This past week we've delved into rehearsals for my second
Fringe project, a production of
Macbeth. It is the inaugural production of
PushPull Theatre Company and directed by Jessica Aimone. I cannot express how excited I am to be working on this project. First of all the director is bright, open, and has an infectious enthusiasm about the project. And what a project. This isn't your granddaddy's
Macbeth! Though
Macbeth is a short text (Shakespeare's shortest tragedy), our production is still substantially cut in order to fit into the time confines of a Fringe production. Furthermore this isn't just
Macbeth -- it's Capoeira
Macbeth!
Capoeira is a Brazilian art form that seems to be very "in" right now. It mixes dance, martial arts, and music. We are using it as our stage combat and also to inform a musical score. The idea is that we are doing theatre and we are being up front about it so why not use the more theatrical kind of fighting, capoeira, which is much more of a dance, or a game, than a fight. I've been taking classes for a couple of weeks now, and I love it. Don't get me wrong, I'm terrible at it. It's probably the hardest physical activity I've ever done. It's exhausting and it works every muscle you can think of. But it's great. And watching people who know what they are doing, well, stunning is the only word for it.
I described Jessica as being an open director. She truly is interested in what the actor thinks and wants us to be as involved as possible. She has many moments where she wants some sort of musicalization or a certain effect but has nothing set in stone. So those of us not working a scene she sends off into another room to figure it out on our own. We've only just started this process, but working this way gives us all, even those of us in smaller roles, a true sense of community and ownership of the piece. I am personally very thankful for this. I am playing the first witch, but haven't done any scene work yet because our third witch is out of town until the middle of the week. But because of Jessica's method, I still get to feel like I am contributing and doing things as rehearsal.
The cast of
Macbeth includes Jeremy Brown, Courtney Weber, Sallie Willows, David Winkler, Anna Brungardt, Ryan Tumulty, Katy Carkuff, Lee Liebeskind, Tony Strowd, Austin Johnson, Carl Long, Ty Hallmark, Vince Eisenson, JB Tadena, Charlene V. Smith, Kristen Garaffo, Alex Mandell, Christina Frank, Michelle Polera. Tickets go on sale June 21.
Macbeth will be performed at Fort Fringe, 612 L Street NW, on the following dates:
Saturday July 10 @ 8pm
Sunday July 11 @ 4pm
Thursday July 15 @ 10:30pm
Saturday July 17 @ 7pm
Sunday July 18 @ 9:30pm
