REVIEW: Welsh National Opera’s Macbeth

Mayflower Theatre, Southampton

By Jane Sullivan

WELSH National Opera brought Verdi’s Macbeth to the Mayflower stage as one of a trio of works celebrating the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death.

Sung in Italian with English surtitles, this Macbeth has been relocated to a rather confusing modern world, where beret-wearing soldiers sport both dark glasses and machine guns, and hired assassins turn out in a bewildering mix of shellsuits, denim and bobblehats.

It’s also not tremendously clear where we are: there are Scottish kilts for sure, but there are also shades of 1980s Northern Ireland, and striking images of 20th century conflict from around the world flickering in front of a wall of portraits of those despatched by a despotic regime.

Conflicting visuals aside, Annemarie Woods’ set is tremendously atmospheric, with grim housing, grand Scottish castles and the advance of Birnam Wood in the final scene all brought to life by very effective lighting.

Spanish baritone Luis Cansino is an impressive Macbeth, emotionally veering between powerful determination, self-doubt and insecurity, and eventually proving no match for his ruthlessly cunning wife. Miriam Murphy’s Lady Macbeth is a heady mix of cold calculation and hot passion – and director Oliver Mears has given her enough shoes and fur coats to rival any dictator’s wife. Her voice is tremendous; effortlessly soaring over the powerful chorus, and full of tender emotion in her wonderful sleep-walking scene.

Other impressive performances come from Miklos Sebestyen as Banquo, and Bruce Sledge as Macduff, whose emotionally-charged aria on the death of his wife and children was a stand-out point.

There were some magnificent choral pieces throughout, from the company’s response to the death of Duncan to the gruesome witches – divided here into three groups of seven, all of equal nastiness.

The orchestra, conducted by Andriy Yurkevych, brought Verdi’s score thrillingly to life, and helped create a tense, moving, and memorable evening.