fair with the hunky mixed-race
groomsman, Sebastian (Cosmo
Jarvis). Katherine isn’t exactly
subtle about her cheating, and it
doesn’t take long before the en-
tire downstairs staff is aware of
her actions, much to the chagrin
of her personal maid Anna (Nao-
mi Ackie), who knows she’ll be
the one punished for her white
mistress’s indiscretions.
In its relatively brisk 90 min-
utes, Lady Macbeth packs in a
complex study of gender, class
and racial politics, and the dif-
NJ STAGE 2017 - Vol. 4 No. 6
ficulties of having all three satis-
fyingly intersect. At first we find
ourselves rooting for Katherine
as she strikes back against the
patriarchy, but the film soon
reminds us that such rebellion
is often a privilege of the rich
and the white. As the narrative
progresses and Katherine’s ac-
tions evolve from mere infidelity
to cold-blooded murder, it be-
comes apparent that the work-
ing class people of color in her
employ are the ones most in
danger.
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