Pulp Reviews: Macbeth

Ellie Stephenson reviews SUDS’ 2020 major.

I’ve come to Erskineville’s Pact Theatre for SUDS’ Major Production of 2020: Macbeth. The set, designed by Ro Roberts and Paris Paris, is complete with a live band and awash in eerie blue light. A stone well surrounded by greenery is the main detail on stage. Light fog hangs in the air. 

Macbeth, starring Frank Yang as the eponymous Scottish Thane and Sophia Bryant as Lady Macbeth, stays faithful to its source material while creating an appropriately gloomy, supernatural atmosphere. Yang plays a powerful Macbeth, particularly in the second half of the play where his descent into authoritarianism and madness is compelling. Bryant’s portrayal of the hallucinating, haunted Lady Macbeth, especially in the sleep-walking scene, is equally strong. 

The supporting cast played their roles with passion. Maddie Gelagin was an emotive Lady Macduff, and Patrick Holman’s grief at her death was palpable. The Weird Sisters, played by Eve Madden, Sienna Barrientos, and Jack Francis West, are suitably creepy. The iconic chant of “double, double toil and trouble” was eerie when combined with plenty of smoke and static-filled projections. 

The costume design from Nina Mountford, Sophie Ohlin and Anika Bhatia is creative. The witches are ragged and mysterious, while the Scottish nobility wear formal attire. Perhaps the most striking costume choice is Lady Macbeth’s nightgown in the sleep-walking scene, the white of the gown stark on the otherwise dark stage.

The music, directed by Matthew Forbes and Jessica Snelleman, complements the performances well. A military motif heralds the nobility onto the stage, while the witches are accompanied by softer and more mysterious sound. 

Director Lincoln Gidney and Producer Jacob Parker have put together a striking production which engages its audience in the source text through emotive acting and effective establishment of mood.