Portrayal of malevolence elevates timely 'Macbeth'

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"Unnatural deeds will breed unnatural troubles," observes Lady Macbeth's doctor toward the end of Salt Lake Shakespeare's current production of "Macbeth." It seems a succinct summary of the actions of two ruthlessly ambitious people and the devastating effect they have on their country and themselves. When the Macbeths set out to kill the revered king who is both their kinsman and their houseguest, they thrust into motion a series of dark deeds that eventually engulf them.

"Macbeth" is Shakespeare's shortest, most unrelenting tragedy. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are not deep characters, but they are decisive ones, and once in action, their deeds become wedded to the driving force of fate, personified by the three witches, and take on a malevolent life of their own. Hugh Hanson's production captures the momentum and inevitability of that darkness.

Macbeth and his wife are soul mates in dark destiny. In her first soliloquy, Lady Macbeth perceptively observes that ambition plus "illness" (wickedness) equal success. Macbeth has the ambition; she supplies the evil intensity. Ironically, the two change places during the course of the play: Macbeth becomes increasingly corrupt, eventually hiding his treachery even from his wife, while she disintegrates into a haunted shadow, perched on the edge of madness.

Mark Fossen and Barbara Smith are a perfect pairing to convey the power and eventual confusion of this couple. Fossen is a big man with a big voice, encapsulating Macbeth's masterful authority, but he is equally adept at confiding his uncertainty and confusion to the audience in his soliloquies. Smith is the essence of steely determination, on top of every situation, yet her sleepwalking scene is so touching and tormented that it stirs our sympathy.

Daniel Beecher transitions effectively between down-to-earth, honest Banquo and stalwart, sensible Macduff; he's especially moving when Macduff discovers the fate of his family, capturing the human cost of political responsibility. Stacy Sobieski, Cassandra Stokes-Wylie, and Ruth Ann Jones revel in the eerie machinations of the witches. With their hoods and whirling cloaks, they resemble deatheaters escaped from "Harry Potter." Richard Scharine, Alejandro Stepenberg, and especially Benjamin Brinton provide strong support, but Sam Wessels looks uncomfortable and rushes his lines as Malcolm; he's better in the play's comic moments, although even there he overdoes.

Hanson's direction is focused, well paced, and highly atmospheric. The production started slowly opening night but really hit its stride in the second act. His idea of having young, attractive witches instead of withered hags ironically makes them even more sinister. There are a few distracting directorial choices--why use red plastic for blood, and why do a few people have accents when the others don't?--but his staging of the Macduff murders is truly harrowing.

Ruth Jones's set with its rock fortress walls suggests enclosure and entrapment, and Danny Dunn's lighting is appropriately moody and subdued. Tom McCosh's rich sound design, combining drums and bagpipes, thunder, rushing wind, and unearthly, discordant music, adds a darker layer to the play. Paul Kiernan's fight choreography is realistic and exciting.

Shakespeare portrays the darker side of ambition in "Macbeth"; unfortunately, 400 years later, we have plenty of examples that he knew what he was talking about.