In writing this play, Shakespeare adapted a pre-existing story about an eleventh-century King of Scotland named Macbeth to fit the needs both of a Globe audience and a newly crowned (Scottish) King of England. From the moment Shakespeare died, others began rewriting Macbeth. This session explores how actors, writers, and directors, sought to modify, improve and reimagine this story over the last four centuries.

1.15pm – 2.15pm – Break for lunch

2.15pm – 3.15pm – Session 2: ‘“What beast was’t then?”: A Macbeth Bestiary’ with Dr Sally Barnden, Swansea University

What can one do with ‘eye of newt’? Why does an owl shriek before a murder? This session explores the natural world and the role of animals in Macbeth, from the witches’ familiars to the use of bear-baiting and falconry as metaphors for Macbeth’s tyranny.

3.30pm – 4.30pm – Session 3: ‘“In measure, time and place”: Jacobean Macbeth’ with Dr Tristan Marshall, University of Cambridge.

This session looks at Macbeth as it was performed in 1606, focusing on the staging of Scotland and contemporary concerns with the supernatural. It also considers the impact of Thomas Middleton’s hand in the version of the play that’s come down to us in the 1623 First Folio, showing how understanding the Jacobean Macbeth can frame perceptions of contemporary productions.

4.30pm – 5.00pm – Tea break

5.00pm – 6.00pm – Q&A with members of the Macbeth cast