By Nicolas Tapasco
For several sleepless nights, students have struggled through Shakespeare’s writings for hours before English exams throughout middle, high school, and even the undergrad years (including myself). This has made it a struggle for anyone attempting to adapt the playwright’s original narratives into a modern rendition captivating enough to maintain the audience’s attention, in spite of the author’s beautifully detailed and emotionally complex writing style–an ambitious uphill battle equivalent to Macbeth himself. Thankfully, I’m glad to report that Terry Berliner and her merry cast and crew successfully portray the tragedy through inventive set design, immersive technical effects, and performances worthy of the crown.
The play drives home the feelings of toxic ambition and guilt-ridden madness weaved into the themes of Shakespeare’s classic. What Terry Berliner did was make the emotional state of the characters easily comprehensible through the brilliant use of lighting, sound, and set to communicate the character’s state of mind. Of note was the backdrop of every scene, a large yet subtly skull-shaped fixture with several vines and tattered cloth hung within the frame. At a glance, it’s a background for any scene taking place in an exterior environment. But as the show goes on, the backdrop garners new meanings: Reflecting the corrupted mind of the titular character, first by ambition, then guilt, and ultimately insanity.
Along with a pair of semi-cylinder structures on wheels which represent any interior setting, plenty of mileage is taken from these two half cut columns by the actors who use them as their playground for make-believing mountainous fortresses or simply constructing the composition of a scene.
Furthermore, Macbeth’s emotional swings are stoically performed by Allison Blaize, who impresses the audience with a commanding voice. Along with Annalisa Sevaly’s conniving ability to portray Lady Macbeth, both leads prove their capacity for royalty on stage individually.
However, while sharing the scene, more is to be desired of their chemistry as a unit, not full achieving the emotional heights the union of love and hubris can reach. At worst, their onstage kiss felt stilted. At best, Lady Macbeth’s urgency can be sensed while attempting to reason with a psychotic Macbeth witnessing apparitions of his previous wrongdoing, the apparition being cleverly demonstrated by having the actor turn his back on the audience, boldly breaking convention.
Moreover, the fight scenes fall short of the reality the emotions of the play conveys, which is a shame considering the choreography and blocking of each scene, whether fighting or not, is noticeable throughout. But when six actors are on stage, and neither is convincingly striking the other with the intended impact of their blows, it can’t help but dampen the effect of an otherwise authentically emotional production. The exception was the climactic final battle between Macbeth and Macduff (portrayed boisterously by Evan Moore-Coll) wherein each strike of their swords were felt and heard as the clang of the metal echoed about the auditorium walls, their
ultimate encounter properly encapsulating the weight of Macbeth’s timely end.
Regardless of the missed potential of certain scenes, or sparse moments of lull when the title character is offstage, all is to say I was impressed by the ability of Berliner and her company to maintain the attention of those inclined against Shakespeare’s particular style of writing. My complaints only come from already seeing the ingenuity on display by an excellent team of
artists and wanting more from minute aspects of the production.
Overall, Macbeth is a success for the Brooklyn College Department of Theater, proving an ability for student innovation. I eagerly anticipate their next production. Whether a reinvention of another theater classic or something wholly original, I will be there and so should you.