Black Magic Woman

Ive spent the last half hour figuring out how I was going to write a fool proof explanation of why Im dedicating this TDD post to Lady Macbeth. I might as well be honest with how I feel about her... Lady Macbeth will forever be the HBIC. I frequently give my "bravas!" to Shakespeare for giving us theatrical magic, strong characters, witty dialogue, feeling-inducing monologues, endless romance and so much more. But really... honestly... I love him for giving me Lady Macbeth. It isnt that Im especially drawn to antagonists (although, youd probably think that because I also love Caliban from The Tempest). I promise. Im not. But Lady Macbeth is every kind of crazy strong woman. You dont find many pregnant mothers who will deny their role as the fragile compassionate figure in order to that demand the dark arts kill her unborn baby in order to see that her husband commits regicide. (If you do find a woman who is like thus, then you should move out of your town immediately) Every time I try to divulge into a deeper character study of Lady Macbeth I am always hitting a wall built of her own rage and ambition. I once talked to a dramaturgy friend about her and we both came to an agreement that Lady Macbeths backstory works in multiple ways... she knew that her thirst for power to lead her to becoming condemned as an unfit mother (which was one of the most impacting insults a woman could receive)she comes from a lineage of angry Scots who believe that theyre the rightful heirs of the throneshes a witch thats been disguising herself as a normal human being, and this is finally the moment for her to be all witchly and evil. I think of this moment as her "bye-bye!" to parading about as a goody goodyshes motivated by a personal pursuit of revenge that runs far deeper than "the jilted lover" excuse. It could be sexual assault, violence done to her family, &c. If we look at it that way, then "out, damned spot" looks more like a ptsd trigger than it does a confession of guilt.Im over analyzing everything. (Its common for me to over analyze... I minored in theater at university. We theater people have knack for reading so far into something that we live in our own alternate universe.)Evil is as evil does and Lady Macbeth is just about as evil (and fabulous) as they can get. When I think of her character I dont see pregger mother in maternity clothes. Instead, I think of a woman whos in denial about her intended matronly role. Shes colorful, playful and frighteningly seductive. Lady Macbeth knows that the most important part of being in power is maintaining intrigue... and the best way to do that is through ones outward appearance. sparklenotes: sheer outer later: thriftedbelt: thirftedtribal print dress: forever 21sandals: LAs garment district