What the Weird Sisters Saw is Jeff Recommended!
On Saturday, March 16th, 2024 Idle Muse Theatre Company opened it's all new version of What the Weird Sisters Saw! On the eve of Cawdor's rebellion against King Duncan, three young druidesses conjure a vision to discover the Fate of Scotland. As the image of a dark future begins to take shape, the Weird Sisters delve deeper and deeper into the mists, following a trail of bloody deeds to uncover the prophecy of a tyrant's ambition. Something wicked this way comes as Shakespeare's classic story of power and murder unfolds through their eyes in a reimagined tale of murder, dark fantasy, and horror!
In 2009, a three-year old Idle Muse Theatre Company produced its first adaptation of a Shakespeare text. Based on William Shakespeare's The Tragedy of Macbeth and reframed from the perspective of the three witches, What The Weird Sisters Saw told the story of three young druidesses as they followed visions of bloody deeds to uncover the prophecy of a tyrant's ambition.
From this small production at what is now the Jarvis Square Theater, the first ensemble of Idle Muse Theatre Company was born–as well as the company's long standing mission to create works of theater which transport audiences to worlds of magic and mystery. This year, the 15th anniversary of this landmark production, that same ensemble, now a broad collective of theater artists, returns to the stage in a new version.
From the original production, of course, Evan Jackson and Tristan Brandon are still a huge part of Idle Muse Theatre's creative team, Evan, again, directing and primarily adapting this remount, and Tristan handling prop design and helping to adapt as well. Elizabeth MacDougald, who originally played one of the Weird Sisters, named Morgan, returns as Hecate in our 2024 production and Mara Kovacevic, who originally played one of the Weird Sisters, named Cassandra, returns as Lady Macbeth! Mara has handed the mantle of Cassandra to Idle Muse Company Member, Jamie Redwood, who takes on the character now named Alastriona and Elizabth MacDougald has bequeathed Morgan onto me in the character now named Murron!
“This is more than just a remount. The 2024 version of What The Weird Sisters Saw is a complete rewrite and workshop of the original text,” said Artistic Director Jackson. “The same creative team that produced Idle Muse's most beloved 'graphic novels on stage' including The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde and The Last Queen Of Camelot are back together again for another tale of mystery and dark fantasy.”
The rehearsal process for this show was an arduous one. It became clear that attempting to follow the storyline of Macbeth out of order was challenging even for an actor who is only relatively familiar with the original text! A lot of our play also relies heavily on the fantastic tech elements in the show, which really help to bring to life the world in which Macbeth CAN be told out of order, deftly designed by Laura Wiley and L.J. Luthringer. However, while tech week was exhausting, we finally opened this behemoth of a show and, much to our delight, it has been Jeff Recommended!
I am grateful to finally get some rest on this Monday after opening weekend and excited to see where the journey of this production will take us. The discoveries on stage never stop happening, even though it seems like opening night ought to be the finished product, and with this interesting retelling, it's clear only more will be found as we continue to "venture through the mists."
If you are interested in getting out to The Edge Off Broadway theater for our show, let me know and I'd love to give you our discount code or see if I have any comps left to set you up with!
