A Midsummer Night's Dream

Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream is one of my favorite plays by the Bard. It is an easy play to follow and enjoy. This performance of it was an enjoyable evening.

There are two stories that are presented in the play. The first is the story of two pairs of young lovers. Hermia is in love with Lysander. However, her father, Egeus, wants her to marry Demetrius. To add to this, another woman, Hellena, is in love with Demetrius.

Lysander and Hermia flee into the forest, and are followed by Demetrius, and Hellena. This brings them into contact with a group of fairies. Oberon, King of the Fairies, decides to play a trick on Demetrius to have him fall in love with Hellena. However, his minion, Puke, mixes up the instructions, and puts the spell on Lysander, who falls in love with Hellena. To fix it, Puke cast a spell on Demetrius, who, also, fells in love with Hellena. This leads to a sever bout of confusion. Oberon, after he is amused, has all the spells reversed.

The second stories involve of a group of craftsmen, who want to entertain the Duke of the city at his wedding. Lead by Quince, Bottom, Flute, Snout, Snug, and Starveling develop a play they present to Duke, his bride, and the two pairs of young lovers. The play they produce is a hilarious mix of mistakes, and over acting.

The actors were all up on their parts. Michael Wartella was a wonder Puke; he presented an athletic, and sometimes over the top performance. Lawrence Hecht is wonderful as Bottom, one of the craftsmen.

Over all a nice performance.