REVIEW: One-Act Macbethany Debuts in Fort Salem
Photos by Mike Hatzel
“It takes the pun of its title which mashes the Shakespeare tragedy with the mid-Atlantic beach town and sprinkles Scottish play references throughout.”
Fort Salem is feeling the thaw. Just as the temperatures climb above freezing and the daffodil shoots push their way through the rock hard soil, Fort Salem opened its doors Friday night to its 2025 season with a one weekend run of an ambitious one-act play for a few dozen fervent FST supporters.
Macbethany by David Dubov-Flinn received its world premiere directed by the playwright and featuring the extremely talented Tanya Gorlow & Kerry Kazmierowicztrimm. It has a husband and wife showing up to their Bethany Beach cottage with all their luggage and strife in tow, set for a summer idyll. The tension and recriminations are thick with these two and the play starts off on a very high level of tension.
The two-hander is presented in the cabaret space which hosted Agnes of God in this time slot last year, and makes a great spooky parlour for Whispering Bones which may be the first time I encountered these two terrific actors a couple of Halloweens ago.
Macbethany features the first set built in this space and it works exceptionally well for cramped summer digs with a glimpse of the kitchen galley Upstage. Set design is by FST Artistic Associate Charles J.I. Krawczyk and the evocative lighting design is by FST Artistic Associate Courtnie Harrington. There aren’t many theatres where you will find the woman who plays leads in their musicals—as Courtnie has done numerous times in FST’s short history—running lights and sound designing but that is a measure of the strength of FST’s community purpose.
The play is something of an experiment. It takes the pun of its title which mashes the Shakespeare tragedy with the mid-Atlantic beach town and sprinkles Scottish play references throughout: Duncan is targeted and their dog Banksy (Banquo) is man’s best friend. The closeness of the quarters also reveals the comfort of the couple and their electric chemistry together. Their tension at the top quickly escalates and the pitch of their loud fights can be uncomfortable in the small space.
The play worked well as an acting exercise for Tanya and Kerry and a game of spot the reference but less well as a satisfying story of a couple working through a clearly defined problem and coming out on the other side.
It was great to see this unknown work well-supported and engaged with, as nearly all the audience stayed for the post-show talkback. Maybe it was the wine that got them to stay or the play’s brief running time but they sure had plenty of questions for the playwright and actors. This patronage bodes extremely well for FST’s adventurous season ahead which includes Sweeney Todd, Kinky Boots, Tick, Tick…Boom and The Rocky Horror Show, among others.
There were light moments and it seemed that the rest of the audience identified as strongly as I did with the pitched battle the couple had over what to have for dinner. The ultimate showdown between immovable object and unstoppable force ended with the Thane of Cawdor’s stand-in heading out for pizza.
For more information on Fort Salem Theatre’s upcoming productions, visit https://www.fortsalem.com/
