This may seem an incredibly minor and nit-picky point, but honestly, after fifteen years of productions and between one and two hundred performances of the show, this is something that sets my teeth on edge.
His name is not Mcbeth. He is not Irish. His name is Macbeth. He is Scottish.
It’s not hard, but most actors and almost every patron I talk to mispronounce his name, saying "Mickbeth." I have literally shuddered at the sound. I know, I know. It’s almost too asinine to mention, but there it is. It pains my delicate little ears.
Also, you don’t capitalized the ‘b’. It’s Macbeth, not MacBeth. That one I see in reviews and occasionally even on posters. Drives me crazy.
By the way, that means, too, that it’s MACduff and MACdonwald. Oh, and when saying the name Banquo, there’s no ‘g’ sound. It’s not Bang-quo.I go back and forth on the Seaton thing, but usually I come down on SEE-ton, rather than Satan. Then there’s Fleance. Is it FLEE-ance? Or FLAY-ance? I heard it both ways, but again I tend to side with the latter.
Okay. There. Sorry. It’s like Pringles – once I start, I can’t stop.
But, however you pronounce the other names, please – give the man his heritage. We call him Mackers, not Mickers. His name is important, and his nationality. Macbeth, King of Scotland.
Thanks for this. I’m tired of my students handing in papers about “MacBeth” as well.