McBethany
Why are actors never supposed to say ‘Macbeth’ in a theater?
BY:
Josh Werre
As most thespians can explain, it’s an old superstition rooted in the deaths, riots, and accidents that have plagued productions of “Macbeth”. Unless someone is rehearsing or performing the show, saying the word ‘Macbeth’ will bring about terrible luck. For an actor like Tristan Taylor, however, the cursed ‘M’ word is more than just theatrical folklore. It’s the inspiration for writing a new play. And it all began in a grocery store over two years ago. The year was 2019. Taylor was on Christmas break. He had completed the fall semester of his sophomore year at the University of Sioux Falls where he planned to major in English with a minor in theatre. About 130 miles east of the University lies the unsuspecting city of Truman, Minnesota, Taylor’s hometown. A 20 minute drive from Truman will get you to Winnebago, a city nearly as small as Truman, but one that has something that Truman doesn’t– a grocery store. During break, Taylor spent his time working at this grocery store. It was here where inspiration struck. “[O]ne of my coworkers was asking me about the whole “Macbeth” myth in theatre of why you can’t say Macbeth on stage,” Taylor explains. “[A]nd I was like, ‘What if I wrote a play about that?’” The timing couldn’t have been more perfect. Taylor had registered to take a playwriting course at the University next semester. He would need as many ideas for plays as he could get. The playwriting class would eventually culminate by tasking students to write one act plays as their final project. Taylor already had an idea in mind. It wasn’t “Macbeth”, per se. Instead, Taylor’s play would be known as “McBethany”. “McBethany” follows the story of a man named Joshua. Joshua is a first time director getting ready to put on a production of “Macbeth”. As soon as he begins holding auditions, he learns that someone has taken the copyrights for all of Shakespeare’s works– including “Macbeth”. Strapped for cash, Joshua can’t afford to put the show on, so he must figure out how to make his own “Macbeth’’ while also avoiding copyright laws.
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