'It’s somewhat like the Globe Theatre': Place Fort La Tour hosts Saint John Theatre Company’s ‘Macbeth’

The Saint John Theatre Company has taken their latest production to one of the city’s most historic sites.

Place Fort La Tour, located along Saint John’s Harbour Passageway, is the stage for one of Shakespeare’s most famous plays – ‘Macbeth.’ The outdoor performance seating 125 guests is the largest event that has been held to date at the historic site.

“The venue is basically a built stage for us,” says play director Sandra Bell. “We couldn’t build anything comparable to this. The venue is of interest to everyone so they are all coming down to see what can happen in a space like this.”

Bell says the show runs around 95 minutes and has everything Shakespeare fans have come to love about his work. She even says the venue has some comparisons to London’s famous Globe Theatre.

“You’re standing right next to the [actors] and it’s the exact same thing here.” Bell says. “There is this great big circle where everybody sits, and there’s this beautiful set surrounding us. We are making good use of all the variety and layers and moving in and out of the audience.”

“When it gets spoken like that, it’s really really cool,” says Saint John’s Cameron Secord, who plays the lead role of Macbeth. “Being from here and training away then coming home, I have never felt better and have never felt more comfortable as an actor.”

Secord says being able to perform at the Fort is a long time coming. In 2021, a fire ravaged the site just weeks before its official opening. Two years later, the site has been restored yet again and open to the public. A grand opening is set to take place on Aug. 4.

The first show was held on July 12 in front of a sell-out crowd. The two following shows were also sold out, with limited tickets available for the July 15 showing. In all his years of acting, Secord has never seen anything like it.

“I haven’t been a part of show, whether it be the Imperial [Theatre],” Secord notes. “Whether it be when I lived in Toronto, or any close theatre place, I have never had multiple, three or four shows be sold out or limited immediately before our first show.”

“We are absolutely thrilled that the Saint John Theatre Company and Loyalist City Shakespeare have chosen our special meeting place to perform their adaptation of Macbeth,” Place Fort La Tour general manager Heather Kamerman, general manager of Place Fort La Tour, said in a statement provided to CTV Atlantic. “The actors and actresses of Loyalist City Shakespeare are truly some of the best. This is such an immersive outdoor theatre experience not to be missed.”

With the early success Macbeth has seen, Bell believes the Fort could host more events like this in the future.

“I think different types of music, dance, and other kinds of performance arts would work very well for this backdrop,” Bell says.

Shows run from July 12 to 15, with more scheduled from July 19 to 22. Ticket information for Macbeth can be found on the Saint John Theatre Company’s website.