Fans of “The Simpsons” and Shakespeare alike will have an opportunity to rejoice next week as the theatrical mash-up MacHomer makes a stop in the Mondavi Center on Dec. 11. The one-man show, which was created by Rick Miller in the summer of 2004, replaces the original characters of Shakespeare’s Macbeth with characters from the popular cartoon “The Simpsons.“
Miller, who has performed the show for over 500,000 people in the last 13 years, said the idea came to him as a result of too much idle time backstage during a touring production of Macbeth.
“I dreamed up a cast-party joke where ‘The Simpsons‘ would play our roles,” he said in an e-mail. “Thirteen years later, that silly little idea has come a long way.“
In the performance, Miller recreates the different Simpsons characters by impersonating their mannerisms and distinctive voices while at the same time retaining around 85 percent of Shakespeare’s original script. The hardest part was attempting to squeeze 50 characters from “The Simpsons” into a 12-character play like Macbeth, Miller said.
Miller said he finds the dysfunctional family unit of “The Simpsons” to fit well into the dark world of Macbeth.
“I believe that ‘The Simpsons‘ are well-suited to tragedy because underneath all the pathos and flaws that mark each of them, there is a kind of nobility that shines through,” he said. “We laugh at them, but we also can sympathize on a deeper level, which helps in the translation into tragedy.“
As for the social roles of “The Simpsons” and Shakespeare, Miller sees a close connection.
“Shakespeare wrote for an audience similar to the TV-watching audience of today. His language may have been more poetic, but both he and ‘The Simpsons‘ have held a satirical mirror up to society,” he said. “Today’s sedated Shakespeare audiences bears little resemblance to the audiences of his time, who would stand in the ‘mosh-pit‘ of the Globe Theatre and cheer openly and vocally. I personally think he would have preferred the irreverence of MacHomer to another lame, heavy-handed production of Macbeth.“
English professor Fran Dolan said that linking the two cultural icons together helps people to remember that in his time Shakespeare was pop culture, just like “The Simpsons” television show is today.
“MacHomer takes Shakespeare and reminds us that his works are available for appropriation and criticism,” she said. “It also reminds people that ‘The Simpsons‘ are an amazing achievement: well written, thoughtful and an important gauge of what we care about in our culture.“
On the surface, Macbeth seems to be a strange selection to combine with “The Simpsons.” Dolan said that Macbeth is one of the “least funny Shakespeare plays, which makes it an interesting choice in that sense.“
The reasoning behind choosing Macbeth was simple, Miller said.
“I chose it because it’s well-known, short, bloody, sexy and I was in it,” he said. “On the other hand, the whole point of the show isn’t to make fun of Macbeth, it’s to have Shakespeare’s words come through the voice of pop culture. I enjoy taking things out of their initial context and slamming seemingly dissonant themes together to see what happens.“
Karma Waltonen, a lecturer in the University Writing Program who teaches a freshman seminar on “The Simpsons,” said in an e-mail that the show represents a great way for students to take a break from finals.
“I love this show, and not only because it combines two of my great loves – Shakespeare and ‘The Simpsons‘ – but because it is hilarious.“
MacHomer starts at 8 p.m. on Dec. 11. Tickets vary in price. For ticket information, visit mondaviarts.org.
ZACK FREDERICK can be reached at arts@theaggie.org.
