Lady Macbeth is one of Shakespeare’s most famous female characters. Find out more with Bitesize. For students between the ages of 11 and 14.

In a Pair of ‘Macbeth’ Productions, Only One Does Right by the Lady One of Shakespeare’s most coveted roles for women gets different interpretations onstage in New York and Washington.

First there was Macbeth, the Shakespeare play (1606). It’s a bloody play even by Shakespeare’s demanding standards, with Lady Macbeth as the chief inciter to violence. Then there’s L ...

But as killing for Macbeth cannot create a child, “to bed” for Lady Macbeth is an empty refrain. There is nothing there for Macbeth. Hence the repetition of the phrase.

It is a visceral scene, and Macbeth’s anguish is palpable. Everyone is there: a French-speaking Lady Macbeth at her husband’s side, Banquo’s ghost and of course the reveling lords.

The roles of Macbeth and his lady are usually filled by younger actors (Saoirse Ronan and James McArdle are currently starring in a production at the Almeida Theatre).

Once the message is received, Lady and Macbeth connive to bring the prediction to fruition. What follows is a series of bloodbaths, double crosses, attempted coverups, intimidations and threats.