SALT LAKE CITY — Lady M, produced at the Great Salt Lake Fringe Festival by Utah Valley University’s department of theatre, is billed as a retelling of the Scottish play from Lady MacBeth’s perspective. Because I’m about to venture to Scotland for the first time and because I’m no stranger to productions of MacBeth over the years, I was pretty excited about this fresh look at the Shakespearean tragedy.
With the direction of professors Liz Golden and Chase Grant, the students of UVU put together a very well thought out and poignant portrayal of not only the story, but the difficulties of mental health and what that means for those who deal with trauma. Playing off the line of Lady M having given “suck”, the story explores what it is like to lose a child and how that trauma can compound.
The students are uncredited in the program, so my accolades can only go to them as a whole team. The choice to start the production with a commercial for a 20th century technique of a psychological lobotomy, and then use a mixed storytelling methodology of the traditional MacBeth and then seeing Lady M in a cold hospital setting was quite effective in its horror.
As a therapist by profession, I was surprised to see how much the story of Lady M connected to mental health. In order to be a trauma informed professional, one of the main trainings given is to focus on understanding not what is wrong with someone, but what has happened to someone. This concept is where the storyline of Lady M and the ensemble of the UVU production has put together a show that is ideal in its understanding of that trauma. Looking through the lens of what has happened to Lady M, and seeing those happenings through dance, pain, and traditional acting led to an evening that had me gasping in terror, crying, and pondering.
The ensemble would scream in unison and then in the next beat whisper, showing the power of sound. They would also use movement to such precision that much of the plot was conveyed without words. It left me wondering a thought that comes to me often, what causes insanity, what is insanity, and who decides.
This production is listed as Fairly Fringey, or PG-13, and while I find myself comfortable with most content, I was truly haunted by the challenges presented. I think they are important challenges to be considered, though they are not for the faint of heart.
These reviews are made possible by a grant from the Salt Lake County Zoo, Arts, and Parks program.
