Acclaimed Shakespeare reimagining premieres at Malthouse

Following successful seasons internationally, Macbeth (An Undoing) is set to debut in Australia at Malthouse Theatre on July 5.

While Shakespeare’s Macbeth is widely known, this adaptation by playwright Zinnie Harris offers a fresh perspective, focusing on Lady Macbeth.

In Shakespeare’s original, Lady Macbeth begins as a driving force of the story, but later grapples with guilt, hallucinations, and sleepless torment.

Starring Bojana Novakovic as Lady Macbeth and Johnny Carr as Macbeth, Macbeth (An Undoing) aims to bridge the gap for audiences.

“Whether or not you’ve done the play before, you don’t realise how embedded plays are in your subconscious, so there’s these new kind of opportunities presenting themselves and lots of discussions around what’s intended,” Johnny Carr told Southbank News.

A multi-award-winning playwright renowned for her feminist reinterpretations of theatrical classics, Mr Carr said that he hoped Ms Harris’s production served as a “conversation starter”.

“I really think it’s going to engage a lot of people, and I think there’s going to be a lot of rich discourse and debate around this work,” Johnny said.

“The original is such a popular play, it makes sense to crack it open and interrogate it. I think it’s a very brave undertaking to essentially take this beloved piece of theatre and think about how else we can view this in 2024 – it’s a really rich offering to the Australian theatre landscape.”

Directed by Malthouse’s artistic director Matt Lutton, this production also marks his 30th directing effort for the theatre.

“It’s a brilliant ensemble, we’ve got a really varied range of backgrounds and ranges and experience levels, which is great.” •