Rufus Norris
His wife Tanya Ronder (Superstition, 2001, Shoot the Messenger, 2006) is a talented and accomplished actor and writer from Scotland. They were married in 1995 and have two teenage sons.
“We have a very close marriage and family so the breakdown of this very close relationship between the Macbeths was something that interested me, they are actually a very happy couple before the rot sets in, that is what sets them apart,” he said.
Rufus’ Macbeth is set in the ruined aftermath of a bloody civil war.
Ruthlessly fighting to survive, the Macbeths are thrust towards the crown by forces of elemental darkness.
Designed by Rae Smith (War Horse) this new production propels Shakespeare’s classic into a world of anarchy and uncertainty.
Actors Rory Kinnear and Anne-marie Duff starred in the original production at the Olivier in the National Theatre, which ended last month.
The cast for the touring production has not yet been announced.
The award-winning director is no stranger to the stage of the Theatre Royal.
His production of Festen for the Almeida theatre was nominated for five Olivier awards including best new play and toured here in 2006.
His production of the hit musical Cabaret starring Samantha Barks, Karl Moffat, Henry Luxemburg, Jenny Logan, Matt Zimmerman and a large ensemble castwas at the theatre in 2008 and he brought The Country Girl to Bath before its West End transfer.
The 53-year-old director is pretty prolific.
His 2012 film Broken premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and received the Golden Eye award for best international film at the Zurich film festival, and at the 2012 British Independent Film Awards it won the award for Best British Independent Film.
Growing up in Africa and Malaysia, Rufus wanted to bring a global aspect to Shakespeare’s Scottish play.
He also knows Scotland very well as his wife is from there.
“Macbeth is one of the first plays I saw performed live.
“I was studying at Kidderminster College of Further Education when a touring company came with the play, it had a real effect on me.
“I think it was a real inspiration for me and my career, it was a real key moment.
“I am excited to be touring around the country with Macbeth, I think the protest Brexit vote tells us a lot about the way people around the country feel, they are disgruntled understandably and I am delighted to be able to take the work to places out of London, we are a national theatre company in every sense of that word.
“Macbeth is an extraordinary play, and the brilliance of Shakespeare means it is so relevant now, it shows the real pressure of leadership, we worked on how we were going to bring this extraordinary play to new audiences, especially young people.
“I know a lot of schools will be watching it in Bath and I think there is a lot in there for them.
“There is obviously the fighting, the war but there is a lot more, I wanted it to be accessible especially to young people and that is why it is such a modern setting.
“When I come to doing any play I always ask two questions: why and how. Why do Macbeth, and how will I do it?
“I think the timing is right. Young people know all about Syria, Afghanistan, Libya, the Balkans, the Congo, the refugee crisis, they see it on the news, it is not difficult to imagine a post-war situation these days.
“It is also the right time in my personal life, our youngest son is doing GCSES and our older boy is studying English and classics, sometimes it just happens to be where you are emotionally at the time.
“Macbeth is a play which gets straight into the action from the beginning, there’s no mucking about like in Romeo and Juliet, we are straight into the play after the first line.
“I sat down with my team and we decided how best we would do this, the set, the design, we decided to have a modern or futuristic setting, this should appeal to audiences.
“The touring side is the really exciting bit. We are the National Theatre so we want to be a truly national theatre, to bring productions to people all around the country, I can’t wait to see how it goes down.”
Some critics have not liked the way he has cut the Shakespearean lines.
“All Shakespeare plays have to be cut, otherwise they are too long.
“As in all live productions teacher guidance is always helpful but I hope young people will enjoy this Macbeth.”
He is changing the witches for the touring productions; they will feature more than in the London premiere.
“One of the big themes in Macbeth is childishness, how this affects decision making.
“We know Lady Macbeth has lost at least one child, quite recently, Macbeth had no children, this has a lot to do with everything, with their futures.”
THE NATIONAL THEATRE PRODUCTION OF MACBETH TOURS TO BATH FROM TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 27 UNTIL SATURDAY, DECEMBER 8. FOR TICKETS VISIT THEATREROYAL. ORG.UK OR TELEPHONE 01225448844