World Premiere of an Absurdist Comedy Macbeth by the Sea

Witches! Ghosts! Karaoke!

Shakespeare’s tragic power couple, The Macbeths, murder the king and ascend the throne. Good friend Banquo has been killed, too. Banquo’s battered spirit disrupts a celebration for the royal couple. Worried that her husband’s stressful hallucinations will thwart their reign, Lady Macbeth orders a relaxing weekend at The Happy Hearts Seaside Resort. Will the weight of their evil deeds doom their legacy? Some witches might have something to say about it. Combining raucous physical theatre with skewering the bard, the play comically explores the themes of nepotism versus raw ambition and the merits of couples massages, karaoke, and Bon Jovi.

Something Hysterical This Way Comes!

This is the third show that Chicago’s John Hancock Productions has brought to the Festival Fringe. In 2019, they premiered The Greatest Theatrical Event…EVER! and in 2017 brought their hit Chicago production Our Christian Nation. Absurdity and satire are their stock and trade. JHP was created by Emmy Award winning playwright Joe Janes and esteemed director Andrea J. Dymond.

Is this a pool noodle I see before me?

The cast and crew are all teachers! Actor Ric Walker and playwright Joe Janes both teach in the USA’s first degreed comedy program at Columbia College. Wendi Weber and Andrea J. Dymond teach acting and directing in the theatre department. Joe, Ric, and Lori McClain have all taught and performed at The Second City. This production received a Part-Time Faculty Development Grant from Columbia College.

Venue: theSpace on the Mile – Venue 39

Dates: 4th–19th August 2019 (not 13th)

Time: 16:05 (0hr50)

Ticket prices: £10.00 / concessions £5.00 / family £5.00

Fringe box office: 0131 226 0000 / https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/macbeth-by-the-sea

Suitable for 14+