Macbeth, Young Vic review: Stylish and daring production will leave the purists cold

Macbeth is a play that can withstand a lot of fanciful reimagining, and director Carrie Cracknell and choreographer Lucy Guerin have created a quirky interpretation that’s as much about spidery dance moves as about Shakespeare’s knotty verse.

The point is to find a fresh way into the psychological distress of Macbeth. There’s a strong emphasis on the three witches, whose creepy insinuations seem to be both part of Macbeth’s consciousness and darkly suggestive downloads from another world.

All the action takes place in what looks like a dodgy underpass or the detention wing of a clapped-out spacecraft. Other elements of Lizzie Clachan’s design call to mind the brutality of Abu Ghraib or the ugly wasteland of a police state. This is a production that doesn’t shy away from the play’s concern with violence, civil war and regime change. It feels unsettlingly topical.

John Heffernan is a curious choice to play the title role. He’s a pale, cerebral, elegant actor who doesn’t immediately appear suited to portraying a villainous soldier. But his Macbeth is intriguingly awkward, and he invests every speech with something new.

There’s not much chemistry between the main characters, and the usually excellent Anna Maxwell Martin gabbles as she strives to make Lady Macbeth seem brisk.

With a soundtrack by electronic virtuoso Chris Clark, this is stylish, disturbing theatre that will have purists tearing their hair out — visually impressive but cold.

Until Jan 23, Young Vic, (020 7922 2922, youngvic.org)

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