Released:
2008-04-13

Overview:
Verdi’s admiration for Shakespeare led to such masterpieces as Othello and Falstaff, and if the earlier Macbeth isn’t on their exalted level it’s still a powerfully dramatic opera that hews closely to the original’s story line. The MET’s production retains the dark aura of the opera while updating it to a vaguely post-modern context. So the witches are bag ladies in various stages of decrepitude, with children in tow. The Banquet Scene features lowered chandeliers, a plethora of chairs, and a slew of extras dressed in tuxedos and party gowns. Macbeth sports a leather coat, the soldiers are in drab brown uniforms and seem to have fingers on their triggers even when they’re supposed to be in non-threatening situations. Director Adrian Noble also has Lady Macbeth do an inordinate amount of writhing around and singing from a lying-down position, adding to the feeling that a less interventionist directorial hand might have generated more impact.

Director:
Gary Halvorson

Runtime:
2h 37min

Genre:
Drama, Music

• Cast:
• 
  Željko Lučić
  as
  Macbeth
• 
  John Relyea
  as
  Banquo
• 
  Maria Guleghina
  as
  Lady Macbeth
• 
  Elizabeth Blancke-Biggs
  as
  Lady-in-waiting to Lady Macbeth
• 
  Dimitri Pittas
  as
  McDuff, Thane of Fife