Macbeth On The Estate

 'Macbeth On The Estate' is a contemporary version of Shakespeare's legendary 'Macbeth' and is set on a Council Estate in Birmingham. What is great about this version is that it is so current and tackles a lot of issues that people will be able to relate to in today's day and age. For example, the 'great battle' that Macbeth is battling at the beginning of the piece is very similar to a 'gang war' (very different to the original yet very similar!). The fact they murder they're enemy in the opening scene by putting him in a car, covering him in petrol and setting him on fire is also very realistic to life in 1997 to the present as arson attacks are, unfortunately, a part of modern life. The reason for this choice of death is to again, appeal to a current audience who wouldn't necessarily be interested in watching  a Classical version of Shakespeare's Macbeth. Another element of the play that is very different to the original is the Director's choice of costume. In 'Macbeth on the Estate' the characters are quite 'chavvy' and look scruffy. The use of the 'tower block' 'council estate' enables the audience to relate to the story and I believe this is the main reason the Director has chosen to use this context. 

All characters are portrayed as aggressive, intimidating and dangerous- very similar to the original, but of course they are shown as aggressive in different ways- especially through the choice of weapons- baseball bat in particular. The fact that they are willing to bludgeon their opponents with a blunt object repeatedly to kill them shows that they are very angry people. The use of turning the storyline into a gang battle makes it easier for the modern audience to understand as they might not necessarily understand all the dialogue but will be able to follow the story through movement, body language and other general visual aspects. There is also several black actors which would not have been the case in Shakespearean times- I believe the director has chosen to use actors of different ethnicities as this produces a realistic viewing of a diverse Council Estate and celebrates racial equality. As far as I know, in the 1990's racism was still about and there was still a lot of stigma attached to race- I believe that the director of Macbeth On The Estate wanted to show that no matter what race everyone is, we can all work together as we are all equal.