MMC Drama: 09/01/2018

A Midsummer Night's Dream is a comedy written by William Shakespeare in 1595/96. It portrays the events surrounding the marriage of Theseus, the Duke of Athens, to Hippolyta, the former queen of the Amazons. These include the adventures of four young Athenian lovers and a group of six amateur actors (the mechanicals) who are controlled and manipulated by the fairies who inhabit the forest in which most of the play is set. The play is one of Shakespeare's most popular works for the stage and is widely performed across the world.

Celebrations are planned to mark the marriage of Theseus, Duke of Athens, and Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons. Egeus comes before Theseus with his daughter Hermia, who is in love with Lysander, although her father is insisting that she marry Demetrius. The Duke orders Hermia to obey her father, in accordance with Athenian law, otherwise she will either be put to death or forced to enter a convent. Hermia and Lysander decide to elope that night. They reveal their plan to Hermia’s best friend, Helena. Helena is Demetrius’ former lover and she is still in love with him, although he doesn’t love her anymore. Hoping to win back his affection, Helena tells Demetrius of the plan. That night, Hermia and Lysander steal away to the forest, with Demetrius and Helena in hot pursuit. Oberon and Titania, fairy king and queen of the forest, have quarreled over Titania’s refusal to give up an Indian boy – her foster child – to Oberon. Plotting his revenge, Oberon orders Puck to seek out a magic flower whose juice, squeezed on the eyes of someone asleep, will cause them to fall in love with the first creature they see on waking. Oberon sneaks up on the sleeping Titania and drops the juice of the flower in her eye. He hopes she will wake up when “some vile thing” is near. Taking pity on Helena, Oberon also tells Puck to use the juice on Demetrius so that he will fall in love with her, but Puck, mistaking the two young Athenian men in the forest, uses it on Lysander instead. Lysander promptly falls in love with Helena, forgetting all about his love for Hermia. Trying to rectify his mistake, Puck puts the love juice on Demetrius’ eyes and he too falls in love with Helena. Now both young men love Helena and “hate” Hermia. Meanwhile, Bottom the weaver and a group of Athenian tradesmen are planning to perform a play, The Most Lamentable Comedy and Most Cruel Death of Pyramus and Thisbe, in celebration of the Duke’s wedding. They decide to rehearse in the forest so that no one will see them and their performance will be a surprise. Puck sees Bottom and the others rehearsing. He decides to have some fun with these “hempen homespuns” and casts a spell, giving Bottom the head of an ass. When the other tradesmen see Bottom transformed, they run off in fear, leaving him alone in the forest. Just then, Titania wakes up, sees Bottom, and falls rapturously in love with him. Eventually, all the enchantments are lifted, the human lovers are happily paired, Titania and Oberon are reconciled, and Bottom is returned to normal. Hermia and Lysander, and Helena and Demetrius, are given permission to marry. Along with Theseus and Hippolyta, a multiple marriage celebration takes place. The three new couples watch Bottom’s acting troupe perform their play at the wedding celebration. Finally, Puck appears on stage to let the audience know that if they didn’t like the play, they should simply imagine it was all a dream.

CHARACTERS