The Pioneer Players performed their production of Shakespeare’s Macbeth the weekend before November break at the CFA Theatre.

The Platteville rendition of Macbeth was performed in Elizabethan English, with extremely passionate performances from the entire cast. Macbeth was also an extremely gory show, with a “river of blood” and barriers set up around the edge of the stage to protect audience members from the worst of the blood spray. Ponchos were offered to everyone in the front few rows with the promise that all of the blood would wash out.

The show balanced a line between staying true to Shakespeare’s story while also contemporizing it. The costumes were modernized, and the casting expanded to include more women in the show.

The audience watches Macbeth’s mental descent as he is given his fate by three witches. To take control of his fate, he arranges the murder of Queen Duncan, and in doing so, starts the bloodbath audiences know as Macbeth.  

Macbeth is a complicated story about violence as a means for political gain, and the Pioneer Players handled the execution of the show remarkably well. 

The next production by the Pioneer Players will be the musical, Assassins, running from March 29 through April 2, 2023, at the CFA Brodbeck Concert Hall.