Enter a technicolor fairyland where love-struck mortals and mischievous spirits mingle, and the enchanted flowers hide the darkness of the forest floor. On Monday, April 27th, the 1st Year MLitt students of MBU’s Shakespeare & Performance program present Shakespeare’s classic comedy, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, at the American Shakespeare Center’s Blackfriars Playhouse. 

Inspired by the glamour of post-WWII Hollywood, and the ingenuity of the American Regional theater movement, this production brings new life to one of Shakespeare’s best known works. 

It’s wedding season in Athens, where Duke Theseus and Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons, are entering a diplomatic marriage amid the closure of war. The royal fairy court outside Athens is contending with their own strife, heightened by the arrival of mortal lovers fleeing unwanted marriages, and an amateur theater group hoping to make their debut at Theseus’ wedding. When fairy King Oberon meddles with the mortals to manipulate his Queen, Titania, love potions pour and hijinks ensue.

This production is the culmination of the coursework taken by first year students in the Shakespeare & Performance program, as they work towards their Master of Letters and Master of Fine Arts. Co-directed by Doreen Bechtol and Matt Davies in their 14th collaborative production, the performance features student work in all aspects, from costume design to choreography and beyond. 

The production includes the performance work of:

Susanna Lyne…..Theseus

Sophia Kahn…..Hippolyta/First Fairy

Caitlyn Bryant…..Egeus/Philostrate

Marguerite Arbogast and Bianca Moten…..Hermia

Joseph Marsh…..Lysander

Kevin Hammond…..Demetrius

Mary Newton and Kassidy McCormack…..Helena

Leah Soderstrom…..Peter Quince

Chris Rothbauer…..Nick Bottom

Drew Johnson…..Francis Flute

Vex Bauer…..Tom Snout

Analise Toone…..Snug

Sam Mundy…..Robin Starveling

Kelsey Rich and Oliver Chase Marten…..Puck

Roberto Williams and Evin McQuistion…..Oberon

Carlyle DePriest…..Titania

Siena Maxwell…..Cobweb

Cailyn Mickelsen…..Moth

Gabby Gozdecki…..Mustardseed

Sara Bateman…..Peaseblossom

Haleigh Compton and Guy Aiken…..Assistant Directors/Text Coaches

This performance is Pay-What-You-Will at the Blackfriars Playhouse, located at 10 S Market St., Staunton, VA, 24401. Show will start at 7:30pm and runs without an intermission.