The Curse! Feraco Search for Human Potential 7 November 2011

 Believe it or not, there are actually two curses related to the play  With respect to the first one, individuals shouldn’t even say the word “Macbeth” in a theater  Rehearsals and performances excluded  Alternatives: “MacB,” or (more popularly) “The Scottish Play.”  Generally speaking, “Macbeth” is only a cursed term inside a theater, and not, say, a classroom or a cineplex.  If you have to say the name – for whatever reason – try to confine your usage to these safe zones. Curse(s)

If Someone Says It…  You can take measures to ward off the curse  Make the speaker leave!  The offender must close the door, turn around three times, curse (or spit), then knock on the door and ask to be allowed back inside.  (Theoretically, this is the part where you let them back in…although if you choose not to do so, it is their fault for putting themselves in that situation to begin with)  Also, if you choose to banish them, you’re merely exploring one of Shakespeare’s central themes.  (Just pointing that out.)  If all else fails, steal from Hamlet (Act I, Scene IV) and yell: “Angels and ministers of grace defend us!”  I used the spitting one three years ago - I couldn’t remember the Hamlet line  Thanks, Ben!

 The second popular belief about Macbeth is that the play – and subsequent productions of it – are cursed, not just the name  Indeed, there are plenty of bloody examples from Macbeth’s notoriously troubled history that support this belief  You’ll have to decide for yourself whether the belief is valid, of course The Other Curse

 As legend has it, the curses are actually Shakespeare’s fault  Rather than make up his own witch chants and curses, he used “authentic” ones  “Real” witches were supposedly so infuriated by Shakespeare’s transgression that they placed an eternal hex on the play  Seems like a high price to pay for authenticity… Don’t Make the Witches Mad

 Supposedly, the actor playing Lady Macbeth (he happened to be male – but anyone who has seen Shakespeare in Love probably already assumed that) grew sick and died backstage during the first production of the play  Shakespeare had to take the stage and assume the role in order to finish the performance  Some even claim that the playwright did such a poor job that he angrily ordered his actors to never refer to the play by its name (thus starting the “don’t say the name!” curse) The Trouble Begins Early

 Macbeth joined the venerable ranks of banned literature in 1606  King James I of England believed that the witch chants contained within the play were too realistic (I wonder why?), and banned the production for five years after first watching it  Once production resumed, it didn’t seem like a very problematic play  It took a few years for the Macbeth curses to really “kick in,” and to therefore take hold in popular culture Ban / Burn / Make It Stop

 Oddly enough, more documented instances exist in the 20th century than during earlier periods; however, the more serious incidents generally took place at least fifty years ago  In 1672, the actor playing Macbeth switched the dulled prop dagger for a real, sharpened blade – and stabbed the actor playing Duncan to death in front of the paying audience  Don’t bring kids to this play – you never know what might happen Stabby Stabby

 The opening run of the 1703 production was canceled when England was hit by one of the most tremendous storms in its history  A rude nobleman stood up during a performance in 1721 and walked across the stage in order to go talk to his friend  After the actors chased him away, he returned with a band of militiamen who promptly burned the theater to the ground  The actress playing Lady Macbeth in 1775 was nearly attacked by an audience who disliked her performance Moving Through the Years…

 William Charles Macready and Edwin Forrest were rivals, and the two staged competing productions of Macbeth in New York City on May 10, 1849  Drama nerd smackdown!  Forrest’s fans threw fruit and chairs at Macready during his performance, which led (naturally) to a riot  The militia was called, arrived, and promptly fired on the crowd  More than twenty people were killed, and over thirty others were wounded  As anyone in Advanced Drama can attest, that’s just another night at the theatre… More Fun With Militias

 Abraham Lincoln read the scenes immediately following Duncan’s assassination to an audience of his friends (no word on whether he was in a theater)  A week later, Lincoln himself would be assassinated (in a theater, no less)  In 1926, another actor tried to strangle the actress playing Lady Macbeth – and nearly succeeded Awkward Historical Facts

 A large set collapsed in 1928, seriously injuring many members of the crew  Also in 1937, a heavy counterweight fell to the stage during the performance, missing lead actor Laurence Olivier by inches  During a production run in 1942, three actors died and the set designer committed suicide Look Up, Look Out…

 On a Thursday night in1945, actor Harold Norman was killed onstage during the fight in Act V  His ghost is said to haunt that theater every Thursday  The actress playing Lady Macbeth walked off the stage and fell fifteen feet during her sleepwalking scene (she would return and finish the play)  Charleton Heston was almost killed during an outdoor production in 1953, when flames and smoke were blown into the audience during the siege on Macbeth’s castle  Heston suffered severe trauma to his legs and groin because his tights had been soaked in kerosene by mistake New Definition of “Trauma”

 The list goes on; suffice it to say that this is a fairly troubled play  Granted, we have been performing it for four centuries – things are bound to go wrong over that span of time  I don’t know if there’s a curse…but you definitely won’t see me running into a theater and shouting the name any time soon  Remember, Giannina Nurena tested this a couple of years ago and ended up with broken bones!  Also, this presentation is 13 slides long…just sayin’. So…Is There a Curse?