Cast Notes:

Each cast member approaches a production in a different way.

They each respond to different aspects of the production, and go about their work in a different manner.

Below are a few thoughts from several members of the cast.

Daniel G. Cambridge (Ross/Murderer)

There wasn’t much time to get used to the fact that I was about to be in a touring production of Macbeth. I found out on the Friday, started rehearsing on the Sunday, and was informed "the first performance is a week on Thursday." That kind of tight rehearsal schedule is not something I have come across since I was at university where it was quite common to be told, "We want an hour and a half of theatre for a Christmas show, write your own script, you’ve got a week, go!" What you forget is that when you are rehearsing every day, the time it takes to get a workable grasp of your lines is actually quite short.

The lines start to come, and then really it is just a case of working on individual speeches. At this point you will be saying to yourself, "Of course the lines were easy to learn, you barely said anything in the whole play, and as for speeches..." but I’m speaking generally about tight rehearsal schedules, not specifically about my part. Besides I am a firm believer in the adage "there are no small parts, only small actors", and I don’t think anyone could argue that I am in any way a small actor.

The rehearsal process for Macbeth was mostly enjoyable. The thing that no one explains to you when you are training is that the rooms professional theatre companies rehearse in are freezing cold - its the law. Despite the frost, though, I had a great time rehearsing, discovering a rich vein of comedy that Shakespeare hadn’t planned for Macbeth. These moments came particularly in the parts of the play which can only be described, and I’m going to use a technical, theatrical term here, as ‘Arty Farty Claptrap’.

As for The Thane of Ross, to give him his full title, my only real disappointment has been that he doesn’t get to fight anyone with a sword. Ross, we decided, is more the politician than the warrior. His allegiances change with the political climate, culminating in the final decision - "MacBeth has gone nuts, I’m off to England to find Macduff." I was pleased that he made the right decision in the end, I wouldn’t have liked Ross to end up the snidy backstabber that everyone hates. Second Murderer was a joy to play - the opportunity to brutally murder someone on stage with a blunt instrument should never be passed up.

On the whole, ensemble playing with a cast of seven is largely about trust. You have to be able to trust the rest of the cast, because in a production like this you can be left feeling very exposed.

Jennifer Westwood (Lady Macbeth/Witch)

When I was offered the role of Lady Macbeth, I knew that it was an opportunity I couldn’t miss. When you’re used to getting the soft, girlie roles in productions, the thought of playing a strong, ambitious and unscrupulous woman is very exciting! I also find it amazing that characters such as Lady Macbeth have such a history, and although they are studied time after time, year after year, they never lose their fascination, as they have such depth and everybody’s perception of these characters is slightly different.

I went into the first rehearsal of Macbeth having last looked at it thoroughly when I was 15 and still at school – a lot of work and re-capping to be done! I saw (and still do) Lady Macbeth as a real challenge to portray. My initial, preconceived thoughts were that she was an evil, hard-hearted, bossy, ambitious fiend. Although this is very true at the beginning of the play, I discovered through research and rehearsal that there is a lot more to her character, and to only show her evil side would be unfair to the character and would only give a superficial view to the audience.

It’s difficult to sum up in a few lines, her main characteristics/motivations, but here goes! I have no doubt that she absolutely loves Macbeth. She enjoys the fact that she has the willpower and strength to convince him to fulfil their joint ambitions, as she feels needed by him. The relationship works so well up to the point where Duncan is killed, as she is the dominant partner and enjoys the responsibility. She questions her husband’s masculinity in order to weaken him.

Although she appears to have no conscience in the early part of the play, it becomes obvious that she has. I feel that not only is she driven to madness through guilt and haunting images, but also by losing the relationship and the self-importance that she thrived on. I actually have quite a lot of sympathy for her - which I wasn’t expecting!
We have had great fun rehearsing the witch scenes. The music that we use has really helped to bring the three witches to life, hopefully in an original way. I think we’ve managed to keep imaginary cauldrons, cackles and broomsticks to a minimum! They enjoy being together and I think they find it fun to play with Macbeth’s mind.
The rehearsal period has been fairly limited, and the cast have really pulled together. Dan, our director, has a great way to get us chatting to find the essence of our characters. It’s amazing how profound and deep you can be after he’s taken you for a few beers in the local pub!

Helen Sherwood (Malcolm/Witch/Murderer)

Being the ‘new girl’ in Off The Ground Touring Theatre Company was, to be honest, a little strange at first – like the first day at a new school when everyone else knows each other and you feel all these curious and expectant eyes staring at you – whilst having no idea what to expect yourself. Everyone at Off The Ground knew each other from previous work or from the local youth theatre – except me. Luckily, they’re all very nice people (honest!) and really easy to get along with so it didn’t take me too long to settle in.

It all started with an audition on Friday 23rd February at the Bluecoat Arts Centre in Liverpool. Three of us went into a room and read a few scenes from the play together and that was it. A few hours later I got a phone call from Dan (the director and Duncan and Macduff) offering me a part – well, several: Malcolm, 2nd Witch and 1st Murderer (actually, the part of murderer was given to me later when one of the actors had to pull out – but that’s another story!) On Thursday I was a cashier at Yorkshire Bank (my way of earning money in between acting jobs). On Friday I handed in my notice at the bank and became an employee of Off The Ground, sacrificing a regular pay cheque for a chance to act again - but what’s money compared to the chance to do what I love? (a car, house, food, security, yes, I know…)

By the way, if you’re wondering why a girl is playing Malcolm then so was I. Basically, with a cast of only seven, we needed to take on several parts each and one of mine happens to be a bloke. I’m not playing him as a bloke though, you’ll be pleased to know – Malcolm is the King’s daughter in our production – which has brought up some different ways of playing the scenes. For instance, when Duncan makes Malcolm Prince of Cumberland (effectively the next in line to the throne) it makes it an even less popular decision as Malcolm is female and not expected to be able to rule the kingdom. Duncan could have easily bestowed the honour on Macbeth who would be thought much more suitable for the position, as in this period the King could choose who was to succeed him and it did not have to be his son (or daughter in this case).

Also, playing Malcolm as a woman can bring different slants to relationships – such as Malcolm being doted on by her father who sees her as his little girl; Lady Macbeth being threatened by the presence of another female on her territory; and Macbeth, Ross and Banquo being like her big brothers who protect and look out for her. Besides all this, there simply aren’t enough juicy parts around for women and it can’t hurt to create more opportunities!

Getting back to the play, we started rehearsing on Sunday 25th February and the first performance was scheduled for Thursday 8th March – 11 days rehearsal time. In all the productions I have been in I’ve had at least 3 weeks, so this was a record and more than a little scary.

Rehearsals were held at a drama studio in Caldy Grammar School (guarded by very dramatic looking gates), and at the Church Hall in Irby. We began learning lines and blocking the play, often without the luxury of heating, so we never had to ‘act’ cold, it just came naturally! A few pub meetings and games of ‘Zip, Zap, Boing’ later and we started to have a company. I should point out that the social side can be as important as rehearsals, as everyone has to feel comfortable with the people they’re working with to get the best out of the rehearsal process. Pub rehearsals are always a good way to relax and get to know each other!

We had our fair share of hiccups - people dropping out, forgetting about pre-planned workshops (mentioning no names!!) which meant rehearsals had to be postponed, and swapping parts around. Things to do with the theatre rarely seem to run smoothly, but it somehow makes it much better when things do work out in the end.

Rehearsals have been very much open to input from all the actors and about trying things in different ways to find out what works, and not always going for the safest option. Part of it for me has been about staying away from home a lot (big thankyou to Dan’s parents, Barbara and Peter for my bed and for keeping me fed!) and meeting new people. The other part has been about working as a team to create what I hope is an interesting and truthful (and enjoyable!) piece of theatre.