Kabuki Lady Macbeth
By Karen Sunde. Conceived by Shozo Sato. A retelling of Shakespeare's story.
Product Code: K30000
Full-length Play
Drama
Cast size: 7 to 18+ actors of either gender.
Rights and availability
This title can be licensed and sold throughout the World.
* Please note the royalty rate listed is the minimum royalty rate per performance. The actual royalty rate will be determined upon completion of a royalty application.
Synopsis
Kabuki Lady Macbeth presents Shakespeare's story from its heroine's point of view, exploring her desires and motives. Though witches called Light, Shadow and Destiny lead us through the tale and warn that balancing light and dark, brave and gentle, is the way to a happy life, they wickedly midwife lady M's transformation from gentle lady to snake demon. When Lady M turns her "flesh to hot steel" in order to empower her husband, their passionate relationship and daring ambition enflame the couple to murder the Shogun, who stands in their way. However, Macbeth loses his balance in the crime that makes him Shogun, and the shaken Lady M, unable to enjoy being Lady Shogun, begs their friend Macduff to bring his family to court, so his wife and laughing children can comfort her. But Macbeth sends an assassin to kill Macduff's family, leaving Lady M in shock, playing madly with the severed heads of Macduff's family, whom she loved. The witches lead in Macduff, whose grief has given him the power to be one with his sword. Lady M, unable to save Macbeth, begs to be killed. The mystical power achieved by purity and honor is lost to Macbeth and won by Macduff as the witches console him: "Rise. Look to the sun. When evil is set loose, it will be someone's destiny to bleach the earth."
Details
- Status In stock
- Type of Show Full-length Play
- Product Code K30000
- Minimum Cast Size 7
- Pages of Dialogue 74
- Min. Royalty Rate $90.00/perf
- Approx. Run Time 100 min
- Staging Unit set.
Categories
- Target Audience Middle School | High School | College and Adult
- Performing Group High School | College Theatre | Community Theatre | Dinner Theatre
- Genre Drama
- ISBN(13) 9781583423332
Customer Reviews
Media Reviews
"Kabuki meets Shakespeare for magical Macbeth." -Chicago Tribune"Sunde's script is very much about Lady Macbeth's loneliness and suppressed ambition as a woman in her society…a dazzling cultural hybrid, set to a beautifully distilled haiku-like script…a visual, physical and aural feast." -Chicago Sun-Times
Gallery
Kabuki Lady Macbeth - Brownwood High School, Brownwood, TX
Kabuki Lady Macbeth - Glendale Community College Performing Arts Center, Glendale, AZ
Also By These Authors
Larry Mathis, Brownwood High School, Brownwood, Texas