A Midsummer Night's Dream

Hannah Smith directs William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream in downtown Kingston this summer at St Andrew's Presbyterian Church at the corner of Princess and Clergy Streets.

Dates and times are Tuesday July 2nd to Saturday July 6th at 8 pm.

This story of lovers lost in the woods, a hapless band of actors and a mischievous group of fairies is one of the funniest plays ever written. Starring some of Kingston's best actors, this play is a must-see. Community theatre at its best.

In ancient Greece, a young woman named Hermia runs away from Athens with her boyfriend; Lysander to get married. Lost in the woods, they are pursued by a young man named Demetrius who has a thing for Hermia and he is pursued by Hermia's friend; Helena who has a crush on him. Meanwhile a bunch of hapless actors, led by the inept Bottom, have gone into the woods to rehearse a play. The play they are rehearsing is hilariously bad. Unknown to the mortals there is a domestic battle going on between Titania; Queen of the Faeries and Oberon; the King. Oberon decides to get revenge on Titania by sending his henchman; the mischievous Puck, to place a love potion in Titania's eyes so that she will fall madly in love with the next living creature that she sees. It will be the actor Bottom who Puck has turned into an ass; a donkey. He also sees Lysander sleeping on the ground near Hermia. He puts the potion in Lysander's eyes who, when he wakes up, sees Hermia's girlfriend; Helena. He falls madly in love with her and chases her through the woods. Puck tries to fix his mistake by putting the love potion in Demetrius's eyes, and he too falls in love with Helena. Hermia; who was loved by both Lysander and Demetrius finds that no one loves her now. She goes ballistic, thinking her friend Helena has stolen her boyfriend from her.

But finally the fairies fix their mistakes.

After the romantic chaos of the night before, the morning sun returns order to Shakespeare's magical world. A Midsummer Night's Dream then ends with a performance of Bottom's hilariously bad play; Pyramus and Thisbe. Bottom plays the young lover; Pyramus, and the awkward young man; Francis Flute, plays Thisbe in drag. Shakespeare was making fun of the acting convention of his day, when young boys played the female roles.

One of the world's most popular plays.

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