A Shakespeare Spring Fling: Class of 1986

review by Mark Bedetti

3/9/17

            What happens when you mix a Shakespeare play written over five hundred years ago with an 80s high school prom? You get a production that is like no other Shakespeare you could imagine and an interesting evening of entertainment. A Midsummer Night’s Dream is a comedy play and in the case of the show that was being held at the Trinity Reparatory Company, it took place in the context of an 80s high school. It was interesting to see how the company did in transitioning such an old, formal play into a modern-day comedy love story.

            One aspect of the play that added an interesting element was that it was very interactive. Throughout the play, the characters would spin one section of the audience that was on wheels as a transition from one location to the next. It was cool to see how they involved the audience in that area, however, it seemed as if doing transitions in that style made them unnecessarily long. Another thing that the characters would do would be running up and down the stairs in the audience. Although in some areas it was necessary and added to the play, it got old quickly and was unnecessary to just do it every other line. However, it did add to the entertainment value of the show in chasing scenes when the actors and actresses would run through the audience.

           

The costume design in A Midsummer Night’s Dream was another contributing factor to the production. Having the 1980s style in mind, costume design ranged from frizzy hair to head-gear and baggy jeans. One of the most accurate and comedic costumes in the show was that of one of the main characters, Helena. She wore an old school uniform with a plaid skirt and always carried around a polaroid camera. In many cases, Helena would even use the character as a prop to help tell the story of the show.

            Arguably the most exceptional part of the whole showing was the fact that the role Puck was played by an understudy who had been only notified hours before the house opened. It was amazing to see how someone could step up in that short of a time period and still manage to seamlessly work into the show.

            A Midsummer Night’s Dream was a playful and contrasting production to what you would normally expect from an old-fashioned Shakespeare play.