Macbeth

“Fast-paced, visually exciting, filled with cool illusions…and voraciously intellectual.”

 “This is a powerful cast…No matter how many times you may have witnessed “Macbeth”, until you see this version, the magic will not be the same. Filled with magic, music, witches...Put on the ‘must-see’ list.”

“Shakespearean tragedy as horror movie, with a great modern look and feel…Posner and Teller effectively use stylish visuals, including illusions, to create a dark, foreboding, scary world.”

“A memorable staging…wickedly fresh, modern and insightful. This immensely compelling production is filled with a full array of sensory treats…the real sleight-of-hand here has to do with the way they make the play feel so immediate and eerily contemporary in both the way it is spoken and in its exploration of the lust for power, and the cycle of corruption and cover-ups it can propagate”

“Vintage havoc and contagious bedlam, peculiarly pictorial…Posner and Tell refuse to domesticate or diminish the unprocessed pain that Shakespeare left naked and ashamed.”

“Superlative acting coupled with overall excellence in stagecraft makes this MACBETH such a standout. With millisecond precision, acting and stagecraft combine into a continuous WOW!”

“A spellbinding production that would please Shakespeare. This is spooky and scary stuff. Moreover, for those who love Hitchcock thrillers, the Chicago Shakespeare revival of the fiendish tragedy is as haunting and horrific as anything Hitchcock has filmed, and for that matter, as brutal and heartless as a play on stage ever gets. Adapted and co-directed by Aaron Posner and Teller (the quiet one of Penn and Teller), this Macbeth has been magically crafted in the grand proscenium stage of Shakespeare Theater’s new space, The Yard.  It’s a perfect setting for this ghostly thriller.”

“Excellence everywhere…presented with intelligence and flare. Filled with strong performances enhanced by vivid visual and aural design contributions. And a gold star goes to the new Yard venue, a comfortable, flexible theater destined for great things in upcoming seasons.”

“Highly recommended. A fantastical tale of dark magic and ambition in a thrilling climax…will keep you bewitched with excitement.”

“The most exciting Shakespeare I have ever witnessed. So spellbinding that even knowing how the story ends, you sit at the edge of your seat expecting the predictable with eyes wide open. The Yard transforms into a forbidden forest, our reality manifests into the mystical, our senses are held hostage to the whims of the fantastical. This production feels so cinematic, you’d swear directors and adapters Aaron Posner and Teller ripped a page from the book of your favorite HBO hit. I only mention these, because if any of you had convinced yourself Shakespeare was outdated—if you ever chose a night in with Netflix over a live performance—you might miss something like this.”

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