Blog
Eilidh Riddell from Paisley Opera on why you want to make sure you catch their unique take on Macbeth this weekend.
“Join Paisley Opera this weekend as they put on the first public performance at Paisley Town Hall with their production of Verdi’s Macbeth, set in 1970s Paisley.
“Paisley Opera are excited to bring this classic story to the heart of Paisley – as usual with a local twist to the plot. Their version follows Macbeth, encouraged by his fiery wife, Lady Macbeth, as he takes down all competition to become the leader of a local gang.
“The women’s chorus – usually a chorus of witches – is a group of women’s libbers who congregate at the local steamie. They’re sick and tired of the men in charge, and to quote, have “had enough of all their shite”.
David Stephenson, who is playing Macbeth himself, told us about his experience of the role in their new take on the classic story:
“Its very true to the Shakespeare – the story, but in a completely different way of putting it across.
“Walking around with two cut-throat razors in my suit is a bit alien to me – it’s not my normal temperament to be that kind of person. It is tricky to get into this gangland mentality, there’s no question about it, but that’s acting!”
The opera is obviously not sung in the original Italian. They have a brand new “West-of-Scotland” English translation by Lindsay Bramley, and will also have supertitles displayed above the stage so that you always know what’s going on.
They are thrilled to be lead by a cast of stellar professional soloists, including David as Macbeth, who has previously sung the role with Scottish Opera. They will also be accompanied by The Orchestra of Scottish Opera and dynamic local dance group right2dance.
The chorus is over 50 voices strong, made up of a mix of community singers and professionals.
One of Paisley Opera’s chorus members, Elaine, shared her thoughts on their production:
“Having been around in the seventies, having been a part of the stuff that was happening, I think it helps in making it accessible for it to be in a timeframe that some folks will remember that’s no too far back.”
Of course, Paisley Opera are proud to be the first public performance at the new Paisley Town Hall after its refurbishment. We don’t think you’ll want to miss this historic event.
Show times
Macbeth is showing at 7.15pm on Friday 6 – Saturday 7 October with doors opening at 6.45pm. Running time is approximately 2 hours and 20 minutes, including an interval.
Tickets are £20 (£15 concessions, £5 unemployed) with newly-released ‘restricted view’ tickets available for £10 (£5 unemployed).
You can by tickets from OneRen Box Office on 0300 300 1210 or by booking online. If booking online, please look on a desktop browser rather than on a mobile to see the full range of seats available.