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A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Written by William Shakespeare | Directed by Patrick Swanson
May 10 – June 4, 2017 | Multicultural Arts Center | Cambridge | Venue information
Reviews:
- “The company has come up with something fresh and so perfect that you have to wonder it hasn’t been done before — or, it if has, that if hasn’t been done a lot.” — EDGE Boston
- “This Midsummer is one of the funniest and most charming Shakespearean productions I’ve seen.” — Talkin’ Broadway
- “A delightfully inventive and entertaining take on the popular Shakespearean comedy.” “When, as in the current case, the production is particularly lively, fun, and inventively staged, its newness and vivacity shine right through its familiarity.” — Boston Arts Diary
- More reviews and praise from audiences
Scenes from the final dress rehearsal, May 9, 2017 at the Multicultural Arts Center in Cambridge:
(Press requests for high resolution photos should be sent to Joanne Barrett, jbpr (at) comcast.net or 617.834.6021)
 Equiano Mosieri* (Theseus), Sarah Newhouse* (Philostrate), and Paula Plum* (Hippolyta). Photo by Nile Scott Shots on May 9, 2017 for ASP.  Mac Young (Demetrius), Steven Barkhimer* (Egeus), and Elle Borders (Hermia), here as unhappy Athenians. Photo by Nile Scott Shots on May 9, 2017 for ASP.  Paula Plum* (Titania) in foreground with Monica Giordano (Helena) and Equiano Mosieri* (Oberon). Photo by Nile Scott Shots on May 9, 2017 for ASP.  Rob Bethel plays the cello behind Equiano Mosieri* (Oberon). Photo by Nile Scott Shots on May 9, 2017 for ASP.  The "Mechanicals" in the play within a play: Mac Young, Elle Borders, Monica Giordano, Jake Athyal, and a prone Steven Barkhimer*. Photo by Nile Scott Shots on May 9, 2017 for ASP.  Steven Barkhimer* (Bottom). Photo by Nile Scott Shots on May 9, 2017 for ASP.  Hippolyta (Paula Plum*) and Theseus (Equiano Mosieri*) look down upon the play within a play: Steven Barkhimer* (Bottom), and fellow "Mechanicals" Mac Young, Elle Borders, Monica Giordano, Jake Athyal, on the set that pays homage to the famous 1970 Peter Brook production for Royal Shakespeare Company, which is widely considered one of the most influential Shakespeare productions of the 20th century because it shook up ideas about staging the classic drama. Photo by Nile Scott Shots on May 9, 2017 for ASP.  "The Mechanicals" preparing for the play within a play: Elle Borders, Monica Giordano, Jake Athyal, Mac Young, Steven Barkhimer*. Photo by Nile Scott Shots on May 9, 2017 for ASP.  Sarah Newhouse* (Puck) and Equiano Mosieri* (Oberon) plot how they will play with the humans. Photo by Nile Scott Shots on May 9, 2017 for ASP.  An enchanted moment in the fairies' forest. Photo by Nile Scott Shots on May 9, 2017 for ASP.  Elle Borders (Hermia) and Jake Athyal (Lysander), star-crossed lovers in Athens. Photo by Nile Scott Shots on May 9, 2017 for ASP.  Oberon (Equiano Mosieri*) and Titania (Paula Plum*) , center front; Steven Barkhimer* (Bottom), Elle Borders (Hermia), Jake Athyal (Lysander), Mac Young (Demetrius), Monica Giordano (Helena), and Sarah Newhouse* (Puck) stand on the set that pays homage to the famous 1970 Peter Brook production for Royal Shakespeare Company, which is widely considered one of the most influential Shakespeare productions of the 20th century because it shook up ideas about staging the classic drama; cellist Rob Bethel in upper background. Photo by Nile Scott Shots on May 9, 2017 for ASP.
- Performance time: approximately 2 hours and 30 minutes, which includes a 15-minute intermission.
- Post-show conversations following Sunday matinees.
- Teachers please note: all of our Student Matinees are sold out!
- Due to some mild sexual suggestiveness, this production is rated PG-13 and is not recommended for patrons under the age of 13 without adult approval.
“The course of true love never did run smooth.” Dashed expectations force flummoxed lovers into the mystical wilderness where enchantment and confusion await, all for our gleeful benefit. “Let me play the lion too. I will roar that I will do any man’s heart good to hear me.”
Director Patrick Swanson’s production will celebrate the creative center of dreams, and how the spirit world can interfere with mortal destinies.
Likely first performed as a formal entertainment at the wedding of Queen Elizabeth the First’s godchild, Shakespeare’s hilarious and hallucinatory A Midsummer Night’s Dream is also his most enduringly popular play. In Paddy’s remix, we are guests at a wedding celebration that has been going strong for 400 years. Set in a hideaway location that simultaneously evokes Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre and the “White Box” of Peter Brook’s 1970 production, this is a rave that celebrates the sublime and the ridiculous. Boasting the sweetest and most vicious love scenes, and music that both stimulates and soothes the savage beast, this is the party to crash!
More to Explore:
Restaurant partner:
Enjoy 10% off your meal when you present your playbill at Bambara Kitchen & Bar in the Hotel Marlowe just a couple of blocks away! Offer expires June 4, 2017.
Cast Include:
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Jake Athyal – Lysander |
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Steven Barkhimer* – Bottom |
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Elle Borders – Hermia |
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Monica Giordano – Helena |
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Equiano Mosieri* – Oberon/Theseus |
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Sarah Newhouse* – Puck |
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Paula Plum* – Titania |
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Mac Young – Demetrius |
Special Guest Artist: Rob Bethel – Cellist
Designers include:
- Set Designer – Eric Levenson**
- Lighting Designers – Deb Sullivan
- Costume Designer – Jessica Pribble
- Composer & Sound Designer – David Reiffel**
- Props & Puppet Designer – Elizabeth Rocha
- Stage Manager – Marsha Smith*
- Production Manager – Deb Sullivan
- Assistant to the Director – Lydia Barnett Mulligan
*Member of Actors’ Equity Association, the union of professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States
**Member of United Scenic Artists Local 829 |
