THE ACOUSTICAL MACBETH
What do you hear when you read Shakespeare? This assignment is designed to get you to think about Shakespearean drama as performance, to think of the words that you read as issuing from the mouths of particular characters in particular situations. This week we will think together about performance as interpretation, about the many decisions one might make in transforming a written text into a spoken one.
In dramatic performance, interpretation can of course be facilitated by the visual dimensions of staging, scenery, casting and costuming. But meaning can often hinge on the slightest of acoustical effects. An actor might interpret a word, line, or speech, framing his or her character through the use of tone, tempo, volume, emphasis, accent and so on. Think, for example, about all the different ways of speaking a line like, "who would have thought the old man to have had so much blood in him?" (Macbeth, 5.1.39-40). Considering emphasis alone, try speaking this aloud, emphasizing a different word each time, and you'll see what any given performance encodes about the significance of a single sentence). Would you highlight "man"? "blood"? "old"? "thought"?
For this assignment, listen to two versions of the "porter scene" in Macbeth. What do you hear or notice in terms of the use of sound effects, intonation, timing, pronunciation, volume, vocal "casting," or anything you might notice that seems to offer a particular interpretation of the lines? If you were directing these particular actors, might you make suggestions for performing the lines in a different way? How do the two performances differ in significant ways?
Write a 1-2 page (double spaced) paper, either
a) analyzing one of these recordings, noting how particular vocal effects or choices function to highlight particular aspects of the scene, character, and/or play
b) comparing the two versions of this single scene (or indeed, comparing particular moments or single lines within these scenes)
c) examining any aspect of one (or both) of the recordings of a later and slightly longer scene from Act 4, featuring the witches and Macbeth.
d) Only if you for some reason cannot access the sound files here, write about the implications of an all-male cast performing this play, with a particular focus on a "male" Lady Macbeth. You could think about this in terms of 1.7.38-81, in particular. (Remember, during Shakespeare's life, all actors on the public stage were male).
Even if you don't write on "c," do listen to all four recordings as you read along with the text (the text on I've reproduced here for you, or from your own text).
Most importantly, enjoy!
I look forward to reading--and hearing--your thoughts
Listen to the audio: