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Pascal Phoa with the actors, director of Avery and audiences at the circle theatre, New York take picture after the play. (Photo : Pascal Phoa Doc) - 

VOInews, New York : A New-York-based Indonesian actor, Pascal Phoa, closed his final performance of his next show, William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, at Circle in the Square Theater in New York City. 

"I just closed the show where we performed in front of about six hundred high school students who I’ve been told are all studying Macbeth and learning Shakespeare in school. So I feel really blessed to get this opportunity firstly because it’s for them but also because I have never performed in front of so many audience members. I just hope that they could understand what we were saying and not hate Shakespeare after watching the play,” Pascal said. 

Pascal came to the United States to study computer science at the University of Notre Dame for his undergraduate degree but has always loved performing.

In college, he became involved with the student-run Shakespeare club and performed with them numerous times, where he got familiar with performing Shakespeare. He has worked as a software developer in New Jersey and taken acting classes in New York.

According to a release received by Voice of Indonesia on Monday December 16th 2024 in Jakarta, the show, directed by Mark Nelson, opened on December 9 and closed on December 13 2024. 

Sponsored by New York City’s Department of Cultural Affairs, the production was seen by hundreds of New York City high school students per day to expose the youth to theater and literature.

Pascal played Macduff, a leading character in the play and main protagonist who mirrors Macbeth’s power but is loyal to his country.

The play has been produced numerous times throughout history on Broadway, the West End, and around the world as well as on the screen.

The latest film adaptation of it was by The Coen Brothers in 2021 starring Academy Award winners Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand as Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, and Tony Award winner and nominee Bertie Carvel as Banquo and Corey Hawkins as Macduff respectively//VOI