Fresh, Fierce Take on Shakespeare’s Darkest Tragedy. William Shakespeare’s MACBETH has been staged countless times, but this visionary production in THE LOUNGE at THE CONCOURSE CHATSWOOD, reinvents the emotional impact of the play, in ways that are nothing short of revolutionary. Stripped down to a mere six actors, this rendition and this staging, transforms THE SCOTTISH PLAY into an intimate, immersive nightmare, and especially one that lingers in the mind, like the whispers of the Weird Sisters themselves.
From the moment the lights dim, the audience is thrust into Macbeth’s unraveling psyche, with actors moving fluidly between the stage and the seating area, ensuring that no one is merely a spectator. We become complicit in MACBETH’s bloody ascent and catastrophic fall. The production’s minimalist approach paradoxically amplifies its emotional weight, proving that Shakespeare’s themes of ambition, guilt, and fate are as potent today as they were in 1606.
This is not just another MACBETH, it is THE MACBETH for our times: raw, relentless, and deeply human.
Visionary Direction With Audacious Reinvention, has achieved something extraordinary. Traditionally, MACBETH demands a large cast (often 19 actors), but the decision to condense the play into six performers is nothing short of genius. The three Weird Sisters (played by an astonishingly versatile trio) morph with seamless costume changes and shifts in physicality. This choice not only underscores the supernatural elements of the play, but also reinforces the idea that MACBETH’s paranoia, distorts his reality, making allies and enemies indistinguishable.
Staging is immersive, with scenes unfolding in the aisles, behind the audience, and even in whispered asides that make the tension feel personal. The famous soliloquies, are delivered in near-darkness, with only a flickering light or the actor’s breath audible. The effect is chilling, pulling the audience into MACBETH’s fractured mind.
The pacing is flawless, with no wasted moments. Even the Porter’s comic relief scene, is infused with a dark, unsettling humour that fits the play’s tone perfectly. The crisp direction ensures that every line, every glance, every silence carries weight.
Standout Performances With A Cast That Delivers Shakespeare at Its Finest. Charles Mayer as MACBETH is a Tormented Titan, and a revelation. He captures the character’s tragic arc, with breathtaking precision and beginning as a loyal, battle-hardened warrior, then descending into a paranoid, guilt-ridden tyrant. His delivery of “Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow” is devastating, spoken not with theatrical grandeur, but with the hollow exhaustion of a man who has lost everything.
What makes Charles Mayer’s performance so compelling is his ability to make MACBETH’s violence feel horrifyingly human. When he murders Duncan, we see not just ambition but desperation; when he confronts Banquo’s ghost, his terror is palpable. This MACBETH knows that he is damned, but cannot stop, a performance that lingers long after the curtain falls.
Jo Bloom’s LADY MACBETH is A Force of Nature and is mesmerizing, with the perfect blend of steel and fragility. Her early scenes, exude ruthless ambition, her voice dripping with venom as she manipulates Macbeth into regicide. But her unraveling, truly stuns. The sleepwalking scene is a masterclass in tragic acting, with her hands wringing invisible blood, her voice a broken whisper. When she delivers the iconic “Out, damned spot”, it feels less like a recitation, and more like a woman’s soul being flayed alive.
Her death (handled with haunting subtlety) is one of the most heartbreaking moments in the play. Jo Bloom ensures that LADY MACBETH, is not just a villainess, but a casualty of her own ambition, with a performance that leaves the audience breathless.
Ciarán O’Riordan’s Macduff is Fury and Heartbreak, and is a standout, balancing warrior intensity with profound grief. When he learns of his family’s massacre, his scream is visceral, with a raw, animalistic sound that shakes the audience. His final duel with Macbeth is electrifying, for the sheer emotional weight behind every strike.
THE WEIRD SISTERS With Shape-Shifting Sorcery, these three actors playing the witches, deserve special praise. Their ability to switch from cackling hags, to eerie apparitions is astonishing. Their vocal work is sometimes whispering, sometimes chanting in unsettling unison, creates an atmosphere of constant dread.
THE PORTER With Dark Comedy Done Correctly. Often a throwaway role, THE PORTER here is played with a drunken, sardonic wit, and the brief appearance, provides just enough levity, before plunging back into darkness.
This Shakespeare production, again and again, has absolutely perfect mises-en-scène optimally visualised for each and every complex scene, where the combination of choosing the perfect cast for each role, and every element of the set design and costumes and music soundtrack, have joined together to create a unique and very original theatrical experience.
Staging And Atmosphere, A Haunting, Immersive Experience via this production’s minimalist set, dim lighting, and strategic use of soundscape and shadows, fully enhances the claustrophobic tension. The witches’ cauldron (on wheels) scene is particularly striking, with flickering red lights and eerie sound design, making it feel like a nightmare come to life.
The decision to have actors move through the audience makes the violence feel uncomfortably close. When Macbeth murders Banquo, it happens mere feet from spectators; when Macduff vows revenge, his rage feels directed at us. This immersive approach ensures that MACBETH is not just watched, but is felt.
This production is a triumph for the ages, THE MACBETH, that is psychologically penetrating, and theatrically bold. With powerhouse performances, innovative staging, and relentless emotional intensity, this is Shakespeare at its most vital.
We are a touring troupe of actors – Jo Bloom, Charles Mayer, Ciarán O’Riordan, Charlotte Edwards, David Halgren, Ella Havelka and Willa King, and we perform all the plays in our repertoire in magnificent indoor and outdoor spaces, to music composed by Brandon Read, in lighting designed by Adam Applebaum, with PHOTOGRAPHY BY Syl Marie Photography.
The Concourse Lounge is located alongside the Chatswood Library at 409 Victoria Avenue, Chatswood.
Book Tickets for Macbeth, at Chatswood Concourse 5-9 August 2025.
Book Tickets for Macbeth, at Darling Quarter Theatre 13-15 August 2025.
BOOK TICKETS NOW or contact us –
0416 635 880 mailto:jo@comeyouspirits.com
https://comeyouspirits.com/
