Get ready to experience Macbeth in all its tragic glory. On April 22nd and 23rd, the talented USNA Masqueraders will summon from their depths the immortal words of William Shakespeare, whose birthday happens to be celebrated April 23rd (in the year of 1564). Though written many centuries ago, Shakespeare’s words still inspire, entertain and move audiences around the world, teaching us to treasure some of life’s most important gifts.
The Masqueraders will revive the colorful characters that many of us read about in our high school English classes, when we took in the tale of a decorated Scottish general whose lust for power and subsequent paranoia kick-started an intense bloodbath that begins in his castle at Inverness and spreads to a castle in Dunsinane, Scotland. Along the way, we’ll meet Lady Macbeth, Banquo, King Duncan, Macduff and a host of other willing and unwilling participants in one man’s overreaching ambition. Be prepared for serious drama.
The USNA Masqueraders Take the Stage
The Masqueraders are USNA's earliest extracurricular activities (ECAs). Started in 1846, this midshipmen-led theater group has been delighting and moving the midshipmen and the entire Annapolis community. They are joined by Christy Stanlake, a professor of English at USNA, and a passionate theater enthusiast who has been the Faculty Director of the group since 2002. She holds a Doctorate from Ohio State University in Theater, History and Literature, and especially loves teaching drama and Shakespeare. Michael Wagoner, also a professor in USNA English, began working with the Masqueraders in 2020, his first year in the Department. 
When Stanlake directed the Masqueraders in an outdoor, fully masked production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream during the pandemic, Wagoner served as assistant director and also stepped in to fill the role of Oberon, after the original actor became sick. The outdoor Midsummer production was such a hit, that the Masqueraders decided to make outdoor productions of Elizabethan plays a regular spring event. With Wagoner’s expertise in Elizabethan staging techniques and Col. Michael Styskal’s, Dean of Humanities and Social Sciences, support, the Masqueraders christened the annual productions ``The Colonel’s Court,” in reference to the actor-manager system the Masqueraders use to produce the spring shows. This year, MIDN 1/C Lillian Kelly is the actor-manager leading the cast and crew through the collaborative creation of Macbeth. Wagoner is working with Kelly on details, like cutting the script and procuring weapons. Kelly’s vision for the play is articulated in the Masqueraders’ Facebook page’s teaser of the new production: “The Naval Academy Shakespeare acting troupe will breathe new life into a classic play with a gender bent cast!” You’ll have to see it to see how they do it.
The Masqueraders are beloved by the community, and were recently honored with a DC Theater Arts 2022 “Staff Favorite, Outstanding Productions (Community)” award for their fall 2022 production of Lynn Nottage’s Sweat. Reviewing that play DCTA writer Charles Green says, “With powerful performances and winning direction by Christy Stanlake, the Masqueraders' production raises thought-provoking questions that remain relevant today.” This is true of their Macbeth performance too.
Related: The USNA Masqueraders Bring a Legend to Life.
Making Macbeth
Written around 1606-1607, Macbeth is largely thought to be one of Shakespeare’s most timely plays, with themes that are strikingly relevant all these years later. At the time it was written, King James I was a major patron of the King’s Men, Shakespeare’s company. This particular king was intrigued with the supernatural, had a consuming fear of being assassinated and was descended from Banquo. These themes dominate Shakespeare’s story about Macbeth and King Duncan — and are rendered darkly by his unmatchable hand.
The tragedy begins out in the windswept moors of Scotland, where Scottish Generals Macbeth and Banquo encounter three witches — an eerie supernatural experience that sets everything into motion. These witches prophecy that Macbeth will first be promoted to Thane of Cawdor and later become king; they also predict that a descendent of Banquo’s will become king. Shortly after, the prophecy is fulfilled when Macbeth is awarded the Thane of Cawdor title by King Duncan, in gratitude for his triumphs on the battlefield. Once this happens, Macbeth is convinced that the second prophecy will come true, and he and his wife, Lady Macbeth, take it upon themselves to hurry the king’s passing.
When King Duncan visits them at their castle in Inverness soon after, Macbeth and his wife work together to kill him, starting a chain of events whereby they must kill more and more people to cover up their act. Macbeth is remorseful, but his wife comforts and reassures him. He has become king in Duncan’s stead, and now faces danger on all sides. Now Macbeth must face the consequences of his actions. But that is not the end…. Throughout the story, there are more enigmatic prophecies and a twist that Macbeth — and the audience — does not see coming.
Quotes You Know from the Story
This story is embedded in our collective unconscious. Even if you haven’t read or seen the play in a while, you’ll likely be familiar with some of the famous quotes, like Macbeth’s powerful ruminations in Act Five on life, once his has lost meaning:
“To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player,
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.”
The witches chant from Act Four is also well-known: “Double, double, toil and trouble,
Fire burn, and, cauldron, bubble!” Finally, the prescient quote following this seems to sum up the evil that bloodies the entire play, when the second witch says: “By the pricking of my thumbs, Something wicked this way comes.”
Find Out the Ending
Want to know how Macbeth ends? Come watch these passionate thespians perform Macbeth outside, as many of Shakespeare’s plays were originally performed. You can catch them on April 22nd and 23rd in Mahan courtyard. Get your Naval Academy Masqueraders tickets here or by calling (410) 293-TIXS. They cost just $10 for non-midshipmen and $5 for midshipmen. While you’re here, enjoy everything the Yard has to offer, including dining, tours and shops. Your visit gives to the midshipmen, since every meal, tour and purchase goes to the Brigade.
Not only can you find out how the historically epic Macbeth ends, but you can see the place where history is made each day. Explore the Yard!
