The Theatre Company started off the year with Shakespeare’s “Macbeth.” The play follows Macbeth who, after receiving a prophecy, conspires with his wife, Lady Macbeth, to seize power from the current monarch. Centered around Macbeth’s tragic downfall due to unbridled ambition, the play explores guilt, moral decay and paranoia as Macbeth and Lady Macbeth devolve into tyranny. Students performed the play in Rugby Auditorium on Oct. 30, Oct. 31 and Nov. 1.
Upper School Performing Arts Teacher & Director Sabrina Washburn said she picked the play to reflect on the current global climate.
“I chose Macbeth as a way to look at the state of the world and how the power of very few people affects the lives of an entire nation,” Washburn said. “We incorporated mirrored surfaces into the set design to ask the audience to literally see themselves in the play and ask how they are participating.”
Washburn said the rigorous rehearsal schedule demanded a lot from the performers.
“The students involved in the production worked really hard on it,” Washburn said. “Particularly in this play, the principal characters go through a tough, emotional journey that required them to be vulnerable and extremely present in each rehearsal.”
Jack Smith ’26, who played Macbeth, said the rehearsals provided the chance to deeply explore his character.
“The more I do plays and musicals, the easier it gets to prepare, analyze and get into character, especially with Shakespeare,” Smith said. “Even combined with senior year’s workload, I love watching scenes come together after a long rehearsal, and seeing the set go up super quickly.”
Smith said his previous acting experience has prepared him for his lead role, despite the main character being difficult to interpret.
“This was not my first time playing a lead role, as I played the lead in another Shakespeare play we did two years ago called Much Ado About Nothing,” Smith said. “That role really taught me the necessity of analyzing the play closely and memorizing my lines as quickly as possible, which takes quite a bit of time. Other than that, I find Shakespeare’s language fairly easy to understand, especially after three years of practice. Still, it is hard to understand Macbeth’s motivation for power since it is a mixture of fear, desire for control and the need to prove himself to those around him.”
Stage Manager and Lighting Designer Shimon Schlessinger ’26 said his approach to lighting the show was to emphasize dramatic emotional changes.
“We intentionally avoided the use of colored lighting as much as possible to focus on the direction and intensity of light,” Schlessinger said. “This production made heavy use of side-lighting, which helped sculpt the actors’ faces and subtly reveal emotional shifts. Brightness itself is a powerful storytelling tool, too. It can distinguish a dark, brooding monologue from a warm, open conversation in a sunlit field.”
Elliot Murphy ’27, who played Lord Banquo, said that, despite the complexities of a difficult play like Macbeth, the experience of working on it reaped massive rewards.
“The show had many challenges, but I think the hardest part was saying the lines correctly while still making it seem like the words are coming to me naturally at the moment,” Murphy said. “However, once you understand a play like this, it becomes exhilarating, and I want everyone to be able to feel the thrill of the emotions. I hope the audiences could see how they relate to the themes of the play, and leave the theatre talking. Theatre brings connection, and I wholeheartedly believe it is the best form of education because it’s an immersive learning experience that everyone should be exposed to. I want people to learn, talk and connect with each-other though the play.”
