The Shakespearean tragedy of a young man/s quest for power will be transformed by the UF School of Theatre and Dance in its performance of "Macbeth."
Under the direction of UF graduate Matthew Gordon-Martin, the show will stray from the traditional performance written by William Shakespeare.
With a cast of 10 people playing multiple roles each, the show opens Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. in the Nadine McGuire Black Box Theatre and will run through Sunday.
"It is very animalistic, raw and movement-oriented," said stage manager Breanna Stroud, adding that the severely cut script can be described as "nitty-gritty, hardcore Shakespeare."
With this new adaptation of the play, Gordon-Martin, 22, said he hopes to break away from traditional theater.
"I feel that commercializing theater tries to dumb it down and insults the intellectual capacity of our audiences," he said. "My point is not for the audience to get 100 percent of 'Macbeth./ If they come away with something, I/ll be happy."
This adaptation of "Macbeth" has presented many challenges for its actors.
"The movement component has been such a large obstacle to overcome," said Alex Hernandez, a senior acting major who will play the character of Macbeth. "It/s almost like taking a step back to the caveman days."
Gordon-Martin, who received his bachelor/s degree in acting at UF in May, said this will be his first time directing a production at the university.
Although he said audience members will experience something they have never seen before, he said this performance will have a familiar theme.
"How we make choices and how they impact society is something we can all connect to," he said.
Tickets for the hour and a half performance are $12 for students and senior citizens and $16 for the general public. They are on sale at the University Box Office or at www.ticketmaster.com.
