Supriya KaziMartinAP English 1221 March 2014Puppet MastersThe third time's the charm. But in Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare, the number three is the call of evil, a sign of disaster. The superstition of the unlucky third is fully embodied in the three prophecies, uttered by the iconic three witches, which establish Macbeth's downfall. BareStage Productions' live Macbeth: The Gore, The Glitter directed by Matthew Hannon adheres to Shakespeare's original vision and the characteristics of the three witches. However, the Great Performances episode of PBS's Macbeth, the film adaptation, takes more creative liberties by centralizing its witches to make them controllers of Macbeth's destiny. The different interpretation of the witches in the film determines who is truly guilty of Macbeth's downfall. While neither production follows the original physical characteristics of the witches, both modernist interpretations allow for a new perspective on the play. The attractive young witches of both productions embody Macbeth's central theme of "Fair is foul, and foul is fair." Their deceptively seductive appearance only hides the true evil they are capable of. In the live production, the seductive and manipulative young witches drag Macbeth into their evil plans, leaving him and his ambition to be his own undoing. Their ethereal, misty appearance clearly makes them supernatural creatures. Furthermore, in the live show, the witches only appear when necessary, when Shakespeare intended them to. Maintaining a minimalist and classical approach, the live show places only part of the blame on the witches, focusing instead on Macbeth. As the live show and Shakespeare's Macbeth share responsibilities, PBS interp...... middle of paper...Macbeth's moment and decision are marked by their looming presence: in his kitchen, in banquet hall and in the final moments. These additional intentional appearances of the nurses further indicate that the nurses are entirely responsible for all events within this play. With cinematic effects, clear juxtaposition and constant appearances, the PBS film makes the witches a real threat. In each story, the many different interpretations can be expanded and intensified according to the author's choice. The more centralized witch characters deviate from Shakespeare's original play and other adaptations. Although they all say the same lines, the way they affect the plot is completely different. As a trail of cheese leads a mouse to the classic mousetrap, the witches set Macbeth up on a series of fortunes until he meets his final demise..