Springfield Play: 'Macbeth' meets 'The Simpsons'

IN RICK MILLER'S version of "Macbeth," no one would eat haggis — they'd eat Krustyburgers. And no wine, either; they'll just take some Duff Beer.

Miller's one-man show, "MacHomer," casts characters from "The Simpsons" in Shakespeare's notoriously dark play about murderous ambition. Using little more than some simple staging, a few props and Macbeth's cauldron (actually a slipcovered television), Miller performs the entire adapted play himself, using 85 percent of Shakespeare's original words.

The play lends itself well, he says.

"'Macbeth' is a pretty simple, straightforward story. It's probably one of the shorter tragedies — it seems to fit very well with this one dysfunctional family doing another dysfunctional family."

In "MacHomer," Homer Simpson embodies the role of the title character, the Scottish nobleman who murders the king in order to ascend to the throne. Miller's cast includes Marge Simpson as Lady Macbeth, Barney Gumble as Macduff, and millionaire Montgomery Burns as Duncan, the king. All in all, Miller mimics more than 50 voices from the "Simpsons" universe.

According to Miller, mixing "The Simpsons" and Shakespeare isn't a heretical gesture toward the classics.

"I know a lot of people don't realize that Shakespeare was pop culture at the time," he said. "He had, to me, the kind of creative mind that would have really liked the satire of 'The Simpsons.' Going to a Shakespeare play at the time wasn't a calm, reverential event the way it is now. It was much bawdier, and it brought together all kinds of different people."

Miller began his production of "MacHomer" as a joke. Playing the role of Murderer Number Two for a touring Canadian company in 1995, he entertained fellow cast members by reciting lines from the play in voices from "The Simpsons."

Those impressions turned into a five-minute skit with cardboard puppets, eventually evolving into a full-fledged one-man show that has kept Miller touring for 12 years (his upcoming trip to the Woolly Mammoth Theatre is the first time he's toured in Washington, D.C. in almost 10 years). He even got "Simpsons" creator Matt Groening's blessing to keep performing the show after meeting him at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

Miller said educators and Shakespeare devotees are some of his biggest supporters.
"Not only does the show promote 'The Simpsons' — in a time when they're not getting as much press as they used to — but also it's a great show for high school kids or people who hate Shakespeare," he said.

"Teachers love the show. It's one of the reasons I keep doing it. It's a silly show, but ultimately it's a way of bringing Shakespeare to people who would otherwise never step into a darkened theater. It's a good introduction; it's a way to give Shakespeare a chance."

Not only does Miller cast the most well-known Springfield residents in the production, but he also incorporates lesser-known characters from the show. Devotees of "The Simpsons" will remember characters like Bleeding Gums Murphy, Groundskeeper Willie and the Comic Book Guy. Miller says he likes to liken the production to "The Simpsons'" Halloween episodes, where all the characters lose their context and can fill any sort of role.

One of his most inspired choices was to cast drunken barfly Barney Gumble as Macduff, the man who eventually slays Macbeth. Miller sees Barney as a complex, tragic character corrupted by alcoholism. He's a virtuous man underneath, as evidenced by an art film he made about drinking that featured a quote from "Othello."

While "MacHomer" has treated him well over the past dozen years, Miller isn't interested in being a one-trick pony. Despite joking that he could create other "Simpsons"-inspired adaptations like "Othell-doh!," "Mmmm ... Hamlet" and "King Beer," he would rather diversify.

"I don't really want to become, for the rest of my life, the guy who does 'The Simpsons' doing Shakespeare, and you just see the next version of the same joke."

Still, he enjoys performing in front of the mixed crowds the show attracts. "We really get all kinds of people, from TV fanatics who never go to the theater to hardened Shakespeare addicts — people who love Shakespeare and want to see something different."

In addition to "MacHomer" shows, Miller is also the artistic director of WYRD productions which has presented two of his solo shows: "Art?" and "Slightly Bent." He's also the host of ABC's prime-time series "Just for Laughs."

» Woolly Mammoth Theatre, 641 D St., NW; through Sun., $40; 202-393-3939.

Written by Express contributor Dan Miller
Photo by Michael Cooper