What does it mean to be haunted by ambition? Can we escape our destiny? How do we cope with our worst actions? 

Guthrie Theater’s “Macbeth” answers these questions in its gripping exploration of murder, manipulation and madness.

“Macbeth,” which opened Jan. 31, brings Shakespeare’s shortest tragedy back to the Guthrie for the first time in over ten seasons. It returns on the heels of the Henriad trio of history plays staged two seasons before.

Directed by former Guthrie artistic director Joe Dowling, the play presents the consequences of unchecked ambition. 

For those who aren’t familiar with this high school English staple, beware of spoilers below.

When three witches tell Macbeth he’s destined to be king, the titular character is scared by what he’ll have to do to secure the crown. After prodding from his ambitious and cunning wife, however, Macbeth kills King Duncan and begins a bloody rampage that sends shock waves across Scotland. 

Macbeth’s desire for the throne plunges him into a fast-paced spiral of destruction, hurting himself and everyone around him. Friendship, love and country fall by the wayside as Macbeth does everything to preserve his position.

The simple costuming underscores the tragedy’s endless violence. Soldiers wear militant berets atop their outfits of black leather, setting the play in an environment of conflict and secrecy.

On the other hand, both Macbeth and his wife wear black robes lined with bright red in their homes. The dark fabrics hide the bloodlust within, but soon their bloodstained hands betray the truth.

The set is its own character. Tall, foreboding pillars frame dimly lit clouds in the background, which change in tone to reflect the moods of the scenes. The stage is bathed in shadow for most of the play, hiding Macbeth’s treachery in darkness.

Macbeth, played by Daniel José Molina, is hypnotically compelling. He’s at first skeptical of his destiny and resistant to fulfilling it, but once he reaches his tipping point, his descent into madness is quick and visceral. 

He interacts with the ghosts of those whose deaths he causes — some we see, others we don’t — and throws himself around the stage in desperate attempts to hide from the guilt they evoke in him. It’s maddening, but also surprisingly sympathetic.

Molina delivers multiple emotionally charged monologues directly to the audience, drawing them into Macbeth’s deteriorating mental status. He deftly covers the range of emotion Macbeth experiences, from triumph to regret and eventually recklessness, and brings the audience along for the ride. 

Meghan Kreidler completes the other half of this tragic couple through her role as Lady Macbeth, and her performance is equally as stirring. She’s not just Macbeth’s wife, but rather the provocateur whose hunger to be queen drives the story. 

When Lady Macbeth sleepwalks in her dishevelled robes, crying out after the crimes she and her husband have committed, it’s clear why Dowling cast the lead singer of local rock band Kiss the Tiger for this role. Kreidler imbues every word with an intensity and heartbreak that only a rockstar could ace.

The play lasts an hour and 50 minutes, without an intermission. While the end feels a bit drawn out, the story moves quickly enough to make the minutes fly by.

The production presents a version of life not unfamiliar to what we see outside today. Macbeth tears apart all of his closest relationships to preserve his position, disregarding the collateral damage he leaves in his wake and the havoc it wreaks on his own mind.

While the play is more than 400 years old, its advice rings true today: “It will have blood, they say; blood will have blood.”