LADY MACBETH
Macbeth is a tale of unchecked ambition, power, and devastating downfall. It follows the Scottish nobleman and his wife, who, consumed by an insatiable hunger for power, commit heinous acts to secure the throne—only to be haunted by guilt and paranoia.
Khan’s reimagining of Lady Macbeth layers classical ballet with intricate nuances of classical Indian dance, all shaped by his distinctive contemporary perspective.
Lady Macbeth was commissioned by the Royal Danish Ballet and premiered at the Operaen in April 2026.
PRESS
"... set and costume designer Tim Yip, whose magnificently huge, root-dangling tree descends slowly over the stage during the course of the ballet. (The dark-hued, subtly atmospheric lighting is by Michael Hulls and Ryan Joseph Stafford.)"
– Roslyn Sulcas, The New York Times
"For Khan's full-length ballet actually takes place under a huge tree root network, where set designer Tim Yip and lighting designers Michael Hulls & Ryan Joseph Stafford create the most beautiful and darkest setting for Lady Macbeth's sinister plans."
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– Casper Koeller, Sceneblog
"The most beautiful expression of the evening is Michael Hull's and Ryan Joseph Stafford's lighting design. It is overwhelming and makes the opera's stage seem even larger. Cones of light of varying sizes shone down over the stage and were used extensively. Most of the first act was quite dark, but emphasized the dramatic and condensed atmosphere."
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– Louise Frevert, Kulturinformation
"Hulls' lighting compensates by bringing crucial points of illumination to the overall sense of darkness"
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– Graham Watts, Bach Track
"Tim Yip’s scenography suggested an underworld where those striving for power no matter the cost were doomed to reside, soulless and imprisoned by their own ambitions symbolized by the brown bars of light (light design by Michael Hulls and Ryan Joseph Stafford). ... The result was a work that was cinematic in quality"
– Signe Ravn, Dance View Times
CREATIVE TEAM
DIRECTION & CHOREOGRAPHY
Akram Khan
MUSIC
Vincenzo Lamagna
SCENIC & COSTUME DESIGN
Tim Yipp
LIGHTING DESIGN
Michael Hulls & Ryan Joseph Stafford
DRAMATURGY
Yuko Inoue Khan, Akram Khan & Sunila Galappatti
PHOTOGRAPHS
Camilla Winther, Jin Yau