Forward
“If there is one play that captures the American Players Theatre experience, it’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” This is the first thing I remember director David Daniel saying to me when I signed on to assistant direct this production about a year ago. It’s hard to deny: Midsummer was the first play produced at APT in 1980, and the magical woodsy setting of the Up the Hill Theatre is absolutely perfect for the play’s fairyland forest outside Athens. But a closer look at the story reveals even more deeply how fitting this play is for APT.
In the play, several characters leave the big city of Athens behind and go into the woods, fleeing their restrictive lives in search of something: freedom, love, inspiration, excitement, a new life. They enter a dreamland where magic and chaos reign, are changed by their time in the forest in wildly unexpected ways, and then return to their lives in the city… the same, but also different. They bring back some of the magic of the forest within them. Similarly, you theatre-goers journey from your regular lives to the woods of Spring Green. You come away from the normal rules, stories, and characters of your everyday lives. You wind your way through the trees, up the hill, to your seat… and you are transported into the dream with us. You experience the magic and the mayhem along with the characters, and then you leave… a little changed. The same, but a little different. You bring back within you a piece of the woods, some of that same magic.
That magic is not accidental. Hundreds of hands, brains, and hearts went into the creation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream—much more than the cast of 25 amazing actors you will see onstage. I’m so pleased to share with you a little peek into the big, magical world you are about to join. And remember: please keep your arms and legs inside the ride at all times!
"Joy's the Goal...Love's the Theme"
At its very heart, Midsummer is a play about love in all of its many forms… and frustrations. The play even begins with an impending wedding: Theseus, ruler of Athens, and Hippolyta, his warrior bride, are to be married in just a few days. A nobleman named Egeus comes to them with a problem about a different wedding: his daughter, Hermia, is refusing to marry Egeus’ choice of husband for her, Demetrius. Hermia and her beloved Lysander are deeply in love, and she chooses their love over her daughterly duty to her father. Demetrius dutifully woos Hermia, but we wonder: does he really love her? He was, afterall, previously engaged to Helena, who is still hopelessly in love with him. Under threat of death, Hermia and Lysander run away to the forest. They are pursued by Demetrius, who is pursued by Helena. Oh, what a tangled web to begin our play!
In the woods these lovers unwittingly find themselves in the middle of a marital feud between yet another couple: Oberon and Titania, the fairy king and queen. The rift between the two is borne out of love and jealousy - Oberon’s jealousy of Titania’s beloved changeling child*, who is getting all of her attention and love. That jealousy leads Oberon to cast a spell on Titania that makes her fall in love with a donkey (more on that later…)
*Changeling Child: In European folklore, a changeling child is a fairy child secretly swapped for a human baby. The human child is taken to the fairy realm to live with the fairies.
Meanwhile, a group of Athenian “mechanicals*” have met each other in the woods to rehearse a play, which they hope to perform at Theseus and Hippolyta’s wedding celebration. We watch gleefully as these amateur actors work and rehearse together, and in the process find love in their shared friendship, camaraderie, and found family.
*Mechanicals: In the play, Puck refers to the play-makers as "rude mechanicals". This term relates to their status as skilled manual laborers--people who work a craft with their hands. "Rude" in this context is another word for "rough"--it doesn't mean the mechanical characters lack manners!
From there, these three worlds – lovers, fairies, and mechanicals – collide in the woods in unexpected ways, and mayhem ensues (mostly thanks to the mischievous sprite Puck). A case of mistaken identity with an errant love spell ends in Helena going from being wooed by no one to being wooed by both Lysander and Demetrius at the same time. One of the mechanicals, Nick Bottom, is transformed into that same donkey that Titania falls in love with. Love causes all of these characters, mortals and fairies alike, to behave in all sorts of foolish ways. In the end, though, as Puck tells us: “Jack shall have Jill, naught shall go ill... and all shall be well.”
The set design by Nate Stuber supports that pop-up book feeling with three enormous set pieces that spin, shift, swirl, and interlock, creating a dynamic jungle gym for the actors to play on. The pieces transport us from the city to fairyland and back again. A grand staircase in the palace of Duke Theseus becomes a spinning promontory for Oberon’s entrance (and for Puck to climb around on.) The impressive “skate park” set piece is all curves, ledges, and pointy bits that evoke a forest that is both magical and a little dangerous. Finally, Titania’s bower*, a rolling, angled disc covered in lush pillows, doubles for the theatre troupe’s stage in the final act. These set pieces also help reveal character differences. You’ll see them navigated easily by the fairy characters, while at the same time causing all kinds of obstacles for our poor clumsy mortals! See if you can spot how actors use their bodies on the set to tell us more about who they are.
*Bower: A bower is a place that is closed in or overarched with branches of trees, shrubs, or other plants. In Midsummer, a bower refers to Titania's preferred place to take a cozy nap in the woods!
You’ll notice that the moving set pieces mostly blend into the natural wood of the stage. This simplicity helps other elements like costumes and props truly POP on the stage. Your eyes are drawn to the beautiful fabrics and textures of the costumes designed by Daniele Tyler Mathews. This is where the real storybook feel comes in for me. The lovers and royals in their dashing long white coats and satin white dresses, the mechanicals in warm colors and natural fabrics. Oberon, Titania, and Puck’s fanciful costumes are vibrant in color and incorporate elements of the nature around them. The fairy chorus, dressed in gray with shocks of white, almost become the forest itself as they infiltrate every corner of the woods and transform it right in front of your eyes. Also: keep an eye out for how the lovers’ white costumes slowly but surely collect pieces of the forest as the play goes on, showing us how the woods are working their way into their lives and transforming them (for better or for worse!)
You can’t really talk about Midsummer costumes without talking about… the ass head. In a moment of pure mischief, Puck decides to bewitch one of the mechanicals (Nick Bottom) and make him look as though he has a donkey’s head. Initially, we had hoped we could use the original mask from the first production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream at APT in 1980. However, being more than 40 years old, both the condition and the technology of the head were deemed unworkable – it would be too hot and would probably fall apart before the end of the summer. Instead, APT Crafts Supervisor Becky Hanson created a brand new donkey head from scratch, based on the original head. She used updated materials and technology that make it comfortable and secure for actor Sam Luis Massaro to wear and also help you to hear him clearly, even with his mouth obscured. It’s a truly impressive costume piece – if you look carefully, you’ll even see that the donkey’s eyes can close!
The nature-filled sound design by Sartje Pickett also plays a big role in creating the world of our Midsummer, placing the audience right in the wilderness alongside the characters. It can be difficult sometimes to figure out if that birdsong you hear is part of the play or actually happening in the woods around you! In Titania’s famous “forgeries of jealousy” speech she explains how the natural world, the weather specifically, is all out of order because of Oberon and Titania’s dispute. It’s the middle of summer, but storms are raging like it’s winter, and the poor humans can’t figure out what time of year it is! The sound helps tell the story of that disordered world from the first moments of the play. Audiences have definitely reached for their raincoats at the ominous sound of thunder at the top of the show. Keep your ears open for how characters react to the sounds of nature, and how nature responds back to the actions of the characters.
“How now, mad spirit?”
The fairy world of our Midsummer has an unusual take on the character of Puck by having the role, normally played by one actor, played by TWO: one Deaf actor (Joshua M. Castille) and one hearing actor (Casey Hoekstra). They move through the world of Midsummer as one entity with almost a shared brain, and use a unique language that combines spoken English, sign language, and physical gestures to create what we call “The Weave”.
The work of creating Puck began all the way back in spring 2024, when Director David Daniel, Josh, and Casey spent an entire week playing with the text and figuring out if this wild concept could become a reality. Since I have a strong background in both Shakespeare and sign language, one of my biggest roles during the rehearsal process was working with Josh and Casey (as well as our wonderful team of ASL interpreters) to develop Puck’s weaving in the scenes. We spent hours and hours together in “Puckland” exploring how all of the elements of speech, sign, and gesture could interact and help support telling the story.
We also had an incredible asset to that work in the form of Rosie Ward, our Voice & Text Coach. A voice and text coach works closely with the actors and directors to make sure audiences can hear and understand every word and every thought of the performance. They also make sure actors use healthy vocal practices that ensure they can get through an entire summer without losing or damaging their voices. Rosie spent significant time with each and every actor you will see in this production, but in Puckland she brought an invaluable perspective that helped us ensure our unconventional approach to the text was still clear and vibrant for both the eyes and ears of the audience.
“Give us your hands if we be friends…”
We hope you enjoy your time in the woods, and come away a little changed by dreaming with us here. The magic and love we’ve woven together on this stage is a joy to share with you.
Written by Lindsay Welliver, Assistant Director of A Midsummer Night's Dream, 2025.
Credits:
Photos by Michael Brosilow & Hannah Jo Anderson.