MACBETH 2022 Previews- Page 4

[ACL2006]

Posted: 4/2/22 at 3:50pm

Dolly80 said: "So that’s closed down for at least a week then. Sounds like a lucky escape for audiences. "

Might they try and prep his standby to go on for Monday?

[MasterThespian 2]

Posted: 4/2/22 at 4:04pm

Seeing Craig in action is main reason people would go. No one is going to sit through this bomb and watch an understudy. 

[RippedMan]

Posted: 4/2/22 at 4:09pm

If Craig tested positive there's not much they can do. He's the reason to go. 

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 4/2/22 at 6:10pm

This is The Daniel Craig Show. It's another situation like Hugh Jackman getting Covid. The show will come back when Craig is well again. And perhaps it will give Sam Gold some time to rethink some things.

If Craig has it, chances are others in that company will soon test positive, too.

[Wick3]

Posted: 4/3/22 at 12:24am

Stevie Ray Dallimore is Daniel Craig's standby at Macbeth. I think he'd only perform if Daniel Craig had to stop in the middle of the performance. If Daniel Craig is sick or is out, I think the majority of people in the audience will ask for a refund. 

I looked at April and most seats are over 90% sold so it looks like this show has a healthy advance and people are paying full price (or premium price) to see Daniel Craig perform Macbeth.

[MadsonMelo]

Posted: 4/3/22 at 12:36am

My ticket is for April 8 haha

[Wick3]

Posted: 4/3/22 at 8:28am

MadsonMelo said: "My ticket is for April 8 haha"

Hopefully they won’t extend the cancellation but somehow I think they might extend through that weekend especially if more cast members test positive within next few days.

Hopefully people are able to exchange tickets for the same price for later in the run. 

[TaffyDavenport]

Posted: 4/5/22 at 7:16pm

Now cancelled until Monday, April 11th.

Updated On: 4/5/22 at 07:16 PM

[MadsonMelo]

Posted: 4/6/22 at 12:30am

My friday night just became available!

I think it was a sign from Shakespeare itself

[MasterThespian 2]

Posted: 4/6/22 at 10:31am

MadsonMelo said: "My friday night just became available!

I think it was a sign from Shakespeare itself"


Yup, I think ol’ Willie is trying to tell us something. Getting a refund. 

[chrishuyen]

Posted: 4/12/22 at 4:40pm

Did anyone rush this morning? Would love to know how popular it is an how early to get there

[EDSOSLO858]

Posted: 4/12/22 at 10:53pm

Previews resumed tonight... did anyone go?

Updated On: 4/12/22 at 10:53 PM

[MasterThespian 2]

Posted: 4/12/22 at 11:38pm

Already got my refund, but still curious if anything was tweaked. By the way, are those actually the “costumes” shown in that photo? Ummmmm, okay.

[BroadwayRox3588]

Posted: 4/13/22 at 2:56am

EDSOSLO858 said: "Previews resumed tonight... did anyone go?

"

No, nobody went. They played to an empty theatre.

[Tony 3]

Posted: 4/14/22 at 12:16pm

I attended the preview performance last evening and am sad to report all that has been said before is true. There is no concept or throughline present on stage, and certain scenes do drag on for what feels like an eternity. During a scene in the second act last evening, a woman in the orchestra loudly shouted, "This is BORING!"... and she was right. (I felt terrible for the three actors onstage, one of them being an understudy.)

Ruth Negga was fantastic and looked beautiful in her different, disjointed outfits. Amber Gray was a standout as well. Daniel Craig is fine in the role, but I did not find this to be an exceptional performance. 

Sam Gold is a talented director, but each time I say that I have to include a but...    Lately his work has felt very disjointed and uninspired. I did enjoy his work on A Doll's Life, Part 2, Othello, and Hamlet, but this does not compare to any of those. His production of King Lear was more engaging and exciting than this. 

While I have seen worse in the past, I have not seen something this boring in a long, long time. The audience was a bit vocal (both during and) after the performance on their distaste for this production. 

[BoringBoredBoard40]

Posted: 4/14/22 at 2:10pm

What happened to Sam Gold, dude had like a great track record and between King Lear, Glass Menagerie and now this...I have to wonder if that TONY went to his head

[MasterThespian 2]

Posted: 4/14/22 at 2:47pm

Audience members yelling “This is boring” during the performance? How rude and uncomfortable for everyone. If you’re that disappointed, just leave. Some people must think they’re at a wrestling match.

[BoringBoredBoard40]

Posted: 4/14/22 at 2:57pm

i mean for the prices some people are paying for this I would be vocal also if it was a cheap looking a lacluster production 

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 4/14/22 at 3:03pm

I attended the preview performance last evening and am sad to report all that has been said before is true. There is no concept or throughline present on stage, and certain scenes do drag on for what feels like an eternity. During a scene in the second act last evening, a woman in the orchestra loudly shouted, "This is BORING!"... and she was right. (I felt terrible for the three actors onstage, one of them being an understudy.)

That is absolutely despicable. What a garbage human. If you don't care for something, if something is clearly not for you, simply leave. Don't humiliate the people working so hard on the show. My God. 

[KingOfTheMine]

Posted: 4/14/22 at 9:41pm

Intermission now, and Sam Gold has stepped in and is performing in the show tonight!  After a brief pre-show speech about the recent COVID outbreak in the cast, Sam told the audience that they wouldn't have had enough people in the building tonight who actually know the show to perform unless he helped out.  He's carrying a handheld mike and performing several small roles.  More to come on the production itself later!

[Jeffrey Karasarides]

Posted: 4/14/22 at 9:45pm

BoringBoredBoard40 said: "What happened to Sam Gold, dude had like a great track record and between King Lear, Glass Menagerie and now this...I have to wonder if that TONY went to his head."

I remember when his Glass Menagerie with Sally Field was originally announced, someone on these boards mentioned that he hasn't had a great track record with revivals. Now every time he does one, that sentiment becomes more true.

[MasterThespian 2]

Posted: 4/14/22 at 10:33pm

KingOfTheMine said: "Intermission now, and Sam Gold has stepped in and is performing in the show tonight! After a brief pre-show speech about the recent COVID outbreak in the cast, Sam told the audience that they wouldn't have had enough people in the building tonight who actually know the show to perform unless he helped out. He's carrying a handheld mike and performing several small roles. More to come on the production itself later!"

Huh?? Seriously???

[BoringBoredBoard40]

Posted: 4/14/22 at 10:37pm

MasterThespian 2 said: "KingOfTheMine said: "Intermission now, and Sam Gold has stepped in and is performing in the show tonight! After a brief pre-show speech about the recent COVID outbreak in the cast, Sam told the audience that they wouldn't have had enough people in the building tonight who actually know the show to perform unless he helped out. He's carrying a handheld mike and performing several small roles. More to come on the production itself later!"

how is that even allowed?

 

[KingOfTheMine]

Posted: 4/15/22 at 12:25am

I don't know enough about Equity's rules to speak on how Gold was allowed to perform, but it was definitely unexpected.  First off, congrats to all of the understudies who made this show happen tonight.  It was clear that there was a lot of scrambling and shifting of parts in order to do the play.  For reference, Danny Wolohan was on as Duncan, the Porter, and Seyton.  Stevie Ray Dallimore played Siward.  Peter Smith doubled as Malcolm and the Bloody Captain.  I could be wrong as I haven't seen this production previously, but I believe Sam Gold was on in the Lennox/murderer track normally played by Michael Patrick Thornton.

Performances - Ruth Negga as Lady Macbeth is the standout performance here.  I thought she was particularly good before intermission where frankly she just has more to do.  Daniel Craig was surprisingly nuanced in a couple areas but, bafflingly, made the role much more comedic than I've ever seen it played.  Amber Gray was strong as others have noted.  The idea of Banquo as a mother who cannot be king and yet will get kings is an interesting concept, but I'm not sure they've gone as far as they could exploring that dynamic.

Overall thoughts - I liked this production more than I liked Gold's King Lear.  But I detested that show, so not a very high bar.  I'm a huge fan of the play itself, and being extremely familiar with the text, I didn't have problems understanding what was going on or who was who.  However, I completely understand how someone who didn't know the play would get lost.  There are many instances where a cast member exits in one role but comes on in another without any real signal to the audience that we are now seeing a different person.  Some change in costuming, etc. might help with that. That being said, the visual look of the production didn't bother me.  I don't have a problem with the modern dress or lack of big scenery.  Funnily enough, I thought Gold fit right in with the rest of the cast in his street clothes.  The problem is more that the world of the play that Gold has created does not feel cohesive. They're just throwing a bunch of ideas at the wall and seeing what sticks.   Cook soup onstage! Throw in some fog machines! Now we'll blast the audience with some bright lights in their faces (which happens quite a lot by the way)!  There are some moments that really work and are exciting, but they're unfortunately few and far between.

[JBroadway]

Posted: 4/15/22 at 9:52am

Jeffrey Karasarides said: "BoringBoredBoard40 said: "What happened to Sam Gold, dude had like a great track record and between King Lear, Glass Menagerie and now this...I have to wonder if that TONY went to his head."

I remember when his Glass Menagerie with Sally Field was originally announced, someone on these boards mentioned that he hasn't had a great track record with revivals. Now every time he does one, that sentiment becomes more true."

 

There's definitely some truth to this, but I think what makes it even stranger is that people back then were referring to a totally different kind of "Sam Gold revival." Sam Gold's first few major revivals were more traditional, but in a way that supposedly felt stale and lifeless (I only saw "The Real Thing," which I didn't enjoy). It wasn't until Glass Menagerie/Othello that his revivals became the more experimental style we've been seeing recently, which ALSO isn't good, but in a totally different way - at least according to general consensus - I enjoyed a couple of them, and I have yet to see this Macbeth. And personally, I'd rather see him in "experimental" mode than in "ordinary" mode. 

I guess the one constant is that he's been pretty good with new works. And even recently he's directed new works with a totally different approach from his recent revivals. As I've said before, it's like he's 2 or 3 different directors sharing the same name and body. 

Looks like he's directing the new Will Arbery play at PH this summer, so hopefully people will be reminded of the kind of directing work that put him on the map.