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Actors From The London Stage present ‘Macbeth’ at DePauw
One of William Shakespeare’s best-known plays will be presented free of charge at DePauw University next week.
Performed by Actors From The London Stage (AFTLS), “Macbeth” will be staged at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 12 in Moore Theatre in the Green Center for the Performing Arts.
Each year the AFTLS auditions and casts a five-member acting ensemble that tours two plays to colleges and universities throughout the United States. The AFTLS company was founded in 1975 at the University of California at Santa Barbara by, among others, Sir Patrick Stewart, best known for his roles as Captain Picard in the Star Trek television series and films, and Professor Charles Xavier in the X-Men films.
Actors who perform in the AFTLS productions are chosen from among the finest actors in Great Britain, and each actor performs multiple roles, changing characters in full view of the audience, making for a lively and fascinating show which requires virtuosic precision from the actors. The five actors remain on stage for the entire performance, using minimal props and costumes to embody the world Shakespeare has created through his poetic texts.
“Macbeth” tells the story of a Scottish war hero who, upon returning home from battle, is urged by his ambitious wife to assassinate his king, Duncan, to seize the throne of Scotland. Thereafter Macbeth commits further murders to retain his ill-gotten power, until he is ultimately defeated by the patriot MacDuff, and Duncan’s son Malcolm assumes the crown as rightful ruler of Scotland. Macbeth is considered to be one of Shakespeare’s finest tragedies, and is the shortest of his masterpieces.
The Oct. 12 performance of “Macbeth” is part of a weeklong residency by the five members of the AFTLS ensemble, who will also visit at least 10 DePauw classes to interact directly with DePauw students, as well as conducting a workshop for teens in conjunction with the Putnam County Playhouse, and an open workshop with DePauw’s student theatre organization, Duzer Du.
This year’s production of “Macbeth” commemorates 30 years of partnership between DePauw and the British actors of the AFTLS, who were first brought to DePauw in 1993 by Professor Andrea Sununu, who still teaches at DePauw in the English Department. The Macbeth cast is made up of actors Roger May, Claire Redcliffe, Anne Odeke, Annabelle Terry and Michael Wagg.
The AFTLS residency is co-sponsored by the DePauw Performing Arts Series, the Department of Communication and Theatre, the English Department, the Gilbert Lance Fund and the Janet Prindle Institute for Ethics.
The Macbeth performance by the Actors From the London Stage is free and open to the public; and tickets or reservations are not required. Doors open at 7 p.m. for the 7:30 curtain.
For more information, contact Ron Dye at rdye@depauw.edu.