Description

Starring Sir Patrick Stewart as Macbeth and Kate Fleetwood as Lady Macbeth, Rupert Goold’s immediate and visceral film is set in an undefined and threatening central European world. Shot on location in the mysterious underground labyrinth of Welbeck Abbey in Nottinghamshire, this is a contemporary presentation of Shakespeare’s intense, claustrophobic and bloody drama. Recently honoured with a highly prestigious Peabody Award, the film is based on the Chichester Festival Theatre production of the play that enjoyed sell-out runs in the West End and on Broadway. Patrick Stewart won Best Actor and Rupert Goold Best Director in the Evening Standard Theatre Awards for the stage production and both Patrick Stewart and Kate Fleetwood were nominated for Tony Awards for their performance. Director of the critically-acclaimed play, ENRON, Rupert Goold has been described as ‘the hottest, most exciting director around’, and Macbeth is his debut as a film director. When the film was screened by the BBC December in 2010, the critics were unanimous in their enthusiastic praise. The DVD and Blu-ray also includes a commentary by director Rupert Goold and producer John Wyver in addition to interviews with Rupert Goold and cast members Patrick Stewart and Kate Fleetwood. Review Superb –The Guardian Dazzlingly inventive –Daily Telegraph Mesmerising –The Times About the Actor Patrick Stewart is one of the world s most recognisable and feted film stars, as well as being an actor with an impeccable pedigree in the classical theatre. Best known for playing Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation, he also plays the key character of Professor Charles Xavier in the X-Men films. Stewart joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1966 and played in Peter Brook s legendary production of A Midsummer Night s Dream. He was Sejanus in the I, Claudius series and Karla in the BBC s adaptations of Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy and Smiley s People. His recent work with the RSC includes his highly acclaimed Antony in Antony and Cleopatra and Prospero in The Tempest, and he has also recently completed a sell-out run of Waiting for Godot with Ian McKellen. He is currently playing Shylock in Rupert Goold’s The Merchant of Venice for the RSC. Kate Fleetwood has recently received exceptional notices playing opposite Dominic West in Life is a Dream at the Donmar Warehouse. For the Royal Shakespeare Company, she has taken the roles of Hermione in The Winter s Tale and Thaisa in Pericles and her other Shakespearean roles include Desdemona, Helena, Juliet, Rosaline and Viola. Fleetwood is currently starring in London Road at the National Theatre. About the Director One of the most exciting talents in British theatre today, Rupert s recent work includes the revival of Oliver!; Time and the Conways at the National Theatre; the highly-lauded ENRON, which played at the Royal Court before West End and Broadway transfers; and the controversial ENO staging of Turandot. He is currently directing Patrick Stewart in The Merchant of Venice at the RSC.