Macbeth Premiere: 2 months in the making

Pictures+%0A%0ATop+left-+Jasmine+Jenkins+and+Emily+Hurwitz%0A%0AIn+the+middle-+Jeremy+Tewari+%0A%0ATop+right-+Ava+Manly%0A%0A

Pictures Top left- Jasmine Jenkins and Emily Hurwitz In the middle- Jeremy Tewari Top right- Ava Manly

Karissa Beltran-Jimenez, Journalist

“It’s dark, it’s spook; be prepared before you come and get ready for an awesome show!” Elle Colliver

 

Corona del Mar theater presented Macbeth, whose opening night show premiered on Thursday, November 4 in the Sea King Theater. It was played on the 4, 5, and 6 at 7 pm with their final show taking place on Sunday, November 7 at 2 pm.

 

The play was a reimagination of Shakespeare’s original tale Macbeth but featured a post-apocalyptic twist. CdM theater’s take on Shakespeare’s work was directed by Elise Ybarra and text cuts were made by Aurora Culver. The play stared Jeremy Tewari as Macbeth and Ella Avital as Lady Macbeth. The other main supporting characters included: Macduff played by Thomas Eastmond, Malcolm played by AJ Plumb, and Banquo played by Lucas Phillips.

 

The show consisted of 5 acts. In the first couple of acts, the audience was introduced to all of the characters and after just the first act they were captivated by the way the actors brought Macbeth to life.

After the first 3 acts, there was a 15-minute intermission in which parents and students discussed what they had seen so far.

Post intermission, the crowd quieted and murmured in excitement, the curtains were pulled aside and the actors resumed their positions.

 

During the first show, the audience experienced two minor, yet noticeable tech issues; both due to the sound system. Despite the mishap, the actors did not miss a beat and continued to deliver, to the audience, a compelling performance.

Regardless, the audio crew which included: Anna Dickinson, Ivy Hollander, Joshua Attlesey, and Colin Sullivan, achieved great results with the immersive music and sound effects implemented into the show.

 

While the actors and audio crew did a phenomenal job bringing the characters to life and immersing the audience in sounds, the makeup and design team also played a huge role in incorporating the post-apocalyptic twist. Jess Means was one of the two leading costume designers for Macbeth. Means said that alongside Ashleigh Weinsock, they developed costumes for all 35 actors. She stated that most of their designs were “self-patterned and it was very avant-garde.” The costumes featured a “post-apocalyptic [meets] glam rock” style. During opening night, Means said it was “a great feeling to see our stuff on stage under the lights and see it brought to life by the actors.”

 

Olivia Sandoval, the head of the makeup team contributed to Macbeth by overseeing “all the looks that were being completed” and stated that she would “handle more of the most complicated looks and designs.” After speaking with Sandoval she shared that opening night was “definitely a success” including that she “was incredibly proud of everything that [her] team created.”

 

Colliver was also a part of the makeup crew and worked to create the looks developed by Sandoval. When asked about the influence that the twist played she responded by saying “it really adds to the show itself; considering it’s such a dark concept.” Colliver adds that it was “really adding a modern twist to it.”

 

Corona del Mar’s Theater production of Macbeth was certainly a great way to start the year. It was filled with resonating performances that left audiences satisfied and excited for what CdM’s drama department will do next.