“Something wicked this way comes,” and it will be at The Lakeside Theater on October

24, 2014, at 7 p.m. Rangeley Friends of the Arts is sponsoring two performances of

William Shakespeare’s tragedy Macbeth by the Theater at Monmouth (TAM) troupe, one

exclusively for the RLRS Middle School and High School during the school day and

another for the entire Rangeley community.

 

Returning from victory on the battlefield where they have crushed a rebellion against

King Duncan and invasion from abroad, his generals Macbeth and Banquo are

accosted by three mysterious women. These “weird sisters” greet Macbeth as Thane of

Cawdor—a title belonging to one of the vanquished rebels—and predict he will become

king. But the future successors to the throne, they say, will be Banquo’s descendants,

not his. Part of this prophecy seems to be fulfilled shortly afterwards, when Duncan

rewards Macbeth by bestowing on him the newly executed Cawdor’s title; Macbeth’s

prospect of becoming king, however, seems dimmed when Duncan names his son

Malcolm as his successor.

 

Urged on by his wife, Macbeth decides to take matters into his own hands. He murders

Duncan as he sleeps, while Lady Macbeth contrives to throw suspicion on the king’s

own attendants. Fearing for their safety, Malcolm and his brother Donalbain flee, and

Macbeth assumes the throne. Fearing Banquo’s suspicions, Macbeth orders his murder

and that of his son, Fleance—but that deed, far from bringing him peace, has

consequences as terrifying as they are unexpected. Haunted by the specter of his

guilt, Macbeth consults the sisters, who assure him that he need fear no man born of

woman and that his position will be secure until a nearby wood is seen to move.

Meanwhile, as Macbeth’s rule degenerates further into a reign of terror, the exiled

Malcolm returns with English troops to claim the throne. Too late, Macbeth realizes that

the sisters’ prophecies are riddled with deadly ambiguity, and that the destiny he has

pursued is a double-edged sword, forged by his own murderous hand.

 

Previous TAM performances at Lakeside have been Romeo & Juliet, Hamlet, and The

Twelfth Night. A professional telling of the tale of the bard’s most murderous play costs

$10. Rangeley, one week before Halloween, really? There is no reason why every seat

shouldn’t be filled. Don’t be weird (wyrd). We’ll see you there.

 

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