'What's in the Cauldron?' investigates the ingredients thrown into the witches' cauldron in Act 4 scene 1.


Meg Fraser, who plays Witch 3, says the ingredients are disturbingly horrible. But everything the witches put into the cauldron is there for a reason:

The first witch's ingredients are hallucinogenic.

The second witch adds bits of animals (eye of newt, toe of frog etc).

The third witch starts off adding bits of animals (scale of dragon,

tooth of wolf) but then it changes to parts of human beings: nose of

Turk and Tartar's lips. Her ingredients are all anti-Christian: the Jew,

the Turk and the Tartar - none of them have been christened.



Neil Madden, who understudies all 3 witches, did some research about the animals in the cauldron and what they symbolize.



Toads are creatures of the land and of transformation (since they

change from tadpoles into toads).

Toads were associated with prophecies and seeing into the future,

which is why they're also associated with thresholds and symbolize

crossing thresholds.

They can produce a chemical secretion which can induce euphoria or

hallucinations and which is sometimes used to summon up the spirits

of the dead.

Toads are sacred to the Greek goddess Hecate and to Ragana, the

Lithuanian goddess of death and regeneration. Hecate was ascribed

the epithet, 'Banbo', which means 'Toad'.



Snakes are creatures of the earth that can penetrate the mysteries

of the underworld since they slither under ground. They are also

therefore associated with evil and the devil.

Since they shed their skins, snakes symbolize transformation.

The coiled snake reflects the ancient symbol of the spiral, a design

appearing in Neolithic tomb art - another association with death.



Like the toad, a creature of transformation (tadpole to frog).

Frogs dwell on land and water and therefore symbolise the concept

of dwelling in both worlds.

Frogs are listeners of things heard in the darkness and can reveal

secrets to witches.

In European folklore the frog is associated with pregnancy and

fertility.

Frogs are linked with Ancient Egyptian frog women.

According to oral tradition the croaking of frogs could be used to

induce a mental state or trance during which questions can be asked

and answered.



Bats are creatures of the night, much like witches. In European

folklore, witches were believed to be able to transform into bats. It is

said that witches smeared the blood of bats on their brooms to make

them fly.

Bats symbolise the power of navigation in darkness. They also

symbolize death and the underworld.

Bats are a symbol of unity since they cluster together in caves.

In the 11th Century A.D. popular opinion concerning the bat

assigned evil nature to it. As the church continued to equate

everything associated with paganism as evil, the bat became

associated with the devil.

In ancient Europe, the bat was related to dragon symbolism because

it was winged and lived in a cave.

Woodcuts from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance depict the devil

demons wearing bat wings.



Dragons are associated with guardianship.

Tigers represent passion and power.

Wolves represent guardianship and intuition.

Dogs represent faithfulness and protection.

Lizards represent focus and concentration.

Baboons represented hot-blooded lust.


A witch's mummy was a dead witch who has been burned. Using her crushed up bones, her ashes, adds an evil supernatural element to the cauldron's ingredients.