It’s a busy time here at the Straz, so busy we’ve had to find creative ways to get the word out about all our shows.
We want to make sure you know that Jobsite is presenting another of their bloody great Shakespeare productions. Macbeth runs Jan. 15 through Feb. 9 in the Jaeb Theater.
We also would be remiss if we didn’t remind you that the ABBA-charged musical MAMMA MIA! is returning as part of our Broadway Encore Series, Jan. 28-Feb. 2 in Morsani Hall.
But how can we truly ingrain readers with the must-seeness of these productions? We decided to go with an idea so absurd we’re surprised no one’s done it yet. And you’ll read it here first! It’s like being in on the ground floor of a new musical likely to remain in the basement.
Macbeth: A Musical Tragedy. Songs by ABBA. Here goes:
Returning from a victorious battle, Scottish generals Banquo and Macbeth encounter three witches who prophesy the throne for Macbeth, as well as the sons of Banquo. The forecast fires Macbeth’s ambition.
MACBETH: “I have a dream, a fantasy
To help me through reality
And my destination makes it worth the while …
“When I know the time is right for me
I’ll cross the stream – I have a dream.”
– “I Have a Dream”
The idea of Banquo’s sons attaining the throne, however, triggers Macbeth’s paranoia. Relaying the news to the missus, he discovers her ambition is even greater than his.
LADY MACBETH: “Voulez-vous
Take it now or leave it
Now is all we get
Nothing promised, no regrets.”
– “Voulez-Vous”
With King Duncan on his way to visit the Macbeths, the pair devise a plan to murder him so that Macbeth can assume the throne.
LADY MACBETH: “There are moments when I think I’m going crazy
But it’s gonna be alright
(You’ll soon be changing everything).”
– “Super Trouper”
Macbeth stabs Duncan to death, pinning the murders on Duncan’s guards, who he also kills. His fate, which will involve much more violence and bloodshed, is now set:
MACBETH: “I don’t want to talk
About the things we’ve gone through
Though it’s hurting me
Now it’s history
I’ve played all my cards
And that’s what you’ve done too
Nothing more to say
The winner takes it all”
– “The Winner Takes It All”
Killing Duncan wins Macbeth the crown, but also heightens his fear and paranoia.
MACBETH: “I hear the doorbell ring and suddenly the panic takes me
The sound so ominously tearing through the silence
I cannot move, I’m standing
Numb and frozen”
– “The Visitors”
Banquo begins to suspect his former comrade-in-arms is Duncan’s killer:
BANQUO: “’Cause he’s the man in the middle, never second fiddle
Just like a spider in a cobweb
Hard as a hammer, not the kind of boss you double-cross.”
– “Man in the Middle”
Macbeth’s paranoia triggers more violence. Macbeth has Banquo and his son, Fleance, ambushed. Banquo is slain but Fleance escapes. Later, at a banquet, Banquo’s ghost appears to Macbeth:
MACBETH: “Half awake and half in dreams
Seeing long forgotten scenes
So the present runs into the past
Now and then become entwined, playing games within my mind.”
– “Like an Angel Passing Through My Room”
Lady Macbeth, consumed with guilt and fear, descends into madness:
LADY MACBETH: “No more carefree laughter
Silence ever after
Walking through an empty house, tears in my eyes … “
– “Knowing Me, Knowing You”
In her grief, she commits suicide:
LADY MACBETH: “Here is where the story ends, this
is goodbye.”
– “Knowing Me, Knowing You”
Her death throws Macbeth into despair:
MACBETH: “How can I forget you when my world is breaking down
You’re all I had, you’re all I want.”
– “Disillusion”
“When you’re gone
How can I even try to go on?”
– “S.O.S.”
Meanwhile, King Duncan’s son, Malcolm, is planning to end Macbeth’s tyrannical reign. He is joined by Macduff, who was the first to suspect Macbeth was Duncan’s murderer.
MALCOLM: “I can see it in your eyes
How proud you were to fight for freedom in this land
There was something in the air that night
The stars were bright …
They were shining there for you and me
For liberty … “
– “Fernando”
Fueled by a desire for vengeance after Macbeth has his family slaughtered, Macduff kills the king in battle, ending the Scotsman’s bloody reign.
MACDUFF: “The king has lost his crown
Suddenly he’s clumsy like a clown
The world is upside down
The king has lost his crown.”
– “The King Has Lost His Crown”
FINALE:
“The Winner Takes it All” (entire cast)
Story lovingly purloined from the works of William Shakespeare, which are in the public domain, anyway. Songs respectfully appropriated from the works of ABBA, which aren’t.