Macbeth Act 5 Scene 1

Directing Choices

• Where would you set it?
• What would she wear?
• How would the doctor and the lady-in-waiting interact?
• How would the stage be lit?

ACT 5 Scene 1
We see Lady Macbeth sleepwalking, no longer able to hold down the cover on her conscience.
Shakespeare brilliantly shows her to us through the eyes of two quite ordinary people:
the doctor
and the lady-in-waiting.
Their shocked commentary on the Queen’s behaviour mirrors the audience's feelings about the queen: pity and horror.

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If YOU were the director of this Shakespeare play, what advice or instructions would you give the actors playing the doctor and lady-in-waiting?

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1. What have the director/actors decided
is the relationship between the doctor and lady-in-waiting?

2. Is this a choice made for this production or is it something Shakespeare has written?

3. What are the dangers for the doctor and lady-in-waiting of over-hearing the Queen?