There's nothing like it in the world.

It's one of the only places where magic is still possible.

I'm talking, of course, about the theater.

And I'm not referencing your local movie palace.

I mean real theater, live, on stage.

There's just something palpable in the air, a magnetic kind of energy that's impossible to find anywhere else.

It's simply magic.

But if you can find magic in a theater, then you can find curses as well. And nothing

is more cursed than the Scottish play itself. Mcbeth. Superstition claims that saying the word

Macbeth in a theater will result in disaster. According to urban legend, the curse was

laid by a coven of witches, who were furious at Shakespeare for using a real spell

in his script. More practical minds have suggested that the curse can simply be chalked up to

coincidence. Theaters who are in financial trouble will often put on popular shows, like Shakespeare's

Macbeth, to draw in a crowd. But when that isn't enough to save them from ruin,

at least they now have a convenient scapegoats.

But there have been actual examples of the curse throughout history.

In 1947, for example, an actor playing the legendary character himself died after being wounded during a sword fight on stage.

In 1964, a Portuguese theater burned to the ground while it was playing Macbeth.

In 1980, a production company folded shortly after showing, you guessed it, Macbeth.

So, yeah, the theater is pure magic, but sometimes even the most magical places on Earth

can be hit by bad luck.

And when bad luck comes to Broadway, the ghosts come out to play.

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