Download macbeth - Asolo Repertory Theatre

A SO LO RE P EDUCATION & OUTREACH
STU DY GU IDE 2012–2013 NEW STAGES TOUR
A SOLO RE PE RTORY TH EATRE PRESENTS AN
FSU/A SOLO CONSE RVATORY FOR ACTOR TR AIN IN G
PRO DU CTI O N
by William Shakesp eare
a d a p t e d by
Stephanie Fleischmann
& Dmit r y Troyanovsk y
dire c t e d by
Dmit r y Troyanovsk y
TOU RIN G SC HOOL S
OCTOBER– NOVEM BER, 2012
MACBETH CASTS:
TEAM SOUND
Macbeth
ASOLO REP LEADERSHIP STAFF
Producing Artistic Director
MICHAEL DONALD EDWARDS
Managing Director
LINDA DIGABRIELE
FSU/Asolo Conservatory Director,
Associate Director of Asolo Rep
GREG LEAMING
Lady Macbeth
BRITTANY PROIA
Duncan, Doctor
JACOB COOPER
Malcolm, Lady Macduff
SARAH BROWN
Banquo, Macduff’s Son,
Scottish Friend
LINDSAY TORNQUIST
Macduff, Fleance
Director
DMITRY TROYANOVSKY
Adapted by
STEPHANIE FLEISCHMANN
& DMITRY TROYANOVSKY
Original Music by
SASKIA LANE
Resident Dramaturg
LAURYN E. SASSO
Costume Design
MORIA SINE CLINTON
Sound Design
MATTHEW PARKER
Voice & Dialect Coach
PATRICIA DELOREY
Hair & Make-up Design
MICHELLE HART
Stage Managers
ANN E. STENEHJEM & KATY SYLVESTER
BRENDAN RAGAN
TEAM FURY
Macbeth
Lady Macbeth
MACBETH CREATIVE TEAM
JESSE DORNAN
Duncan, Doctor
JOSEPH M cGRANAGHAN
KELLY CAMPBELL
ZAK WILSON
Malcolm, Lady Macduff
ERIN WHITNEY
Banquo, Macduff’s Son,
Scottish Friend
FRANCISCO RODRIGUEZ
Macduff, Fleance
CHRISTOPHER WYNN
TABLE OF CONTENTS
WHY MACBETH?....................................................3
THE IM AGERY OF MACBETH..................................3
CHAR AC TER M AP..................................................4
A PROMISE OF GRE ATNESS..................................5
THE MUSIC OF MACBETH.......................................6
IA MBIC PENTA ME TER............................................7
P O LITICS & P OWER...............................................8
Tour Coordinator
BECCA ROTHMAN
Fight Director
BRUCE LECURE
Music Coach
DON BRYN
ASOLO REP EDUCATION
& OUTREACH STAFF
Education & Outreach Director
BRIAN HERSH
Education Associate
KELLI BRAGDON
Education Apprentice
LILY JUNKER
STUDY GUIDE HOW-TO
Each discussion and activity has been selected to explore
the content and themes of Macbeth. This guide may be used
in its entirety or discussions and activities may be selected to
enhance specific lessons. In this packet, there are activities
for Theater, Language Arts and Social Studies classrooms.
All activities correspond with the Next Generation Sunshine
State Standards.
Sunshine State Standards Key
TH: Theater
SS: Social Studies
LA: Language Arts
Study Guide Written by: Kelli Bragdon and Lily Junker
A L L P H OTOS BY S COT T B R AU N
3
WHY
MACBETH?
(SS)
Read the following portion of the director’s notes from the opening night playbill
of Macbeth. Director and co-adaptor Dmitry Troyanovsky explains why he feels
Macbeth is a story relevant to audiences today:
Like most people, I have never been a heartbeat away from inheriting a crown or entering
high office. On the surface Macbeth’s story has little to do with my life. But what if I forget
about Macbeth’s high birth and royal aspirations? Beyond the regal circumstances, we get a haunted individual who risks
everything to attain his secret ambition. A wondrous and unique opportunity presents itself to Macbeth and he grabs it,
consequences [aside]. Who wouldn’t be tempted, at least in daydreams, to outsmart destiny or achieve the impossible?
We live in a society in which ambition and hunger for success play a very important role. At its best, ambition fuels social
progress and personal growth. But what if the same force can warp the mind and corrupt the soul? It is wholly possible for
our own inner witches to lead us, under the guise of ambition, to the path of ethical confusion and even self-destruction.
Macbeth might be a corrupt politician, a rapacious banker, a negligent medic, a cheating student, or a sell-out artist.
DISCUSSION:
• How can power and ambition corrupt leaders? What examples of
this can be seen in the world today that might lead to tragedy?
• Why is it important to explore these topics in theatre, school and life?
THE
IMAGERY OF MACBETH
(TH, LA)
In her opening night program notes, co-adapter Stephanie Fleischmann
discusses the imagery and mood she hopes to create with this adaptation:
As we worked on the adaptation, Dmitry and I became
obsessed with the language of Macbeth—its imagery of
darkness and the passage of time, the omnipresence of night
that pervades the play, and its preponderance of creatures
of the night, the insects and birds that populate the text
alongside the witches. We asked ourselves: How do we
render the incredibly rich, strange, and desecrated world
that resides in the fabric of the play’s text…?
In the original text of Macbeth, three witches seek out Macbeth
and tell him that he will someday be King. The adaptors of this
production have cut the characters of the three witches. However,
the prophecy remains because it incites the action of the play. The
birds act as a bridge between the magical world of the witches
and their prophecy, and the real world which Macbeth lives in.
DISCUSSION:
• From Stephanie’s description, what mood do you
expect the play to have? What images, besides birds
and insects, could evoke that atmospheric mood?
If you have read Macbeth, what other thematic
elements and images stand out to you?
• After you see the production, discuss the use of birds,
and the presence of nature in the play. What stood
out to you?
4
CHARACTER MAP
(TH, LA)
DUNCAN
• King of Scotland
MALCOLM
• King Duncan’s son
• Named as the heir to the throne
at the start of the play
LADY MACBETH
• His wife
MACBETH
• Scottish nobleman
who later becomes King
LADY MACDUFF
• His wife
MACDUFF
• Scottish Nobleman
SON
FLEANCE
• His son
BANQUO
• Macbeth’s friend
• Scottish Nobleman
MURDERER
• Hired by Macbeth to
kill Banquo and Fleance
CHANGING TITLES:
As Macbeth gains power throughout the play, he holds different titles:
• Thane of Glamis
• Thane of Cawdor
• King of Scotland
WHAT IS A THANE?: a Scottish nobleman, who holds authority over land
(in Macbeth’s case Glamis and Cawdor).
PROPHECY (WITCHES)
• Tells Macbeth he will become
Thane of Cawdor, and later King
• Tells Banquo his descendents
will be Kings
DISCUSSION:
Using the character map above (as
well as any knowledge you may
already have of the play), make a
prediction about which characters
might be combined or played by the
same actor.
AFTER THE PLAY:
ADAPTATION AND
MULTIPLE CHARACTERS
In the original text of Macbeth, the character list, or Dramatis Personae,
includes over 27 characters, plus a large number of extra lords, soldiers,
attendants, messengers and other roles. It is extremely rare now (and was
even rare in Shakespeare’s time), for a theatre company to use 30 or more
actors in a production. More often, actors play multiple roles. Directors may
even chose to combine characters to simplify staging or casting.
You will be seeing a 45-minute adaptation of Shakespeare’s Macbeth that
was crafted specifically for a cast of six actors. The adaptors worked with
Shakespeare’s original text to create this new piece, using only the parts they
felt were necessary to tell the story they wanted to tell.
• Which actors played more than one
character and what characters did
they play?
• Why do you think the director chose
to break up the roles that way?
• How did you know when an actor
had changed roles?
THINK LIKE THE DIRECTOR:
• Would you have combined different
roles for the actors? Explain.
• How would you represent the
character changes in a production if
you were directing?
5
A PROMISE OF
GREATNESS
(TH, LA)
The actions of Macbeth (and the reason for Macbeth’s many titles) center around a
prophecy he receives, which reveals his past, present and future. Read the prophecy
below and discuss it as a class.
MACBETH’S PROPHECY:
All hail Macbeth! Hail to thee, Thane of Glamis!
Hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor!
All hail, Macbeth, though shall be king hereafter!
–ACT 1, SCENE 111
DISCUSSION:
• What is Macbeth promised? How might hearing
this affect his behavior? How would you react to
receiving a prophecy like this?
ACTIVITY:
Write your own prophecy-what is your past, present and
future. In three short statements, share the prophecy you
would expect to receive from the witches. See examples
written by the actors for their bios below:
EXAMPLE 1: ACTRESS PLAYING LADY MACBETH
All hail the Queen of Ice and Snow!
Passionate bulwark of Sea and Stage!
Heed the prevailing lime-lights to come!
EXAMPLE 2: ACTOR PLAYING MACBETH
With the spirit of life
Among his comrades
Seeking happiness, like a snake chasing its tail.
ACT IT OUT:
Take your prophecy to the next
level, and find a way to stage it
for your classmates.
6
THE
MUSIC OF MACBETH
(TH, LA)
“Music can name the unnameable and communicate the unknowable.”
– Leonard Bernstein
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
Sound design is often a key component of theatrical productions.
Directors and designers use music, sound effects and silence to
highlight moments, underscore scenes and to provide the audience
with insight into the world of the play and the feelings of its characters.
For this production of Macbeth, the adaptors enlisted the help of
musician Saskia Lane to create original music to use throughout the
play. She used Shakespeare’s text and set it to new meloies that she
created to suit the mood of the play.
• How might the use of music or sound effect
the tone of a play?
• Think of specific examples in film, television
or theatre that you have seen where music
is used effectively. How was the music used
and how did it make you feel?
• Using what you already know about
Macbeth, what tone might you expect the
original song to have? Who might sing it?
ACTIVITY:
GOING FURTHER:
Below you will find a few brief descriptions of some of
Shakespeare’s other plays. Use the descriptions and any knowledge
you may already have about the plays to determine what tone you
think the plays might have. Then, select a musical genre that you
think fits the play and its tone. Be specific! Select artists, bands or
songs that you think could represent the production musically.
Select a portion of text from your
favorite Shakespearean play. Think
about when in the play the text takes
place, the speaker’s emotional state
and the overall tone of the play. Pick a
song that already exists OR create an
original melody that you think suits the
tone and set the words to the music!
• Romeo and Juliet: A pair of star-crossed lovers fight to be together
in this tragedy about young love and familial obligation.
• A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Chaos ensues as the magical and
real worlds collide in the forest in this comedy, leaving everyone
confused about who they really love.
• Hamlet: Prince Hamlet struggles with his father’s murder by his
uncle and ultimately vows revenge, no matter what the cost.
7
IAMBIC
PENTAMETER
(TH, LA)
What makes Shakespearean plays sound so different than other plays? Did
people really talk that way? Shakespeare and his contemporaries often
wrote in verse, a form of poetry used in playwriting to give the characters
a structured speech pattern. Shakespeare wrote in a specific style of verse
called iambic pentameter.
WHAT IS IAMBIC PENTAMETER?
A line in iambic pentameter has 10 syllables, with
every other syllable stressed.
The rhythm in each line of iambic pentameter sounds like:
da-DUM / da-DUM / da-DUM / da-DUM / da-DUM
FOR EXAMPLE:
would you / please take / the dog / out for / a walk ?
You’ll notice that the rhythm comes very close to the natural
rhythm of the English language and 10 syllables is usually
enough time to form a complete thought.
ACTIVITY:
WRITE YOUR OWN MONOLOGUE
One of Macbeth’s most famous speeches occurs when he
is deciding whether or not to kill King Duncan. Macbeth
imagines he sees a dagger pointing towards Duncan’s
room and believes this could be a sign to kill him. However,
Macbeth recognizes King Duncan has treated him well and
questions whether he could actually kill him.
Using this situation, write your own monologue for Macbeth,
starting with the famous first line below. See if you can
follow the rules of iambic pentameter and write in the style
of Shakespeare.
MACBETH:
Is this a dagger which I see before me,*
*WAIT A SECOND!
That has 11 syllables and you just told me that iambic pentameter has 10 syllables. This line is an example of Shakespeare breaking from form, or
breaking the rules. Shakespeare often did this to emphasize characters’ uncertainty, distress or excitement. Have fun “breaking” the rules in your
own way as you write your monologue, or see if you can rewrite the first line and keep the whole thing in iambic pentameter.
HINT: If you are having trouble counting syllables, try drumming them out on your chest like a heartbeat as you speak the text aloud.
8
POWER & POLITICS
(SS)
Macbeth is a play that explores power, ambition and entitlement. Why might these issues be especially relevant to
audiences today considering that this production tours during and immediately after the presidential election?
DISCUSSION:
After you see Macbeth, discuss any parallels
you see between the world of the play and the
world in which we live. To the right you will see
a quote from the director posing questions about
the play. Discuss them as they relate to both the
world of the play and the world today.
“How far is one willing to go in
order to acquire and keep power?
Is ruthlessness necessary to achieve
one’s political ambitions?”
– Director & Co-Adaptor Dmitry Troyanovsky
NEW STAGES FOUNDATION & INDIVIDUAL SPONSORS
M AJOR DONORS
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Charles Henry Leach II Foundation
FRIENDS OF EDUCATION
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Michael Pender
Thomas & Lola Seligman Fund
at the Community Foundation of
Sarasota County
Mr. & Mrs. Stanley B. Siegel
Florence Wildner
Mary Lou & Edward Winnick
In February 2012, Asolo Rep won WEDU’s “Be More…Enriched” Arts &
Culture Award for culturally-based organizations that contribute to the spirit
of adventure and exploration through education in the arts, and bring rich
and engaging experiences to audiences who might not otherwise have
opportunities to witness or be an active participant. This award recognizes
outstanding achievement specifically for programs related to the arts,
performance, historic or zoological exhibits.
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