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Theatre

Macbeth, National Theatre review ★★★★★

26 Feb 18 – 12 May 18, 7:30 PM – 10:00 PM

Rufus Norris' Macbeth, starring Rory Kinnear and Anne-Marie Duff loses the poetry in a hollow, overdone production

By Lucy Brooks on 8/3/2018

10 CW readers are interested
Rory Kinnear as Macbeth, National Theatre 2018. Photo by Brinkhoff Mögenburg
Rory Kinnear as Macbeth, National Theatre 2018. Photo by Brinkhoff Mögenburg
Macbeth, National Theatre review 2 Macbeth, National Theatre review Naomi Barker
National Theatre artistic director Rufus goes to town with the supernatural strangeness of Macbeth.


It's the first time the sanguineous tragedy has been performed at the National since 1993. It's been even longer since Norris has helmed a Shakespeare production, and he had strongly hinted at a bold, boundary-breaking production.


The show certainly looks striking. Designer Rae Smith turns the vast Olivier stage into a post-apocalyptic world dominated by black bin bags, dismembered baby dolls and, of course, copious fake blood. Actors are dressed in ragged, grungy khakis and everyone’s face is grubby. The three witches are accompanied by liberal gusts of smoke and an over-the-top soundscape of echoes, chirrups and breathy repetition. Violence and chaos dominate.


While it all makes a strong aesthetic statement, there is little bearing on the story. The heath and the aristocratic hierarchies are dislocated in this murky contemporary setting, which fails to clarify or sharpen Shakespeare’s text. Norris's choice to cut crucial scenes and break the rhythm of certain lines can feel reductive; some of the play's most powerful poetry gets lost in the sound and fury of the production.




Anne-Marie Duff as Lady Macbeth in Macbeth at the National Theatre (c) Brinkhoff Mögenburg

Coherence and impact come from the very capable cast.


Rory Kinnear’s characteristic crisp, mercurial performance makes his Macbeth an intriguing figure, wavering between guilt, ambition and arrogance right to the final fight scene in Dunsinane. But there’s no new urgency to the character, no real hook through which to understand the 'black and deep desires' that propel the tragedy.


It’s Anne-Marie Duff’s Lady Macbeth who really captures imagination. Right from the offset as her husband returns from battle, she is charged with a nervy intensity that makes sense of both the scheming strength and decline into madness.


With two such accomplished actors, this Macbeth could never be a total dud. But after two and half hours of rather hollow, grating visual spectacle, we can't help thinking this show would be more powerful if it was stripped back and simplified.




What Macbeth, National Theatre review
Where National Theatre, South Bank, London, SE1 9PX | MAP
Nearest tube Waterloo (underground)
When 26 Feb 18 – 12 May 18, 7:30 PM – 10:00 PM
Price £15 - £65
Website Click here to book via The National Theatre



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We recommend nearby

  • Green Room

    A great place to eat or relax, the Nation Theatre's Green Room is enclosed in a sustainable garden, which acts as an urban oasis amid the hustle and bustle of the Southbank. The Green Room is open from noon until midnight from Monday-Saturday, and until 10pm on Sundays.

    Read more...

    Culture Whisper is your ultimate guide to the newest, most exciting cafés, bars and restaurants in London and we are sure you will love Green Room!

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