A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Play (1595)
by William Shakespeare

With Saikat Ahamed (Snug/Puck), Colin Michael Carmichael (Quince/Peaseblossom), Naomi Cranston (Helena), Alex Felton (Lysander), Fionn Gill (Snout/Puck/Moth), Akiya Henry (Hermia), Christopher Keegan (Flute/Philostrate/Cobweb), Kyle Lima (Demetrius), Saskia Portway (Hippohyta/Titania), David Ricardo-Pearce (Theseus/Oberon), Lucy Tuck (Starveling/Puck/Mustardseed), Miltos Yerolemou (Bottom/Egeus)

This great Shakespearean tale of crossed love, potions and silly theatrical antics gets a lively and imaginative interpretation from this group of young British actors from Bristol.

The general look of the performance is informal; many of the actors have hip, angular haircuts and wear variations on regular cool garb. The performance itself, however, is filled with antics and energy. What they do with planks of wood and various kinds of contraptions, some of which are brought together to create the character of Puck, is quite amazing.

That’s right – there is no single actor playing Puck. He appears as a group of three actors hold up what looks like a spray-paint head, a saw, a child’s rake and a few other things, while they take turns speaking lines from his part. It works pretty well and really gives a sense of the sprite’s airiness. There is one point towards the end of the play when he appears to duplicate himself all over the stage, with many spray-paint heads showing up in different places, kind of like a Shakespearean version of The Sorcerer’s Apprentice segment from Fantasia.

There is a lot of good fun in this energetic production. Bottom (Miltos Yerolemou) is particularly out-there, a robust vaudevillian comic, who truly comes into his comedic own when he turns into the donkey. We should, in this case, actually identify it as ass because the way the scene is played – incredibly imaginatively – with a contraption upon which Bottom rides with his bare bottom in the air, propelling himself with hand-pedaled wheels at the front. It has to be seen to be believed.

As well, towards the end, Hermia (Akiya Henry) has a great comedic moment when she gets to burst through her otherwise cool persona and get seriously down-there.

The planks are wielded to great effect by the entire cast, compiled into various sorts of scenery at different points, then fitted together into an octagonal form and raised high above the stage near the end. It is quite dramatic.

In addition to all the staging hijinks, the Shakespeare itself is done quite well. The energy and fun behind the play emerge beautifully, and most of the lines are spoken with gusto and feeling. There is a company spirit that infects the show and one walks away with a vivid sense of this group of vital young actors who are experimenting with interesting and unique approaches to the Shakespearean canon. Perhaps some of the production innovations take the place of what might be more subtle approaches, but one cannot expect to have everything all at once.

All in all, it is a fun and inventive show.

– BADMan