WEBVTT - BrainStuff Classics: Is There a Real Witches' Curse in 'Macbeth'?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff, a production of I Heart Radio. Hi,

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<v Speaker 1>brain Stuff, Lauren Vogelbaum here with another classic episode from

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<v Speaker 1>our podcast archives. This one has to do with Shakespeare's

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<v Speaker 1>Scottish play and why it's referred to as that sometimes

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<v Speaker 1>and how the idea that it's cursed may have gotten started.

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<v Speaker 1>Hey there, brain Stuff, Lauren vogel Bam here. If you're

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<v Speaker 1>listening in a theater, you might want to save this

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<v Speaker 1>one for later, because today we're talking about the Scottish play.

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<v Speaker 1>William Shakespeare's tragedy Macbeth is steeped in deceit, murder, and manipulation,

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<v Speaker 1>and surrounded by real life superstitions enough that plenty of

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<v Speaker 1>theater professionals and enthusiasts won't even say the word Macbeth

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<v Speaker 1>outside of the actual staging of a show. In the play,

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<v Speaker 1>the Scottish General Macbeth returns home from the battlefield and

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<v Speaker 1>encounters three witches who make a trio of prophecies. Many

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<v Speaker 1>playgoers and performers believe the incantations in Macbeth were genuine

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<v Speaker 1>curses taken from an actual coven. It's so only one

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<v Speaker 1>explanation for all of the injuries, accidents, and illnesses that

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<v Speaker 1>have befallen so many of the people involved with its productions.

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<v Speaker 1>For example, during the first performance of Vicbeth and the

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<v Speaker 1>early sixteen hundreds, the actor portraying Lady Macbeth fell ill

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<v Speaker 1>and died on stage, forcing Shakespeare to take over the role.

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<v Speaker 1>In later performances, theatergoers sometimes became so caught up in

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<v Speaker 1>the action that they formed angry mobs and tried to

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<v Speaker 1>exact justice on the antagonist Lady Macbeth. Once in eighteen

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<v Speaker 1>forty nine, more than thirty people died when rioting occurred

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<v Speaker 1>part way through the play. Legendary actors like Lawrence Olivier

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<v Speaker 1>and Charlton Heston experienced close calls during performances. Olivier, who

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<v Speaker 1>played McBeth in nineteen thirty seven, was nearly crushed to

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<v Speaker 1>death by a stage light. Heston, who took the role

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<v Speaker 1>on in nineteen fifty three, was severely burned on his

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<v Speaker 1>lower extremities after his tights were somehow dusting kerosene. The

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<v Speaker 1>eddy of misfortunes swirling around Macbeth seems to mimic the

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<v Speaker 1>tragedies that take place on stage. Lady Macbeth, in an

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<v Speaker 1>effort to speed her husband's rise to the throne encourages

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<v Speaker 1>him to murder the reigning king. When Macbeth does, he

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<v Speaker 1>enters into a state of paranoia. He murders his best friend,

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<v Speaker 1>whose children are prophesied to take the throne in the future,

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<v Speaker 1>as well as an entire family who sees his competition.

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<v Speaker 1>In the end, a lady Macbeth dies of guilt and

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<v Speaker 1>Macbeth is killed too. Meanwhile, audiences have been left to

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<v Speaker 1>wonder whether the witches after whom the Macbeth rolls were

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<v Speaker 1>patterned might have stolen into the theater, watched the first

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<v Speaker 1>address rehearsal, and left a curse that has endured for centuries.

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<v Speaker 1>Perhaps they didn't appreciate their spells being put on display

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<v Speaker 1>for public consumption. Maybe they just weren't fans of the theater.

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<v Speaker 1>Whatever the reason, legend has it that they banded together

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<v Speaker 1>and cursed the play's future productions. There are other, perhaps

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<v Speaker 1>more plausible explanations, though for starters, most of the plays

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<v Speaker 1>performed in dimly lit and foggy conditions, which have probably

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<v Speaker 1>led to many of the on stage accidents that have

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<v Speaker 1>plagued productions. And then there are the fight scenes. Macbeth

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<v Speaker 1>has more skirmishes than most plays, which increases the odds

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<v Speaker 1>that something will go wrong. Condense all this strife into

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<v Speaker 1>the Bard's shortest tragedy, It's no wonder that people have

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<v Speaker 1>gotten hurt. All live productions flirt with mishaps both large

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<v Speaker 1>and small. Costumes can malfunction, actors can get sick, crew

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<v Speaker 1>members of stained injuries. When multiplied by the thousands of

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<v Speaker 1>times Macbeth has been performed throughout the last four centuries,

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<v Speaker 1>these problems are bound to add up and perpetuate the

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<v Speaker 1>belief that the play is cursed. But if anything weird

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<v Speaker 1>happens to me after this episode, y'all take heat and

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<v Speaker 1>just be careful with that name. Yeah. Today's episode was

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<v Speaker 1>written by Laurie L. Dove and produced by Tristan McNeil

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<v Speaker 1>and Tyler Clang. For more on this and lots of

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<v Speaker 1>other topics of sound and fury, visit how stuff works

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<v Speaker 1>dot com. Brain Stuff is production of I Heart Radio.

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<v Speaker 1>For more podcasts my heart Radio, visit the I Heart

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<v Speaker 1>Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your

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