Review: MACBETH, Wilton's Music Hall

Just like with Romeo and Juliet, there are a few ways to stage The Scottish Play. By leaning into the different themes, it can become a political drama or a kitchen sink tragedy. Then, there's whatever Mark Leipacher's version is trying to do. Performed by only two actors, Shakespeare's tale of ambition and blood-thirst becomes a starved, skeletal shadow of what the piece is.

He removes all characters except the Macbeths, with Lady M being referred to as Bellona (ancient Roman Goddess of War) for the occasion. The rest of the people involved turn into funky gimmicks: a teddy bear here, bottles of wine there. The spouses communicate by letters first, with the Thane reporting on the action from the field, but their isolation fails to sediment the dynamics in the play.

Tonally, it tries to be everywhere at once. The vibe is serious and grave but lacks atmosphere, with the duo attempting to hike up the tension fruitlessly. Silly moments sneak up to skew the style. A few instances of weirdly choreographed physicality follow a person in a teddy costume who's come to haunt Macbeth's PTSD attack; a breaking news segment interrupts their putting on Renaissance funeral blacks when everything else is modern-day, an incessant knocking matched with a heartbeat reminds of Edgar Allan Poe. It's not a cohesive nor a coherent production.

It feels like they're seeking to put an edge on Macbeth, but the material doesn't need it. By opting against staging most of the roles, Leipacher loses out on the chance to nurture the narrative and develop its connections. The result makes the Macbeths seem rushed and haphazard in their drive rather than calculated.

Sophie Spreadbury and Christopher York unfortunately aren't as charismatic either. York gives an ambitious king wannabe who's devoted to his self-assured wife. There's a creeping weakness in his soliloquies that may suggest a fragile direction. Leipacher leaves the actor to his own devices when compared to Spreadbury's performance, who is precise and curated in her part.

It definitely is the Lady Macbeth show. Her childlessness becomes a weapon, an empty crib features at the front of the stage as an ominous reminder. The lack of an heir dooms their legacy, but also deprives her of her own mission in life. Macbeth has his kingdom, she doesn't, so she hyperfocuses on her husband's potential. It would be such a fascinating plot point if it was developed sufficiently.

There's very little exploration of the characters and their purpose. Each scene is introduced with a title and its key players so that the audience doesn't get too lost, but there isn't enough substance to support the transitions or to prop up the Macbeths as the scheming couple they should be. All the cuts and skips don't offer the full picture and, instead of creating a fast-paced, focused environment, the framing slows the action down and muddles its ultimate aim.

In all this, Zeynep Kepekli's lighting design is fascinating in its details. He plays with the visuals, dividing the stage into sections and giving each actor their own colour-coded hue, or altering the perception and speed of a scene with increasingly quicker mirrorball lights. It's splendid work, but obviously doesn't save the production. As well, "What's done cannot be undone."

Macbeth runs at Wilton's Music Hall until 18 February.

Photo credit: Tony Bartholomew

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