Based in Brooklyn, the Dzieci Theater Company characterizes itself as “an international experimental theater ensemble…dedicated to a search for the ‘sacred’ through the medium of theater.” Part of the troupe’s approach to theater-as-ritual is a fondness for developing site-specific staging for the plays in its repertoire. Wherever it’s staged, Dzieci’s Makbet crosses conventional gender boundaries in its casting. It also incorporates Eastern European folk music and chants, with their often-otherworldly harmonics, into the performances.
When preparing for their second annual performance of Makbet at Opus 40, founder Matt Mitler said, “Dzieci has presented our Gypsy-infused take on Macbeth in countless alternative spaces, from cemeteries to shipping containers, but no location has had the sweep and monumental impact that Opus 40 does.” Once you’ve had Harvey Fite’s bluestone labyrinth for your stage, how in the world are you going to top that for a setting?
Well, how about a cave with such wonderfully eerie acoustics that Pauline Oliveros herself couldn’t resist recording there? The Dzieci Theater Company will perform Makbet on Saturday, September 14 at 3 p.m. in the Widow Jane Mine, located on the Snyder Estate at 668 Route 213 in Rosendale. Arrive at 2 p.m. for an opening “ceremony” in which a riotous clan from the “Old Country” will greet you outside with song, dance and divination, then lead you through the shaft, between the gargantuan stone pillars and around the subterranean pools, in a wild whirlwind of witchcraft, omens, passion and vaulting ambition. Bring a folding chair and dress for cool, damp, drippy weather.
Tickets cost $20 general admission, $15 for Century House Historical Society members, free for children under 12. To reserve via PayPal, visit www.centuryhouse.org/dzieci-makbet-2019. Cash and checks are preferred for admission at the gate.
Dzieci Theater Company’s Makbet, Saturday, September 14, 2 p.m., $20/$15, Widow Jane Mine, Snyder Estate, 668 Rt. 213, Rosendale, www.centuryhouse.org/dzieci-makbet-2019
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