ACTING SHAKESPEARE: A Roundtable Discussion with Artists from the Utah Shakespearean Festival’s 2010 Production of Macbeth

Abstract

Flachmann: Welcome to the culminating event in our Wooden O Symposium, the Actors’ Roundtable Discussion on Macbeth. I’m going to take you right from the frying pan into the cauldron and remind the actors that in our November design meetings, our director, Joe Hanreddy, told us that our witches would not have any supernatural powers in this production. He described them as “psychic groupies, sweetlooking young girls, but not well-kempt.” [laughter] We envisioned them as people who could suggest but not control events. I’d like to know from each of the actors how this initial design decision to deny supernatural powers to the witches affected your role specifically and the production in general.