Triumphant Macbeth Performance Heralds Return to Newly Open Campus

By Jim Klar, Communications Officer

TAS Upper School Drama was in the spotlight in October 2022 as students performed Shakespeare’s tragic tale of kings, queens, witches, ghosts, and murderers pursuing deeds of love, ambition, greed, betrayal, and retribution. Thanks to a change in campus guidelines, parents, family, and friends were finally allowed to supply a live audience for the first time in years as Macbeth kicked off the Upper School Drama season here at Taipei American School.

The spectacle launched with a dance sequence that set a foreboding tone for the well-known tragedy. Following the dancers, appropriately dark and moody mayhem ensued. First, the Witches (Moya B., Davina J. & Emma W.) cackled and convulsed at their cauldron. Next, Macbeth and his mate (Dylan C. & Sage R.) connived and colluded on their murderous path to power. Then Banquo and Duncan (Finlay M. & Snow F.) served as innocent lambs for the slaughter and returned as haunting ghosts and crushing guilt. Finally, Macduff (Nathan S.) wreaked his revenge, and a just king was restored to the throne of Scotland.

The lead actors were riveting in intensity, rendering the complex emotional landscape Shakespearean tragedy requires with enough subtlety and depth to be completely believable. Equally strong actors in supporting roles created a strong foundation for the rest to stand on, and the comic relief of the famous Porter scene (Julie G.) was a refreshing change of pace.

Set in 1960s Taiwan, the set design was meant to provide a physical metaphor for Macbeth’s descent into evil, with a raked part covering most of the stage and continuing down the apron to the audience’s front row. The tech crew efficiently handled 6 projectors, two following spotlights, and over 150 lighting cues to complete their side of the illusion. The set, lighting, and backstage crew flawlessly created a dark and brooding vision. Often considered a rite of passage for high school students, staging Shakespeare comes with risks. The language, emotional gymnastics, and depth of human experience required are more complex. But the risks our faculty and intrepid students took in Macbeth paid off with a hefty reward. The production experience was indeed one that faculty, students, and the audience will remember “tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow.”