Macbeth is a 1978 videotaped version of Trevor Nunn's Royal Shakespeare Company production of the play by William Shakespeare. Produced by Thames Television, it features Ian McKellen as Macbeth and Judi Dench as Lady Macbeth. The TV version was directed by Philip Casson. The original stage production was performed at The Other Place, the RSC's small studio theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon. It had been performed in the round before small audiences, with a bare stage and simple costuming. The recording preserves this style: the actors perform on a circular set and with a mostly black background changes of setting are indicated only by lighting changes.
Acting
McKellen and Dench at absolute peak power, terrifyingly vulnerable.
Direction
Nunn's bare-stage intimacy makes Shakespeare feel like a fever dream.
Production
Black void and circle of light—less is devastatingly more.
Director
Philip Casson
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Filmed in one day with multiple cameras, capturing the stage production's live energy without retakes.
Nunn specifically cast younger actors than tradition to emphasize Macbeth and Lady Macbeth's sexual chemistry and ambition as hungry, not weary.
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