A Luminous Open-Air Performance of One of the Greatest Comedies of All

The Hyperion Players, the only undergraduate troupe dedicated solely to bringing the works of Shakespeare to the Harvard stage, have done a remarkable job with the current production of A Midsummer Night's Dream. After last semester's dry and disappointing Measure for Measure, the improvement is more along the lines of a full-fledged transformation: the players have gone above and beyond the call of duty to bring out all the comedy and beauty in the play.

Part of the richness of A Midsummer Night's Dream is that it is constructed of many disparate elements: it is equal parts poetic enchantment, serious themes, erotic play and broad belly laughs. The Hyperion players understand the importance of balancing these themes, and execute each level of the play with energy and finesse, making the result far more than the sum of its parts.

The erotic drive in this performance derives largely from the magnificent performances of William Burke '99 as Oberon and Michelle McEwen '00 as Titania, the warring king and queen of the fairy court, whose power struggles in the forest on Midsummer's Night lead to the comedic sexual mishaps that drive the plot of the play. Besides imbuing the queen with the characteristics usually assigned to her--pride, haughtiness, allure--McEwen's Titania is also marvelously ferocious: the actress adds an unabashed sexual aggressiveness and a cuttingly sarcastic sense of humor. Burke, in a less flamboyant but perhaps more richly-textured performance, works similar magic with Oberon. As the proud, ironic, fiercely stub-born and dangerous fairy king, he is also able to laugh at himself--a trait which, besides adding depth and likeability to this too-often-stodgy character, also opens the way to much humorous stage inter-action with his mercurial messenger, Puck. This depth of characterization, typical of this production's ability to infuse even the minor scenes of the play with meaning and humor, is one of the strongest points of the show.

The second set of central characters--the collection of mismatched lovers who flee into the forest--is equally well-played by its four talented and entertaining actors. Tom Davidson '99 and Jeremy Salfen '00 are quite good as the hot-headed and hapless suitors Lysander and Demetrius and the more challenging women's roles are excellently filled by Monica Henderson '99 as Hermia and Elena Schneider '99 as Helena. If the men's roles are supposed to be almost interchangeable, then the women must play off each other's differences, and Henderson and Schneider work well together. Their portrayals of strong but lovelorn maidens, vacillating between sincerity and over-the-top silliness, are perfectly suited to the tone of the comedy.

The production is also quite successful in creating an atmosphere of beauty and enchantment in its scenes of fairy magic. This is due in large part to skillfull staging and choreography, but much credit is also due to the graceful work of the minor players in Oberon and Titania's court. Nick Parrillo '99 gives an intriguing performance in the key role of Puck, the fairy messenger of Oberon and the meddling instigator of much of the trouble in the wood. Puck, who also serves an important narrative function in the play, is usually portrayed as a mischievous, high-powered figure. Parrillo, however, has opted for a slyer, more subtle characterization. This decision, evidently made in part to accommodate the unusually dominating presence of Burke's Oberon, still works quite well, allowing Parrillo to to contribute to the sense of mystery which surrounds the fairy court. The dancers who portray Titania's attendant fairies--especially he chief attendant (Fay Ferency '99)--are also effective in creating a dreamlike ambiance.

Perhaps the single strongest element of the show, however, lies in the third important group of characters. These are the "mechanicals," the clowns of A Midsummer Night's Dream. A band of lower-class artisans, their only goal is to rehearse the play they hope to stage before Duke Theseus in honor of his wedding. The play's most richly, broadly comic scenes fall to these characters, and the actors in this production pull off them off with sheer genius. As individual comic actors, the players are consistently hilarious; as a group, they forge a bond of buffoonery that transcends description. Their crowning glory--the final scene of the play, in which their "comical tragedy" is at last presented before the court--could hardly be better executed than it is by these players.

All six of the clowns deliver remarkable performances: Adam Green '99 is especially delightful as Quince, the harassed "director" of his unruly band of actors. But the leader of the group, Becca Lowenhaupt '99, gives what may be the play's most brilliant performance in her side-splittingly funny portrayal of Bottom, the headstrong and histrionic weaver who accidentally becomes ensnared in the web of fairy magic permeating the forest and winds up with the infamous ass's head.

All in all, the Hyperion has done a remarkable job of realizing one of Shakespeare's finest comedies, and the surprising youth of its cast--nearly all of whom are first-years and sophomores--bodes well for the next few years of Shakespearean performance at Harvard. Although the play's length (two-and-a-half-hours) may seem daunting to some, the show is so skillfully realized and so well paced that the time is well spent. In the words of Queen Hippolyta in the fantastic final scene, "This is the silliest stuff that ever I heard!" But you will enjoy every minute of it.