Macbeth the cursed play
Macbeth the cursed play"The Comedy of Glamis", "The Scottish Business" or simply "That Play" are
just a few of the euphemisms actors use to avoid mentioning the title of
William Shakespeare's Macbeth, one of the most ill-starred plays in
theatrical history.
Indeed, many professionals believe that "The Unmentionable" [another of its
nicknames]-with its bloodshed, ghosts, and witchcraft--is one of the
darkest dramas ever written.
If an actor does happen to mention the name, or quotes from the play while
he is backstage, tradition requires him to leave the dressing room, turn
around three times, spit, and then knock for reentry. Theatrical history is
littered with the many misfortunes of those who have chosen to ignore these
rites of exorcism.
Macbeth seemed doomed from the beginning. It was first performed before
James I, a descendant of both the historical Duncan and Banquo, who are
killed in the play. The curse apparently struck during that original
performance on August 7, 1606, when Hal Berridge, the boy actor cast as
Lady Macbeth, collapsed from a fever and later died. Shakespeare himself
had to step in and play the role on short notice.
The play was rarely performed again for nearly a century. The day of its
London revival in 1703 was noteworthy for one of the most severe storms in
English history. Because of its blasphemous content, the play was blamed
for the storm's calamities, and Queen Anne ordered a week of prayer during
which all theaters were closed.
A catalogue of disasters
Over the next two centuries the disasters continued, the curse taking its
greatest toll after the Astor Place riots in New York City in 1849. During
a performance of Macbeth by British actor William Charles Macreadyk,
supporters of his American rival, Edwin Forrest, clashed with police.
Twenty-two people were killed and some 36 more injured.
Probably the...
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