By Galen Simmons

When I first heard director Robert Lepage was going to stage a production of Macbeth set in the brutal and hierarchical world of motorcycle gangs, I had one word in mind – ambitious.

Would the prospect of bringing motorcycles and guns to the stage in a realistic way that stays true to the Shakespearean text be more than the director, cast and crew could handle? Unlike the play’s titular character, it seems Lepage was not driven mad with power, nor did his ambition result in any offstage murders, and the production’s lofty goals were, in my mind, fully realized.

As I continue to be impressed by the Stratford Festival’s set designers this season, the motel pieces designed and built for this production represent a new high bar for what can be accomplished onstage. Built in several segments that can be detached and re-attached to one another, and rotated to offer multiple perspectives of the action unfolding onstage for the audience, this set is not only a suitable modern fill-in for Macbeth’s home, Cawdor Castle, but it may be the best rendition of the castle I’ve ever seen in any production of the Shakespeare classic.

The prop and sound designers, and those responsible for special effects, also deserve commendation for their work as they managed to bring lifelike motorcycles and guns to the stage in a way that made the production feel like a season finale for a show like Sons of Anarchy without distracting from the play’s overall story and dialogue.

That story and dialogue was delivered impeccably by the cast with the right affectations for such a motorcycle gang as its members grapple with the unfolding power struggle with two tyrants driven mad with ambition.

Those two tyrants, Lucy Peacock as Lady Macbeth and Tom McCamus as Macbeth, were particularly potent in their performances, as were Austin Eckert as Malcolm, Graham Abbey as Banquo and Tom Rooney as Macduff.

This production’s use of mirrors at the back of the stage to make pool halls and barbecue feasts look larger, and the gang members on their motorcycles appear more intimidating, as well as to bring spirits back from the dead, at least in Macbeth’s mind, was surprisingly effective. Though I knew there was only a small number of actors on stage at any given time, my brain was fully tricked into believing the scope of the story and its implications on other gang members not named in Shakespeare’s original text were much larger and impactful than one might initially believe.  

The use of suspension cables and power lifts, specifically for the deaths of an unnamed character at the play’s beginning and Lady Macbeth later on in the story, leant itself incredibly well to helping the production feel more cinematic and, at times, surreal or otherworldly.  

Overall, I’d say this production of Macbeth is unlike any staged before it, and it’s certainly my favourite among those I’ve seen.

Macbeth runs at the Avon Theatre until Nov. 2.