Aim

Can you help to support Mrs Macbeth - a brand new play by Susanna Hamnett - and its first performances at the Edinburgh Fringe this year?

A NEW SHOW

Hello dear friends and supporters. 

I am making another performance - the third in what seems to be becoming a series of plays looking at some of Shakespeare's great tragedies through unexpected eyes. First, Nearly Lear (King Lear), then Hotel Elsinore (Hamlet), and now this time it's Macbeth - and the eyes are those of Lady Macbeth's gentlewoman. False memory, child-loss, complicity, loyalty, witchcraft, whether or not we can ever truly reconcile guilt and regret - these are some of the  threads weaving through Margaret's account of what happened and why. The story feels urgently contemporary and relevant to the unsettled times we live in. Are we simply by-standers to moral transgression and if not and we try to do something, what will be done to us? What unfolds is troubling and terrifying, raw and tender, and sometimes, unexpectedly, very funny. 

The script is written and I have three months to be ready to share it with Edinburgh audiences. I've booked six performances - six opportunites for six different audiences to respond and for me to share, learn, discover and uncover on my feet. There is always a very direct connection with the audience in my work and it is within this magic circle of connection that the piece can grow and develop and get to know itself better and better. 

THE MONEY PART

And of course there is the financial cost to it all - to growing a new show. You know them - production costs (rehearsal, sound, lighting, design etc) and the costs of being a part of the Fringe (venue hire, marketing, travel, advertising, accommodation etc). It's an investment - and it has always paid off extraordinarily - but without funding it's a dizzying and financially daunting leap to make, and artistic choices and joy can be flattened by the weight of what debt and credit cards are trying to carry.

Both the previous productions have gone on to have long and exciting lives in the world, both of them touring across the US, having runs in London and elsewhere, and garnering five star reviews, awards, and accolades, and I hope and believe that this is possible for Mrs Macbeth too. A North American tour is already being discussed for 2027/28.

But first, the work. With no outside funding at all at this point, it is all happening on a wing and a huge heartfelt prayer, and with the extraordinary generosity of friends, colleagues, and community. I am setting a fundraising goal of £3,500, which is a start towards covering the costs that I need to pay out to others - people and things. My own time is of course my own investment in my work, but there is a director (brilliant Joshua MacGregor, who co-directed Hotel Elsinore), sound design and lighting (by the amazing Swallow Theatre in Scotland), costume to be designed and made, Fringe costs - all the expenses that I listed above. 

If you feel able in any way at all - the smallest contribution - to support this project, it would be an inexpressibly great gift. 

PRAISE FOR PREVIOUS WORK

In case you haven't seen any previous shows, I'm putting a few press quotes that I've been fortunate to receive here - I hope these may give you confidence in what I do and inspire you to be a part of getting this new work made. (And if monetary donations simply aren't possible right now, then energetic ones  -  your thoughts and interest and encouragement - are also invaluable and welcomed with great gratitude!)

'A virtuosic performer' The New York Times

'The mighty theatrical powerhouse that is Susanna Hamnett ' The Aberdeen Press & Journal

'The acting is a masterclass' Everything Theatre

'When Susanna Hamnett rushes onstage there is reason to cheer' NOW Magazine, Toronto

'The show was extraordinary in its fineness. So detailed, skilled, and full of heart and humanity.' Patsy Rodenburg OBE, Head of Voice RSC

If you are interested in reading more, please take a look at my website: www.susannahamnett.com and my social media pages listed below.

THANK YOU

I believe with all my heart that in unsettled times we must keep making heart-filled and passion-fuelled art. Creating connection, empathy, and shared spaces for telling necessary stories about who and how we are in the world. Thank you so much for your support.

Funding method

Keep what you raise – this project will receive all pledges made by 21st August 2026 at 7:15pm