentuating it. Lucy Peacock’s Lady Macbeth is a hardened biker broad who has seen some $h!t, and Tom Rooney’s noble and emotionally available Macduff appropriately feels just a touch out of place in this world of bikers and murderers. Maria Vacratsis is superb as the Porter - who always seems to be my favourite character in any production of MACBETH. Her no-nonsense “over it” attitude as a motel clerk who has certainly witnessed and participated in many a nefarious act, is perfection.

This production of MACBETH is not to be missed and my best piece of advice is actually to go in knowing as little about it as possible (beyond what you read here, of course)!

MACBETH continues in Repertory at the Avon Theatre until November 2nd.

Photo Credit: David Hou