A cast of six women play all the parts in Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream – and without altering the Bard’s text (well hardly – except for a few well-placed laughs) somehow they make this a warm-hearted show for Christmas.
This is a charming, energetic show, nicely choreographed and with some delightful singing.
All the actors put their hearts into it, but I particularly enjoyed the performances of Jessamy James as Helena and Titania, Charlotte Frost as Hermia and Quince, Megan Carter as Puck – and Libby Boyd who played Oberon and Lysander. She also gave a star turn as Wall.
It was all very well received by the audience at The Town and Gown pub theatre in Cambridge.
This was the first night of a 13-date tour lasting into January. All the cast have good singing voices and good clear diction so that none of the poetry of the play is lost. There is a lot of tumbling about and fighting and a good smattering of visual humour.
The theatre upstairs at The Town and Gown is a small space but they used it well and engaged the audience.
No need to explain the plot – not after 400 years, but it can be confusing: Hermia loves Lysander and Lysander loves Hermia. They want to marry but Hermia’s father wants her to marry Demetrius – who is also in love with Hermia. Demetrius says to Lysander: “You have her father’s love, let me have Hermia’s.”
In turn, Helena – Hermia’s best friend – is passionately and distractedly in love with Demetrius – who despises her. And the more he turns her down, the more desperate she gets.
When Hermia and Lysander decide to elope – with an overnight stop in a forest – the discarded Helena tells Demetrius so that he will follow Hermia, and she (Helena) can follow him.
While all four of them are sleeping in the forest, love potions are dropped into their eyes so that at one point both Lysander and Demetrius are now both in love with Helena – instead of Hermia. Helena thinks they are taking the mickey. But Hermia believes it and both girls get into a fight. Which makes a change from both boys getting into a fight.
There are two sub-plots: The Fairy King Oberon and the Fairy Queen Titania (who obviously live in the forest and come out at night- because that is what fairies do) are having an argument.
The love potion is fetched initially by Oberon so it can be put in Titania’s eyes while she is sleeping so she will fall in love with the first daft thing she sees when she wakes up.
On rising she sees a down to earth weaver, (Meghan Louise Taylor) one of a group of workmen putting on a play – and rehearsing in the wood. He happens to be playing a braying donkey and even when he isn’t in character he behaves like one just the same.
It’s all tangled and untangled in this show very neatly.
It ends happily – and in this production, directed by Jessamy James and choreographed by Megan Carter, it ends with a dance.
The last lines go to Puck – a heart-rending message from all actors since time began: “If we shadows have offended, think but this and all is mended, that you have but slumbered here, while these visions did appear…. Gentles do not reprehend, if you pardon, we will mend.” Megan Carter said those words beautifully. I found it very moving.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream by The Whole Pack Theatre Company is touring. They are at Fairycroft House, Saffron Walden on January 18 – and they have five dates in London, The Libra Theatre Café, Camden on December 17 and 18 and The Cockpit, Marylebone on January 24, 25 and 26.
