Getting behind Lady Macbeth’s motivations
A FEW MONTHS back, Artist Playground presented James Chalmer’s
Prelude to Macbeth — a 40-minute play showing the growth of Lady Macbeth from a distraught, ruined woman named Lorna Stewart, to a seductress aiming for the throne.
Now, the Prelude has been woven into an abridged version of Macbeth, with director Roeder Camanag reasoning that both plays would provide an adequate explanation into the hows and whys of both Lady Macbeth and her husband.
He titled the mash-up M Episode, a play of two parts, because he found it interesting to weave both plays together and have the viewers witness the rise and fall of the Lord and Lady Macbeth while providing a little bit of back story, creating a congruent story,
For those new to Prelude, it shows how the unmarried Lorna Stewart ( played by Mariella Munji Laurel) decides to leave her newborn child in the woods while Macbeth mourns the loss of his wife. Seeing a dark future ahead of her, Lorna is suddenly visited by the three witches and is told that she will soon be queen. Spurred into action, she then decides to seduce Duncan, King of Scotland (played by Andre Tiangco), to fulfil the prophecy.
Ms. Laurel’s portrayal of the soon- to- be Lady Macbeth during a press preview showed much of the backbone of the woman who would soon conspire to kill the king and then become queen, her potential to be a full-fledged villain.
She is never made out to be a victim in this play as her pluck, notable in her interaction with the three witches (played by Tasha Guerrero, Princess Tuason, and Jeremy Cabansag) where she treats them with disdain and suspicion until she is convinced to take the throne.
“Using heightened language was a challenge,” Mr. Camanag told the press during the preview on June 15, but added that challenges were something the theater group is wont to do.
While Paul Jake Paule had the brooding Lord Macbeth down pat, his delivery leaves much to be desired as awkward pauses and sometimes unfeeling speeches smack of rote memorization. Macbeth’s famous “Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow” soliloquy in Act V was delivered with passion but without enough grief for the fallen Lady Macbeth.
But language aside, what is notable about M Episode is its choreographed movement — the almost dance-like murder of Banquo ( played by Anjo Resurreccion) and Duncan and the omnipresence of the three witches. “What I have tried to do with M
Episode is to provide a moment carpet in which the Shakespearean text can, so to speak, float. The intent is not so much dance or movement but an approach that is choreographic,” Myra Beltran, the play’s choreographer, said in a press statement.
And it succeeded during the preview as the foreboding and grim music by Jesse Lucas was put front and center as the witches and other spirits danced and gyrated on stage while delivering and fulfilling their visions.
The witches almost never leave the stage, cementing their unsettling characters with costumes which are more like flowing burial shrouds. Most of the time they are treated like props but their watchful eyes help maintain the atmosphere of inevitable tragedy. M Episode might not be the most stellar staging of the revered play as it was cut down to fit the prelude resulting in some scenes being out of place ( like the death of Macduff’s wife and children), but it is certainly a worthy attempt by Artist Playground to make sense of the tragedy of Macbeth.
Performing in Prelude to Macbeth are Paul Jake Paule as Macbeth, Jernice Matunan and Mariella Munji Laurel alternating as Lorna, Mitoy Sta. Ana and Andre Tiangco alternating as Duncan, Juan Carlo Martin Pacheco and Vincent Pajara alternating as Callum, Tasha Guerrero, Marjorie Duldulao, Princess Tuason, Kia del Rosario, Jeremy Cabansag and Kathleen Francisco as the Spirits.
Performing in Macbeth are Paul Jake Paule again as Macbeth, Mailes Kanapi and Cathrine Go alternating as Lady Macbeth, Anjo Resurreccion (Banquo), Mitoy Sta. Ana and Andre Tiangco alternating as King Duncan, Al Gatmaitan (Macduff), Vincent Pajara ( Malcolm), Dan Sheneill Solis (Fleance), Juan Carlo Martin Pacheco ( Ross), Basty Batistis ( Porter), Gry Gimena (Lennox), Marjorie Duldulao and Tasha Guerrero alternating as Lady Macduff, Tasha Guerrero, Princess Tuason, Kia del Rosario, Jeremy Cabansag, Marjorie Duldulao and Kathleen Francisco alternating as the Three Witches,
M Episode by Artist Playground has performances from June 23 to July 1 with the Friday shows at 7 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday shows at 3 p.m. The final date, July 1, will have a 3 p.m. and a 7 p.m. show.
It will be shown at the Artist Playground II Arts Above theater at the penthouse of the West Venue Bldg., 112 West Ave., Quezon City.
For tickets and inquiries, visit the group’s website at www.artistplayground. ph or call 0975- 919- 3179. —