The Scottish Play, or, Why we never, ever say "Macbeth" in a theater...

I had orginally planned to post some photos from a recent project today, but then something happened at rehearsal last night: someone fell off the stage.  Into the orchestra pit.  And thank god there was a safety net because that was not a fall someone should have walked away from.   And why did this happen?  It wasn't because he was goofing off; it wasn't because he didn't pay attention to how close to the edge he was; it was all because someone said "Macbeth".

Theatre folk are a superstitious lot, and even those that claim they aren't superstitious will still obey the taboos out of tradition.  You may have heard of many of these already - don't say "good luck", especially on opening night; don't whistle in a theater; always leave a light on the stage (known as the "ghost light") - Wikipedia has a good list of superstitions, and you can find more with a quick search if you're interested.  But the absolute number one taboo that should never broken is saying "Macbeth" in the theater.  Which sucks if you're performing the play, or like last night, a play that references it.

Why the taboo?  Again, Wikipedia has a great article describing the history of Macbeth's curse, but the simple explanation is BAD STUFF HAPPENS.  Like someone falling off the stage.  Or another person (okay, the same person) falling when a set of temporary stairs collapses.  There's tons of stories out there, many in urban legend "friend of a friend" style, that give good reason for avoiding speaking the play-that-shall-not-be-named.  That's why pretty much everyone I've met in the theatre world refuses to say it, even if they're not superstitious.  Even if you don't think anything will happen, why bring down the wrath of your castmates on your head?  You can say "The Scottish Play", "The Bard's Play", "MacB", "Mackers", or any other variation you can think of, just never, ever, EVER say "Macbeth". 

Before you go, share your own horror stories about the Scottish Play, and enjoy this video from "Slings and Arrows" giving their opinion about the whole business.  Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go spin around three times and spit.  There's another rehearsal tonight and the pit is still open...