Act 4, Scene 1: Double, Double, Toil and Trouble

melodic piano, duet male female · 4:03

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Lyrics

[Verse 1]
Cave walls weeping, smoke like a bruise,
Three ugly hags — that's old talk for witches — stir their news.
Striped cat yowls, that's brinded, a coat all stripe and smear,
Eye of newt and toe of frog drop into the pot this year.

[Chorus]
"Double, double, toil and trouble;
Fire, burn; and cauldron, bubble."
Stir the dark, let the omens double,
Trouble's brewing, bubble, bubble.

[Verse 2]
Second witch feels it crawling — "By the pricking of my thumbs,
Something wicked this way comes" — Macbeth storms in at night,
Demands the hags conjure answers, holds his ground despite.
An armed head rises first, its voice low as drums:
"Beware Macduff; beware the Thane of Fife," it hums.
Then a bloody child, soft as a held breath:
"None of woman born shall harm Macbeth."

[Chorus]
"Double, double, toil and trouble;
Fire, burn; and cauldron, bubble."
Stir the dark, let the omens double,
Trouble's brewing, bubble, bubble.

[Verse 3]
Third shape wears a crown, a sapling branch held tight,
Says he's safe till Birnam Wood comes marching up the height.
Comfort stacks on comfort, he feels armored, feels divine,
So he pushes further — asks of Banquo's issue, meaning children, bloodline.
The glass, a kind of mirror, is held up straight and long,
Shows eight kings walking slow, with Banquo smiling all along.

[Bridge]
Lennox enters, breathless, carrying the plainest kind of blow —
Macduff has fled to England, already gone, already go.
Macbeth's fists clench tighter than they've ever clenched before,
He vows the wife, the children, every soul behind that door.

[Chorus]
"Double, double, toil and trouble;
Fire, burn; and cauldron, bubble."
Stir the dark, let the omens double,
Trouble's brewing, bubble, bubble.

[Outro]
Every word the witches spoke was honest, through and through,
But honest words wear masks, and masks can fool you.
He heard only comfort — Hecate planned it days before,
Built the trap from flattery, and opened wide the door.

[Chorus]
"Double, double, toil and trouble;
Fire, burn; and cauldron, bubble."
Stir the dark, let the omens double,
Trouble's brewing, bubble, bubble.

← Act 3, Scene 6: Suspicion Grows | Act 4, Scene 2: The Wren Will Fight →