Nunn and Polanski's Versions of Macbeth - comparing the two versions.
Nunn and Polanski's Versions of Macbeth I am going to be comparing two versions of Macbeth, Trevor Nunn and Roman Polanski. I will be comparing different aspects of both versions, things like costumes, colour, lighting, setting, props etc and then stating which I think is the best and why. Firstly I am going to be comparing the costumes worn by both sets of actors. In Nunn's version the only colours used are black and white. He uses these to extreme colours for two extreme circumstances, good and evil. Dark, drab clothes are used for evil characters such as the witches, while white for good characters like Duncan. I think this method of using the costumes isn't as good as having full colour because instantly the viewer can see who is good and evil. If there was colour the viewers would have to work this out for themselves and it would add excitement to the story line. In Polanski's version the costumes are in full colour. Again the evil witches are in dull, dark colours. Their clothes are old and in rags suggesting that they are evil. The settings of both versions of the same play are very different. In Nunn's version there is no real background pictures or objects, which would suggest the position of a character at a specific time. In fact the background is just darkened all the way through the play. Although this may limit what can be done with the setting, I think that
MacBeth - Examine a scene from Mac Beth - both film and text versions. Comment on how well you think the cast conveyed the subject matter and write down how you would direct the play of given the chance.
Name: Shaun Cinnamond Class: S2D School: Abbey Grammar School Title: MacBeth - Examine a scene from Mac Beth - both film and text versions. Comment on how well you think the cast conveyed the subject matter and write down how you would direct the play of given the chance. No. Of words: 1,660 Date of Submission: 09/02/04 Macbeth Assignment "A play, usually intended for performance by living actors on the stage for an exciting or distressing event". That is how the dictionary defines drama. However its origins are not clear. It is reckoned Drama has been around for hundreds of years and is believed to have started in Roman times as a source of entertainment for ceasers' and rulers. Back then though drama would have been performed in front of small crowds usually of great importance with little effort and props. Since then drama has changed greatly and has undergone many changes. It has become a main part in everyday life as a form of entertainment. One of the greatest dramatists ever is William Shakespeare. There is not a complete account on his life and has life is based around few facts. Shakespeare was born in 1564 to John Shakespeare and Mary Arden. Shakespeare's father John was a glover and became Mayor of Stratford-upon-Avon. Shakespeare attended Grammar School in Stratford and learnt English, Greek, Latin and the Bible. After that however there is doubts to what
Comparisons of the Tragedy of Macbeth as Seen in Films Directed by Roman Polanksi’s and Michael Bogdanov
Matthew Stone 10/17/02 Comparisons of the Tragedy of Macbeth as Seen in Films Directed by Roman Polanksi's and Michael Bogdanov Roman Polanksi's version of the tragic tail of Shakespeare's Macbeth is shown to us, the viewer in its most traditional way, having it been filmed and directed entirely in South Wales allowed us, the viewers to imagine what Shakespeare wanted his audience in his time period to feel. Roman Polanski uses both words and settings to enhance Shakespeare Message in which he understood it. While Michael Bogdanov uses Shakespeare's classic text in his production that is set in a timeless world in a raw, urban, industrial environment giving the film a surreal quality. The abstract setting puts this version of Macbeth alongside other more traditional versions of how Macbeth is usually filmed. Roman Polanksi's film, Macbeth opens with a long shot of the sky and the beach at dawn. All is quiet and still as the shot is held. You notice that the sky is red - a warning sign of danger, but it's a very beautiful image. The sky then gradually turns to a blue-grey, and a far more foreboding colour. The red bleeds out and disappears. This is not going to be a bright day bathed in sunlight - there's no sun in this tragedy. Polanski draws the attention of the audience by the use of colour in the film. The shot is held as a cough is heard and a stick gradually
Macbeth
Samantha Barker 11.4. Macbeth. At the beginning of this exam we read through the play entitled "Macbeth" so we had an idea of the plot of the play I think this helped us all as most of the class had not read this play before and this made us want to learn more of Macbeth. Response Phase. Using still images and narration after we had read the play helped me to understand the play better than when I read it as you had a visual aid and could see exactly what was going on and having narration in Modern English made it easier to understand as we are used to Modern English. In order to create three still images with narration successfully we had to think about the relationships between characters within the play to make sure that the way in which we performed was as accurate as possible as then it made it easier for the audience to understand. When we performed the three still images with narration I found that putting emotion in your voice for the narration and using conscious movement when changing images was hard and we needed some more work on that however I feel that showing who we were acting towards other characters was easy and the audience knew who we were trying to act as. In the exam we did an exercise called "the mirror exercise" in this we got into pairs and had to stand facing each other and we had to copy our partner's actions and movements to create an
Macbeth The presentation of the witches in the opening scenes is crucial to the atmosphere of the play Macbeth. Compare how acts 1 scene i and iii are presented in two different versions of the play. Which version do you feel makes the greater dramatic
The presentation of the witches in the opening scenes is crucial to the atmosphere of the play Macbeth. Compare how acts 1 scene i and iii are presented in two different versions of the play. Which version do you feel makes the greater dramatic impact? Explain why. Macbeth is a play written by William Shakespeare for the entertainment of King James i. During this time many people believed in witchcraft, King James being one of these. During the time which this play was written many people were burned at the stake for being witches, this shows us that witchcraft was a very big thing in these times increasing the believability of the witches and the importance of they're role in the play. Although the witches in the play have only a few lines they are important ones as they turn Macbeth into their puppet of bad deeds. However in our modern day witchcraft holds a very irrelevant and fairytale status. For the purpose of doing this coursework i firs had to watch two different productions of the play Macbeth. The first version of the play, which I watched, was a production made by the BBC; this is the older of the two plays, which shows in the quality of the picture. it is old but sticks to the original text rigidly. The first scene of this production is set in a dark desolate and eerie area. This creates a sense of mystery. The three witches appear first as just
From your research into Elizabethan theatre discuss the effectiveness of Act One Scene One of Shakespeare's' 'Macbeth' - In establishing an atmosphere of evil.
From your research into Elizabethan theatre discuss the effectiveness of Act One Scene One of Shakespeare's' 'Macbeth'. In establishing an atmosphere of evil In the Elizabethan period everyone from a pick pocket to the Queen flocked to the theatre. It was a massive social event for all walks of life, but just imagine the noise of the unsettled audience and the smell of rotten fruit being hurled through the sky to a moving target on the stage. Going to the theatre in this period was very different from our modern works of art. The first thing that a modern sibling would notice is that the theatre was in day light which is very different from our present theatres. This would have made it very hard to give the impression between day and night to the chattering audience. They also didn't have any technical equipment which would be used nowadays for sound. Instead the actors made all the sounds with mouth or with a home made device. Shakespeare also didn't have enough money to buy scenery or costumes for his gifted actors so he did all this through his captive words of description. In Macbeth Shakespeare had to make reference to the beards that the female witches had because, due to the crude and disorderly atmosphere of the theatre women were not allowed to act. Instead young males would have played those parts. In act one scene one there are a lot of meaningful words that
Film Version of Macbeth Act 3, Scene 4 (the Banquet Scene).
ENGLISH COURSEWORK: MACBETH ACT 3, SCENE 4 (THE BANQUET SCENE). HOW IS THIS SCENE RECREATED IN THE FOLLOWING SCREEN VERSIONS: . ROMAN POLANSKI (1971) 2. TREVOR NUNN (1980) INTRODUCTION In my opinion, Macbeth is one of the greatest tragedies that William Shakespeare has ever written, and indeed I believe that Shakespeare was one of the greatest playwrights that ever lived. Obviously I am not the only one to think so, as many directors have longed to produce some of his plays. He is so well recognised that he has a company named after him who are completely devoted to him and his plays. The reason that people see him as an excellent playwright is because he believes that a play does not stop with words on a page, it has to be acted out to get the full meaning. For this particular piece of coursework, we will be looking at the Roman Polanski version and the Trevor Nunn version (Royal Shakespeare Company) and the differences between the two. .THE ROMAN POLANSKI VERSION (1971, FILM VERSION) I believe that this version has its good points and its bad points. Obviously as this is a film version, it would have had a larger budget, which means that film luxuries like special effects can be used as well as better costumes and locations for the scene. There are three different locations for the scene with a very medieval theme. The scene actually takes place in Scotland, whereas
Staging Macbeth
Elizabeth Warwick 10B Staging Macbeth If I were to stage Macbeth I would keep in mind the themes running throughout the play. Therefore I would consider would sort of stage would be most appropriate for staging it. I feel the era I would choose to set it in would be Nazi Germany in the 1940's and Macbeth playing an Adolf Hitler role, and appearing on stage in a full length black trench coat, with the voices of the three witches being played in the background. From reviewing all of the different stages I consider the thrust stage to be the most practical option. When you look at the themes in Macbeth, the importance of, 'three' is very apparent. A cunning idea of using thrust staging is that the stage reflects this as the audience faces the stage from three sides, a key element in my decision of using this type of staging is that, it allows the audience to be very close to the acting, and the performance taking place. As thrust staging g was the common form of staging in Shakespearean theatre, it could be said that Macbeth was written to be performed on such a stage, I feel it will be interesting to see how I can give the same play a different approach with different set, but still be staged on the same type of stage as it was originally intended. In a play such as Macbeth, there are many key themes goodness and evil, hypocrisy and deception, the supernatural, justice and
Having watched the Polanski's and Welles' versions of Act 1 Scene 1 of Macbeth, which version of the opening scene with the witches did you feel was the most dramatic and encouraged you to continue watching?
Macbeth Having watched the Polanski's and Welles' versions of Act 1 Scene 1 of Macbeth, which version of the opening scene with the witches did you feel was the most dramatic and encouraged you to continue watching? I have studied the opening scene of Welles' and Polanski's videos and Shakespeare's text in detail; through this, I have discovered that the two video versions are very different from each other's. There are many features that I am going to consider when trying to decide the most dramatic film. Some of these include, colour, sound, lights, and special effects alongside the language of the text. Shakespeare wrote this play with King James 1 in mind. James 1 was very interested in the whole idea of witchcraft and evil at work. Throughout this play that is "Macbeth" the witches are portrayed as very powerful. Most of the drama of the first scene of the three versions is connected to the appearance of these witches. From studying Welles' "Macbeth" I have seen that the opening scene (Act 1 Scene1) was very dramatic, an had a wide selection of special features these include the weather, it was very fearful and unpleasant. There were loud, dramatic rumbles of thunder. The sky was very dark and cloudy. There was lots of fog and mist which appeared when the witches came into the scene. This gives the audience a sense that something is hidden because we never
Compare and contrast Roman Polanski's and Orson Welles' film adaptation of the opening scene of Macbeth, saying how effective you find the two versions
Compare and contrast Roman Polanski's and Orson Welles' film adaptation of the opening scene of Macbeth, saying how effective you find the two versions There have been many film adaptations of Shakespeare's play, Macbeth. These are widely varied, from the Japanese version 'the Throne of Blood' to the gangster version 'Joe Macbeth'. Two of the best-known adaptations are, Orson Welles (1947) and Roman Polanski's (1971). This essay will seek to compare and contrast the two films' very different but effective opening scenes. Both directors have been drawn to the work of Shakespeare in very different ways. Welles most likely gained an interest in Macbeth through his earlier career as a Shakespearian actor where as, Polanski may have wanted to portray the workings of evil by using Macbeth. This is possibly the result of the tragic murder of Polanski's pregnant wife by Charles Manson and his followers. Using the first scene of both films, I intend to make a comparison as to the effectiveness of how both directors adapted Shakespeare's Macbeth. There are certain similarities and differences between the two versions. While both directors have adopted Shakespeare's text effectively to the screen, they both use very different methods to convey Shakespeare's intentions. For example, Orson Welles uses text from act four of the play, beginning 'Double double toil and trouble'. This is