Malthouse Education invites you to experience the Australian premiere of this thrilling new adaptation, as part of the 2024 VCE Theatre Studies Playlist.

The path to freedom is stained by blood…

In this audacious reimagining of Shakespeare, visionary playwright Zinnie Harris merges the classic with the contemporary to interrogate events from Lady Macbeth’s perspective—resulting in an exhilarating epic of manipulation, ambition, and the intoxicating need to challenge the roles others prescribe for you.

Instead of erasing history, Macbeth (an undoing) rewinds and rewatches it through a feminist lens to elevate a previously unheard point of view. It asks us to examine the link between progress and violence (and whether they can ever truly be separated), considers what makes certain narratives more trustworthy than others, and ultimately questions the very nature of fate.

Director Matthew Lutton will craft an epic translation of 11^th Century Scotland. A world of stone, mud, blood, rain and mist, where shelter is vital and nature itself is as dangerous as those who inhabit its darkest corners—brought to life onstage by some of Australia’s best theatre designers with the spectacle and innovation you’ve come to expect from Malthouse Theatre.

VCE Theatre Studies Prompt Packs

The Malthouse Theatre provides pre-show and post-show Prompt Packs that explore the script and themes to help the students gain a deeper understanding of the production.

PROMPT PACK A (PRE-SHOW)

Available here, early June 2024

PROMPT PACK B (POST-SHOW)

Available here, mid-July 2024

Script

Complementary PDF scripts will be emailed to teachers in early June 2024 (together with Prompt Pack A) to be shared with students for educational purposes only.

If you require advance reading, both paperback and e-book versions of the original Lyceum production are currently available for purchase from various sellers online; please note however the Malthouse script (containing only minor updates from the playwright) will be the definitive version for VCE Theatre Studies.

Dates & Tickets

EDUCATION MATINEES

1pm Tuesday 16 July

1pm Thursday 18 July

1pm Tuesday 23 July

1pm Thursday 25 July

DURATION

Duration: approx 2 hours 40 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)

+ 30-minute optional Q&A at education matinees

Prices

Metro schools / $49 (per student)
Regional & low-ICSEA schools / $35 (per student)
Accompanying teachers / Free (max. 2 per group)
Additional teachers / $59

Post-show Q&A

All education matinees are followed by a Q&A session with the cast facilitated by the Malthouse Theatre Education team.

Revisit the Play

Revisit the Play is our acclaimed digital workshop aimed at preparing students for their VCE Theatre Studies written examination. With production footage excerpts, facilitated analysis and curriculum-focused provocations, this on-demand session in an invaluable revision opportunity for your class. Bookings can be made here.

This workshop will be available from 16 September 2023. 

Advice for Schools

Recommended for ages 15 and older. This production contains occasional coarse language, discussion of warfare, depiction of violence and blood, and references to death or dying.  

For more information about the play, its script, or curriculum links, please contact Malthouse Education Coordinator, Lyall Brooks at lbrooks@malthousetheatre.com.au. 

For all ticket and booking enquiries, please contact education@malthousetheatre.com.au.