STAGE REVIEW SLP's 'Macbeth' needs a real boost of energy

The performance of the tragedy seldom rose above the adequate level.
By GARRY L. CLARK
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
SALEM -- Stage Left Players of Lisbon presented the opening performance of "Macbeth," its annual "Shakespeare in the Park" event Friday evening under somewhat threatening skies that thankfully never delivered. Then again, neither did the play.
Outside of a few good performances and some fair ones, the Bard's tragedy never rose above adequate.
Macbeth's avarice that propels him to murder, under the watchful and malevolent eye of his wife, is truly a tale of horror. As murder begets more murder, Macbeth's erstwhile fame and honor begin to be sucked down a vortex that can have only the direst of consequences.
Giving very good performances as the three witches were Kari Lankford, Karen Vosito and Marilyn Higgins. Also turning in a fine performance as King Duncan was Dick Fawcett. These four clearly outshone the rest of the cast.
Eric Kibler was adequate as Macbeth, as was Kathy Fawcett as his pushy wife, and Rollin Michael turned in a fairly solid performance as Macduff.
Nathan Price and Andrew Robb as Duncan's sons, Malcolm and Donalbain, respectively, failed to carry themselves in the princely manner that one would expect of royalty. They needed to stand up straighter as befitting the sons of a king as well as project their lines a little farther into the audience.
Many of their lines, as well as those of other cast members', were swallowed by the stage. Add that to the fact that, this being Shakespeare, the audience must listen extra carefully to catch the meaning of 16th-century English, and the actors must be even more careful with diction and phrasing.
Which brings me to the lines: Far too many in this cast didn't seem to grasp the language they were speaking, which tended to come off as reciting lines rather than giving them life.
Dan Haueter as Banquo did well, and rounding out the cast were J.P. Gallo, David Wack, Joseph Lankford, Brad Lankford and Joshua Lankford.
Other problems
Stage movement was a problem in that there simply was way too much of it. Characters wandered back and forth across the stage without much purpose rather than using their faces to project the various emotions that their body language simply did not show.
Staging for this production was simple, and costuming chosen was of the modern era, which was slightly disconcerting from the period in which the tragedy takes place. By far the best costuming was that of the three witches, depicted as rather glamorous instead of as old crones, making for a nice touch. After all, evil usually shows up in a pretty package, or it wouldn't be so tempting, would it?
Hopefully, this cast will rise to the occasion and beef up future performances with an extra dose of energy and vitality lacking opening night.