Compare the opening scene of Macbeth by the Royal Shakespeare Company with that of Polanski's film production.

place the text takes a more bleak tone. "Had I but died an hour before this chance, I had liv'd a blessed time" Act2 Scene 3.                                       The first scene is the most important in any play and Shakespeare by no means at all fails in the first scene of Macbeth. Although this scene is only a brief encounter with the witches it sets the atmosphere of evil and mystery, arouses the suspense of the audience, provides us with information about the witches, presents the audience and image of evil and also tells us that there a battle taking place, “When the hurly burly’s done, when the battle’s lost and won.”                                                                                                 Roman Polanski chose to locate Act One Scene One from his film version on a beech. Before the witches make their first appearance on the screen we are greeted by the squawking of a lone seagull that could be included to refer to the loneliness of Macbeth at the end of the play when he has become a tyrannical ruler and is detested by the people of Scotland. In the In the RSC stage production of Macbeth the play takes place in a small barn like theatre where the audience are situated two or three people deep circling the stage. The action of the play takes place on a dark circular stage accompanied by organ music, which gives the audience a sense of enigma and creates an unwholesome feeling. The characters sit on upturned packing crates and are all situated in a tight circle which I think represents the closeness of Macbeth with all his comrades, friends and people of Scotland before he has been overcome with the powers of evil and Lady Macbeth.                                                                 After hearing the lonesome sea gull the camera begins with a ‘long’ shot showing the audience a vibrant red sky, this could hint to the unsuspecting audience that bloodshed is going to take place later on in the play. Polanski then proceeds with a ‘zoom’ shot of the witches where three creature like figures with long and dishevelled hair covered in warts appear on the screen with a sluggish trailing cart behind them. In the RSC stage production the first time we see the witches is after the light circles around the characters and zooms on to the witches in the centre of the stage, these spotlights create eerie feeling among the audience. The witches appear in a tranced manner making groaning sounds with saliva oozing from one of the witches mouths, They are dressed raggedly and look like peasants- this makes the audience wonder whether these things are creatures or humans, “ What are these, so wither’d and so wild in their attire, that look not like th’inhabitants o’th’earth and yet are on it.”                 Roman Polanski then moves on to show the witches carry out their supernatural ritual. At this point the camera is focused firmly on the three witch’s. One of the witches draws a circle in the sand, once the circle is completed the witches start digging frantically like scavengers inside the circle. From their holdall they unveil a severed hand, which the bury with a dagger in its grasp and a hang man’s noose, they then proceed and cover these objects,” here I have a pilots thumb”,” finger of birth strangled babe,” with some sort of herbs then start their supernatural soliciting, Polanski presents the witches very effectively and includes the dagger which maybe represents the dagger used to kill Duncan. The witch’s evil is displayed once more when they agree to meet again providing there is bad weather conditions, In the RSC Company the witches soliciting is carried out in a more dramatic manner which shows the purity of Duncan challenging the evil and ungodliness of the witch’s. Duncan is praying and is dressed in a white robe resembling purity and goodness whereas the witches are dressed in filthy black clothing, soliciting among themselves and displays the witch’s evilness trying to overpower Duncan. I think this scene has a resemblance to Macbeth being godly and holy before he encountered the witch’s and when he commits the murder of the Duncan he is partly controlled by the demons associated with the witches.                                                         The final part of the scene when we see the witches is when they mysteriously disappear into the misty, blue, sky. The RSC Stage production involves the witches collapsing lazily on the stage floor, which is proceeded by the stage being left in darkness.                                                        When Macbeth would have been performed in Jacobean times the audience would have been watching the witches with extreme intensity as witch’s were a symbol of pure evil and were feared by the people. A contemporary audience would have been extremely different as witches are no longer taken seriously. Polanski comes very close in his film version to the image of the witches that we are given by Banquo after his meeting with them. The people of Scotland admired Macbeth because he was good at killing and was an excellent warrior but when he kills Duncan he is aware of the consequences but when he put under scrutiny he can no longer keep his head together. I prefer Polanskis film production of Macbeth because of his imaginative use of vivid colour and the special effects used in creating the ‘hag’ like image of the witches that caught my eye straight away. Although the play Macbeth is full of misery it ends with a bright outlook when Macbeth is killed and Malcolm comes forward as hero.