SITE GUIDE
SEARCH
REVIEWS
FEATURES
NEWS
Etcetera and
Short Term Listings
LISTINGS
Broadway
Off-Broadway
NYC Restaurants
BOOKS and CDs
OTHER PLACES
Berkshires
London
California
New Jersey
DC
Philadelphia
Elsewhere
QUOTES
TKTS
PLAYWRIGHTS' ALBUMS
LETTERS TO EDITOR
FILM
LINKS
MISCELLANEOUS
Free Updates
Masthead
Writing for Us
A CurtainUp Berkshires Review Review
A Midsummer Night's Dream
By Elyse Sommer
|
. . . I have had a dream, past the wit of man to say what dream it was: man is but an ass, if he go about to expound this dream. --- Bottom |
A Midsummer's Dream was the first play Tina Packer, the company's dynamic leader and artistic director, staged in the theater carved out of Wharton's back yard twenty-four eventful years ago. It is thus fitting that it should also be the company's last play before moving from Plunkett Street to Kemble Street (named after another historical figure with Lenox roots, the actress Fanny Kemble) where two new theaters are already operational and three others are on the horizon.
"O weary night, O long and tedious night", declares Helena one of the young Athenian beauties when her night in the fairy world still seems unlikely to bring a happy ending. But while the romances of Helena (Mary Hartman) and Hermia (Elizabeth Aspenlieder) take three hours to untangle, the hours fly by. The word tedious simply has no place in Ms. Packer's approach to Shakespeare. Like the Bard she knows how to weave many elements into a smooth tapestry.
Jonathan Epstein, a Massachusetts working man a.k.a. Bottom
(photo: Kevin Sprague) |
Epstein, who has yet to find a role he can not tackle, clearly enjoys this hilarious part as much as the ones he aspires to as Bottom. Unlike last summer's Twelfth Night (our review), in which his Festes stood out like a shining beacon, all the key roles here are wonderfully performed -- and well supported by the large ensemble. Epstein's fellow hardhats also move with ease into their as-written parts. Kevin Coleman, who twenty-four years ago played Oberon, is fine as the merry pranksters' leader Peter Quince. To play Oberon this time around we have Allyn Burrows, another outstanding company regular. He is blessed with a more than worthy queen in Tod Randolph. The cast is too large to comment on all.
Allyn Burrows and Tod Randolph, Oberon and Titania
(photo: Kevin Sprague) |
The cast and the creative team are themselves links to the past and present. I've already metioned Kevin Coleman's emergence from Oberon to Quince (not to mention his real-life Quincean role as training director). The original Puck, Tony Simotes is now Ms. Packer's Associate Director, while the current Puck is her son, Jason Asprey.
Tina Packer's thoughtful innovations fit into a long tradition of presenting Midsummer in a variety of styles. In 1896 Charles Keene, the manager of London's Princess Theater, took realism to the extreme of building a full-scale workshop for Quince. In 1900 Beerbohm Tree, a London actor-theater entrepreneur like Packer, sent live rabbits scurrying across the stage during the woodland scenes. In 1998 Peter Brooks most successfully used a plain white setting and placed his actors in trapezes and other devices. More recently an Off-Broadway company, not content with Shakespeare's play by itself, did a play within a play version (see below). This farewell to The Mount ranks with the best of these variations..
A consumer note: Be sure to bring a jacket and a blanket. It gets chilly in that magical forest.
LINKS
Midsummer Night's Dream (Off-Broadway)
Midsummer Night's Dream (currently at Regents Park, London)
Midsummer Night's Dream/Shakespeare (Royal Shakespeare Company)
|
A Midsummer Night's Dream
Written by William Shakespeare Directed by Tina Packer Associate Director ad Fight director: Tony Simotes Asst. Director: David Wiles Cast: principals in order of appearance): Theseus, Duke of Athens/ Mel Cobb; Hippolyta/Ariel Bock; Egeus/Bob Lohbauer; Demetrius/Henry David Clarke/Lysander/Samuel R. Gates; Hermia/ Elizabeth Aspenlieder; Helena/Mary Hartman;Peter Quince/Kevin G. Coleman; Nick Bottom/Jonathan Epstein;Francis Flute/Michael Burnet Tom Snout/Tom Jaeger; Snug/,Mark Woollett; Robin Starveling/Ty Skelton;Jason Asprey/Puck; First Fairy/Eliza Ladd; Oberon/ Allyn Burrows; Titania/Tod Randolph; Philostrate/Seth Powers The Fairies: Peaseblossom / Kate Whitehead; Cobweb/Lori Taylor; Moth/ Marzena Bukowska; Mustardseed/ Valerie Hauss-Smith; 1 st Singing Fairy/Anne Latta; 2nd Singing Fairy/ Michelle Frank; 3rd Singing Fairy / Jennie Burkhard; Morning Glory/Christina Depew; Acorn/ Candace Clift; Firefly/ Alicia Adema; Theseus' Servant/Hilary Alcuri, Elizabeth Martin Ensemble: Gabriel Vaughan, Rebecka Jones, Joy Lamberton, Kyle Terry, Daniel King, Robert Doris, William Barclay, Robert McDonald, Holly Myers, Elisabeth Martin, Brian Mason, Francine Ciccarelli Vocal Coach: Elizabeth Ingrarn Movement Director: Susan Dibble Scenic Designer Jim Youngerman Costume Designer Arthur Oliver Lighting Designer Michael Giannitti Sound Designers Jason Fitzgerald, Mark Huang, Dan Cooper Composers Michael Gandolfi and Dan Cooper Asst. Costume Designer. Heather Long Additional Music: Norbert Palej Lullabye theme: Dan Cooper and Carolyn Kelley Conductor: Stefan Asbury Musicians Stephen Banzaert, Lynn Bechtold, lxi,Chen, Joseph Conyers. Dan Cooper, Tom Cuppies, Alison D Amato, Kelly Daniels, Alicia DiDonato, Michael Gandolfi, Solomia Ivakhiv, Demetrios Karamintzes, Katherine Kayalan, Bridget Kibbey, Eliza Ladd, Simon McDonald, Nathan Schmidt, Bill Wozniak Running Time: Approximately 3 hours; one 15 minute intermission Shakespeare & Co. at The Mount in Lenox, 413-637-3353 < Performances: Tue, Fri, Sat, Sun at 8 pm-- $26-$36, Tuesday nights 50% off Berkshire residents For other special deals check the company Web Site Reviewed by Elyse Sommer based on 7/28 performance |
