The weird sisters: 

• First appearance:
  • Witches are together while simultaneously Duncan is – praying?
  • Maiden/mother/crone, basically. Maiden is played “simple-minded”.
  • The witches disappear – I wonder how it was done on stage?
• Second appearance:
  • Putting ingredients together by candlelight before Macbeth arrives.
  • They take off Macbeth’s shirt and make him drink a potion; then wave puppet-things above his head to tell him about Macduff and Birnham Wood, etc.

Macbeth: 

• First appearance: slicked-back hair, blood on face, excellent greatcoat.
• Speaks directly to the camera, rather than vaguely musing.
• Haughty and dismissive of Lady Macbeth immediately after his coronation/ before speaking to the murderers.
• No Banquo at the feast – just Macbeth hallucinating. McKellen plays him very manic in this scene – frothing at the mouth, hair wild.
• Hair still a bit wild when he goes to the witches.

Lady Macbeth: 

• First appearance: cap covering hair; simple diamond stud earrings; plain black dress with long sleeves.
• Macbeth is clearly in love (and in lust) with her.
• Already starting to be worried while the murder is happening – starts at the owl. Rallies when Macbeth comes out with the knives, although is distressed by Macbeth’s ranting.
• Loses emotional control at the end of the feast/Banquo’s ghost scene.

“Unsex me here”: 

• Spoken directly to the camera.
• Speaks quietly. almost whispering, crouching down – then briefly up, crying out, as if something has happened to her.
• Finishes with arms out-stretched, and a light shines on her face – as Macbeth arrives. At which point they smooch.

“Is this a dagger”: 

• No dagger seen by audience.
• Speaks very quietly, and with a lot of fear at the start. As the speech goes on, he is convincing himself to do the deed.
• Murder is not shown.

“Out, damned spot”:

•  Brilliantly acted. Weeping; carrying and looking at a candle.
• Heartbreaking wail.

“Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow”: 

•  Not really that affecting, sadly.
• Sitting down, half clothed in armour; speaks to the camera.

Violence: 

• Murder of Banquo is the first violence shown, and even then it’s just the indication of knives being used; Banquo not shown until the end, with blood on his face.
• Killing of Macduff’s family also relatively demure.
• Brief fight scene between Macbeth and Macduff, but nothing dramatic.

Setting: 

• On stage: basically no furniture at all bar a few chairs. Very few props, even – a few candles, daggers, the shared cup at the feast, some paper. The puppets.
• Entirely dark background: faces stand out starkly. It’s almost black and white.
• Costuming: modern; very plain. Duncan in a white robe; Malcolm in a turtleneck white sweater; basically all other men in suits, mostly black. No one changes clothes throughout the play.
• Lady Macduff also in complete white.

Dialogue: 

• Spoken clearly – as you would expect from an RSC production.

Other things: 

• Starts with all actors sitting around in a circle, watching one another.
• Lots of very tight shots of faces – almost never see people full-length. People stand very close together.
• Duncan is frail, and looks saintly.
• It’s very distracting seeing well-known famous when they’re a lot younger. One thane (and the Porter?!) is played by Emperor Palpatine; Malcolm is played by Lord John Marbury (West Wing); Macduff is played by Robert Muldoon (Jurassic Park).
  • The Porter has a neck kerchief, braces, no shirt, and the front of his trousers open; also a tattered flat cap. Winks at the camera at his most outrageous puns.