THE BARDEN PARTY'S DAZZLING RETURN WITH MACBETH
The Barden Party has returned to Brisbane, bringing their latest Shakespearean reimagining to BackDock Arts. Following their spectacular 2024 production of Romeo + Juliet, this year’s Macbeth brings them another step closer locking in beloved annual tradition status amongst Brisbanites, and I cannot wait to see what they do next.
This particular production is gender-swapped, and their re-envisioning of the story, in my opinion, invites the audience to infer from that only what is needed. The character of Lady-then-Queen Macbeth is as morally conflicted, ambitious, and flawed as any other faithful iteration of Macbeth. The question of what necessarily flows from gender-swapping Macbeth is not spoon-fed to The Barden Party’s guests - which is thoughtful and engaging. It keeps you hooked on every scene. We can think in the abstract of what it may mean to see a Lord Macbeth encourage Lady Macbeth to screw her courage to the sticking place and kill Queen Duncan, but it’s not until you see it played out (and in such style) that you uncover new thoughts hiding beneath your expectations.
What I’m trying to say is that the meaning, impact, and message that flows from gender-swapping the characters rests in part on who you are and what you think, so a ticket to the show will deliver you a nicely bespoke product that you can unpack with friends over a post-show drink in the Valley.
This year’s production brings some fresh talent that, whilst new to The Barden Party, are renowned performers across Australia and New Zealand. Tara McEntee’s journey as a performer each night sees her deliver the gravitas of Queen Duncan before pivoting to some sheer silliness in the second act, which is a pure delight to watch. Criss Grueber is so engaging as a performer and musician, and (avoiding spoilers) seeing one of his characters meet his fate is a very moving moment that showcases great depth. Emilia Higgs parkours between magic moments, heartbreaking moments, triumphant moments - such is her incredible range and delivery of such authentic, gut-wrenching emotion. Rounding out the Barden Party debutantes, Hamish Boyle, given the great responsibility of guiding the audience as one of a pair of drunken yokels (the form the witches have taken in this bluegrass retelling of Shakespeare’s classic), gave the entire production a wonderful boost of energy.
Performer/Directors Laura Irish and Ollie Howlett and returning performer Caleb James - have perfected their wonderful formula that results in a modern, colourful adaptation of a classic text. We can now see in even more vivid detail their vision for the troupe—they are heartfelt, sexy, and inspired. The kind of performers that have audiences thinking of all the stories or plays they’d love to see Barden do next.
Everything I said about the translation of Macbeth into Lady Macbeth is executed with finesse by Laura Irish—the heart of the show as Macbeth. Laura’s portrayal is what unlocks the magic in this production—a protagonist that, whilst gender-swapped, is not the inverse of masculinity. Eyeing which of Laura’s Macbeth’s actions were influenced in some way by gender, and which simply remain as Macbeth’s true character, is an interesting exercise.
The Barden Party succeed in transforming Macbeth into something distinctly their own: familiar but fresh in interesting new ways, and injected with moments of pure emotion. If there’s any justice, their annual visits to Brisbane will become a fixture.
Macbeth is playing at Backdock Arts until 15 February 2025.
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