# What's the story on the curse of Macbeth? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [October 12, 2007, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476 "2007-10-12T15:29:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SMullen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@SMullen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SMullen)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2007, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476/1 "2007-10-12T15:29:35Z")
Just wondering if the curse of Macbeth applied to Kurosawa’s “Throne of Blood”? This is a fascinating subject! ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2007, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476/2 "2007-10-12T17:05:30Z")
[QUOTE=SMullen] Just wondering if the curse of Macbeth applied to Kurosawa’s “Throne of Blood”? This is a fascinating subject! [/QUOTE] To avoid the curse, we refer to it as “the Japanese movie based on the Scottish play”. Sorry, that doesn’t help at all. ETA: I can’t locate the article you’re referring to; is it a new one in the print edition? ---
**Author:** ![John\_W.Kennedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_w.kennedy/32/1031_2.png) [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2007, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476/3 "2007-10-12T18:15:00Z")
[What’s the story on the curse of Macbeth?](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mmacbeth.html) ---
**Author:** ![Gfactor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@Gfactor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gfactor)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2007, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476/4 "2007-10-12T18:16:36Z")
Here is a link to the staff report: [http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mmacbeth.html](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mmacbeth.html) ---
**Author:** ![SMullen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@SMullen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SMullen)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2007, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476/5 "2007-10-12T18:35:14Z")
\> \>“the Japanese movie based on the Scottish play”. \> \>Sorry, that doesn’t help at all. But it was very funny! I’ll have to remember that one. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2007, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476/6 "2007-10-12T18:38:34Z")
From the report: > [@](#): > > • In a 1672 production in Amsterdam, the actor playing Macbeth substituted a real dagger for the blunted stage dagger and killed the actor playing Duncan, in full view of the audience. I know this only supposedly happened. But even still, doesn’t Duncan die off-stage anyway? ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2007, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476/7 "2007-10-12T19:10:55Z")
I couldn’t find a whole lot of detail on this one, but my assumption was that MacBeth stabbed Duncan in some earlier scene, to murder the guy onstage. One of the difficulties with this curse stuff is that it’s hard to separate out reality. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2007, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476/8 "2007-10-12T19:34:25Z")
Well, [Sybil Thorndike](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sybil_Thorndike) said, “…I have always heard that the superstition about quoting ‘Macbeth’ arose from the old days of stock companies, when this play was always put on when business was bad (being a favourite), so that it often presaged the end of a season. This is the only explanation I have heard.” This was a letter to the editor of the journal _Folklore_ printed in the March, 1936 edition (vol. 47 issue 1 page 108 if anyone cares). ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2007, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476/9 "2007-10-12T21:03:12Z")
[QUOTE=Zoggie] From the report: I know this only supposedly happened. But even still, doesn’t Duncan die off-stage anyway? [/QUOTE] Yes, Duncan is killed off stage as are his guards. It could have been staged so that you see the murders though. I recently was the stage manager for a production of Macbeth. Just befor we opened, I was cleaning the stage and I went to move a ladder. I got under the ladder and started to move it, when a prop that hadn’ t been properly stowed fell off the ladder and broke on the floor. So, during a production of Macbeth, I walked under a ladder and broke a mirror. I’m fine. ---
**Author:** ![Junior\_Spaceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Junior\_Spaceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Junior_Spaceman)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2007, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476/10 "2007-10-12T21:33:36Z")
[QUOTE=Zebra] So, during a production of Macbeth, I walked under a ladder and broke a mirror. I’m fine. [/QUOTE] Of course, the whole of Scotland’s doomed 😃 ---
**Author:** ![eclectic\_wench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ac91a4/32.png) [@eclectic\_wench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eclectic_wench)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2007, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476/11 "2007-10-12T22:28:13Z")
Actor here (and just de-lurking, so be gentle with me if I make a mess…). Someone once told me that the Scottish play (see? can’t even write it) is bad luck because Lady M invokes dark forces on stage, but I think it’s actually because: a) The whole damn play happens in the dark. And you’re sword-fighting. That just can’t end well. b) It’s just plain a difficult play. Maybe this is partly because so many people have such strong preconceived ideas of what it should be like, or because it’s one of those plays that inspire directors to go nuts on the Vision front (’…and I see it set in a FISH TANK IN HARRODS IN 2310!! And the three witches are LITTLE TINY SYMBOLIC SQUID!!!’) but it’s one of those plays that are hard to do just competently. Either it’s stunningly wonderful, or it’s crashingly awful. Since very few productions of anything are stunningly wonderful, it’s usually crashingly awful, and when it comes up in conversation a lot of actors - including me; I was once Lady Macduff and a Three Witch - end up getting this glazed look and swapping horror stories. On another theatre superstition: I heard that the reason it’s bad luck to whistle in a theatre is because the stagehands used to communicate by whistles, so if you whistled at the wrong moment someone could pull a rope and you could end up with a pulley-weight on your head. ---
**Author:** ![SMullen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@SMullen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SMullen)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2007, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476/12 "2007-10-12T22:42:44Z")
I appreciate the information! I’ve seen one live production of, ahem, the Scottish play that the Japanese movie is based on, and I enjoyed it. The director didn’t go nuts and the staging was excellent (I thought). Thanks for the bit on whistling onstage, too. I didn’t know that. There are several instances in which whistling is thought to be bad luck. I’ve heard that women should never whistle. I’ve also heard that you should never whistle on a sailboat (something about whistling up a bad gust of wind, or something like that). I’m afraid that all some of those beliefs do is make me want to whistle. But I’ll try to remember never to do it onstage, if I get the chance to be onstage that is. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2007, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476/13 "2007-10-12T23:39:42Z")
Cool, thanks for the info, guys. Incidentally…how do you say “Hot potato, orchestra stalls, Puck will make amends” in Japanese? :eek: ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476/14 "2007-10-13T00:11:18Z")
Welcome to the Boards, **eclectic wench**. [QUOTE=eclectic wench] … it’s one of those plays that inspire directors to go nuts on the Vision front (‘…and I see it set in a FISH TANK IN HARRODS IN 2310!! And the three witches are LITTLE TINY SYMBOLIC SQUID!!!’) … [/QUOTE] So you already know about the squid? You’ll fit right in, here. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![eclectic\_wench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ac91a4/32.png) [@eclectic\_wench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eclectic_wench)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476/15 "2007-10-13T01:00:59Z")
Thanks for the welcome! 🙂 I’ve been reading the boards for a couple of days and really like them. And I always bring squid when I visit new places…hey, it’s just basic courtesy, right? ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476/16 "2007-10-13T13:42:26Z")
**Dr Drake** and **eclectic wench** : Please note that this forum is for comments on Staff Reports. Both **John Kennedy** and **Gfactor** provided links, here’s yet another: [http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mmacbeth.html](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mmacbeth.html) The Staff Report (which I wrote) does say: > [@](#): > > There are several explanations for why Macbeth seems so accident-prone. During much of the play lighting is low – the bulk of the scenes take place at night or in the dark or fog – thus increasing opportunities for accidents. There are several fight scenes, more than in most plays; in a long run, it’s almost inevitable something will go amiss. Macbeth is also Shakespeare’s shortest tragedy, and thus somewhat cheaper to put on; one theory suggests that when finances get tight, companies will slap together a production of Macbeth, and during the general cutting of corners safety gets compromised. So, while I’m delighted to have you here, and glad to hear your theories/suggestions, they were already covered. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476/17 "2007-10-13T16:20:01Z")
**C K Dexter Haven** : Sorry. I did read the staff report (and enjoyed it), but I missed the line where you covered the end-of-season explanation. I don’t think it’s the one and only explanation, anyway, I just thought it was neat that a famous Shakespearan actor was debating the question with academics in a professional journal in the 1930s. That just doesn’t seem to happen these days. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476/18 "2007-10-13T18:01:10Z")
The Cincinnati Reds baseball team had a pitcher on their 2007 45-man roster named Marcus McBeth. They failed to introduce him as “the Scottish Player,” and they had a very bad season. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Ale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Ale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ale)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2007, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476/19 "2007-10-14T02:36:32Z")
[QUOTE=eclectic wench] Thanks for the welcome! 🙂 I’ve been reading the boards for a couple of days and really like them. And I always bring squid when I visit new places…hey, it’s just basic courtesy, right? [/QUOTE] In the Straight Dope squid brings you! :o ---
**Author:** ![RiverRunner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/977dab/32.png) [@RiverRunner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RiverRunner)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2007, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476/20 "2007-10-16T14:32:44Z")
Every time I read about this I picture the two actors in _BlackAdder_ doing their little anti-curse routine, with Edmund shouting after them, “Macbeth!” RR [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-on-the-curse-of-macbeth/422476.md?page=2)