A Midsummer Night’s Dream
RSC/British Telecom tour 19 September 1988 – 4 February 1989, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Beaux Stratagem
Venues as follows:
19–24 Sept Alexander Sports Hall, Bedford, Bedfordshire;
26 Sept-1 Oct Five Acres Leisure Centre, Coleford ;
3–8 Oct Meadowside Centre, Burton on Trent, Staffordshire;
10–15 Oct Leisure Centre, Mansfield, Nottinghamshire;
17–22 Oct Sixth Form College, Barrow in Furness, Cumbria;
24–29 Oct Moorclose Sports Centre, Workington,Cumbria;
31 Oct-5 Nov Sports & Community Centre, Newbiggin-by-the-Sea, Northumberland;
7–12 Nov Rainbow Centre, Coulby Newham, Middlesbrough;
14–19 Nov Belfast Festival, Queen’s University, Belfast, Northern Ireland;
21–26 Nov Leisure Centre, Macclesfield, Cheshire;
28 Nov-3 Dec Sports Centre, Huddersfield, Yorkshire;
5–10 Dec Castle Sports Centre, Spalding, Lincolnshire;
12–17 Dec County Upper School, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk;
9–14 Jan Royal Manor School, Isle of Portland, Dorset;
16–21 Jan Dyrons Centre, Newton Abbot, Devon;
23–28 Jan Truro School, Cornwall;
30 Jan-4 Feb Tiverton School, Devon.
Cast & Crew
Cast
| Bottom | Roger Walker |
|---|---|
| Demetrius | Roger Moss |
| Egeus | John Keenan |
| Fairy | Simeon Andrews |
| Fairy | Carolyn Backhouse |
| Fairy | Nicholas Gecks |
| Fairy | Mel Hastings |
| Fairy | Nicholas Lumley |
| Flute | Simeon Andrews |
| Helena | Fiona Gillies |
| Hippolyta | Jennie Stoller |
| Lysander | Paul Slack |
| Oberon | Raad Rawi |
| Philostrate | Peter Andrew |
| Puck | Peter Andrew |
| Quince | Nicholas Lumley |
| Snout | Nicholas Gecks |
| Snug | Mel Hastings |
| Starveling | John Keenan |
| Theseus | Raad Rawi |
| Titania | Jennie Stoller |
Crew | |
| Choreographer | Terry Gilbert |
| Designer | Philippe Brandt |
| Director | Bill Buffery |
| Light Designer | Michael Calf |
| Music by | Mia Soteriou |
| Playwright | William Shakespeare |
| Sound by | Steff Langley |
- Source: RSC Performance Database
- Add an observation
- Edit this production
- I saw this production
- This is a duplicate of another production
Photographs
If you have a photograph or picture that illustrates this production, please sign in to upload it, or add it to Flickr and tag it with .
Play description
A Midsummer Night’s Dream is a classic and much loved text by William Shakespeare. Written around the late 1500s, like most Shakespearean texts, A Midsummer Night’s Dream stands the test of time; the narrative is almost timeless and it is still performed regularly to this day.
The story is about four Athenian “lovers” who are all in love with one another; Hermia and Lysander are in love but Hermia’s farther, Egeus, wants her to marry Demetrius who also loves her. Left behind is poor Helena, who has a deep and unrequited love for Demetrius. As Hermia and Lysander run away together to a nearby forest on the eve of a big Athenian wedding between Theseus and Hippolyta. Demetrius follows the object of his affection, as does Helena.
Chaos ensues as the escaped lovers are set upon by magical forces dwelling in the woods. As a result of a magic potion, the lovers fall for different women.
Also affected by the mischevious woodland spirits are “the Mechanicals”, labourers from Athens who are practicing a play for the royal Athenian wedding.
Hilarity, sexuality and desire are key themes in this whimsical text by Shakespeare.
Observations
If you have an interesting observation or anecdote about this production that you think others may be interested in, please sign in in order to record it here.
