A Midsummer's Night Dream at the Globe Theater in London

We saw another fabulous performance at the Globe Theater in London. This time it was "A Misummer's Night Dream " by Shakespeare and directed by the new director of the Globe, Emma Rice. There were a number of unexpected elements in the production. The music was not by Mendelssohn, but rather by a local composer who chose mostly "Ballywood" style music. At first it was kind of strange, but it worked for the show. There were several Indian actors in the production, so I am not sure if they inspired the choice of music or if the music was chosen and then they picked the actors. Nothing like breaking out into Indian pop music (instrumental or vocal) in the midst of reciting Shakespeare verses. At one point the music turned to a Broadway musical style. That was a bit jolting.

Another unusual choice of interpretation was the depiction of Helena (female) as Helenus (male).

That made one couple heterosexual (Lysander and Hermia) and one couple homosexual (Demitrius and Helenus). Obviously this was a choice the director made. It added another element of tension into the relationships. It also worked.

If you were looking for a traditional interpretation of the play, this was not it. All of the changed elements worked. They just threw you off guard a bit.

The stage was designed to allow the audience in the yard to participate in the action. The actors at certain points walked on top of tables set up in the yard. Here is the view of the stage area before the show. Note the white table tops in the audience area. The actors would stand on those tables and perform.

Other standout moments from the show were Puck's performance and the play performed at the Duke's wedding, presented by actors who were made to look like volunteers at the Globe Theater. 

The character of the "wall", made of cereal boxes, was hilarious. The man in the moon character had some funny lines, especially when "corrected" by the Duke who thought it should be the man on the moon.

This show was very creative. We were laughing a lot and often. Go see it!