by Jess Hoffman
I must start my review by admitting that A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare is my single favorite play of all time. And because of that I have seen many productions. I have seen professional productions, volunteer productions, and even one high school production. I have seen modernized versions and traditional versions; high-tech, low-tech, and no-tech productions; I’ve seen it at indoor and outdoor theaters; I’ve seen queer versions and straight versions; sexy versions and chaste versions; I have, in short, sampled the various ways that A Midsummer Night’s Dream can be staged. So I went into Capital Repertory Theatre’s production with high hopes and high standards. I was not disappointed.
For those less familiar or unfamiliar with A Midsummer Night’s Dream, it is a story about four youths in a complicated love-triangle-plus-one. Hermia loves Lysander, Lysander loves Hermia, Demetrius also loves Hermia, but Helena loves Demetrius. Confused? Don’t worry, the dynamic shifts throughout the play due to the magical meddling of some forest sprites. The four lovers steal away to the woods in pursuit of their romantic interests, where Titania and Oberon, King and Queen of the fairies, are in the midst of their own lovers’ spat. Also in the woods are a group of workmen-turned-actors rehearsing a play that they plan to perform for a celebration of the Duke of Athens’s upcoming wedding to the Amazon Queen. If the plot of A Midsummer Night’s Dream sounds fantastical, even for Shakespeare, that’s because it is. This play is a lighthearted comedy that is magical in every sense of the word, and the cast and crew of Capital Rep’s production clearly saw its magical potential.
For veterans of Shakespearean comedy, Capital Repertory’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream is a delightful take on an old chestnut. For those who are new to Shakespeare and interested in cutting their teeth,this production keeps a fast pace (at least by Shakespearean standards), has an energetic and engaging cast, and is easy to follow thanks to the actors’ comfort with Shakespeare’s language. For audience members who find Shakespeare tedious and impossible to follow… well, those audience members would be advised to stay away. For this is still Shakespeare, and moreover it is Shakespeare without gimmicks.
Capital Rep’s Midsummer is not modernized for the sake of modernizing and it doesn’t lean on any contrived stagecraft, but it skillfully avoids becoming boring and stilted the way many staunchly traditional versions of Shakespeare tend to. Instead this production works with the script, the space, and the actors to find its own flavor that avoids extremes, avoids insisting upon itself, and is thoroughly engaging. The modern music and occasional dance breaks are not forced and fit well into the overall tone of the play. The asides to the audience and insertions of modern pop culture are few, peppered throughout the play, and never forced or out of place. Even the scene where the actors go into the audience looking for a “calendar” and begin playing with an audience member’s phone worked well within the ridiculousness of the scene.
Oliver Wadsworth’s portrayal of Nick Bottom is superb. Bottom’s character exists to be funny, but it is all too easy for an actor to take the character too far so that the bombastic diva becomes more obnoxious than humorous; Wadsworth toes this line perfectly and is both obnoxious and hilarious. All of the “rude mechanicals” are fun, funny, and comedically incompetent. Among them is also Taylor Hoffman, whose roles in the play (Snout and an ensemble fairy) are small but who warrants mention for having some of the best dance moves of the whole cast. The dancing and overall physicality of Gabrielle Bazinet Douglas and Josh DeMarco should also be noted; Douglas and DeMarco are two stage hands with incredible stage presence. Then, of course, there is Kyle Garvin, whose performance as the mischievous fairy Puck (dancing included) I cannot praise highly enough. Productions of A Midsummer Night’s Dream can be made or broken by that role, and this production is blessed with a perfect Puck.
The four lovers, around whom much of the on-stage action is focused, are also crucial to the show. I was delighted to discover that not only are all four of the actors individually talented, but they all work excellently together. Raya Malcolm is magnificent as the lovestruck yet feisty Hermia; Ellen Cribbs plays the lovesick Helena as a perfect foil to Malcolm. Ethan Botwick as Lysander plays similarly well with Malcolm and the two have irresistible chemistry both as lovers and, later, when Lysander tries to spurn Hermia. Tamil Periasamy plays a softer Demetrius than I have seen in many other productions, and portrays Demetrius as a sympathetically frustrated bachelor rather than an antagonist.
This production does make a few odd choices, the most notable of which is swapping the roles of Oberon and Titania. One wonders, of all the characters in Shakespeare (or even this play) whose reversal could lend some nuance or subversion of gendered paradigms, why Titania and Oberon would be swapped. Titania, quite frankly, does not need a role reversal to take charge of her situation. Moreover, one wonders, if Oberon and Titania are to be swapped, why Theseus (the duke of Athens) and Hippolyta (the queen of the Amazons) would not be swapped as well; especially since this production makes the common move of doubling these actors. But while one may question the choice, this production made it work, thanks largely to the talents of Yvonne Perry (Hippolyta/Titania) and Chauncy Thomas (Theseus/Oberon). Thomas in particular shines as both Theseus and Oberonーas the duke of Athens, the king of the fairies, and as the enchanted fairy enamored with a very strange man. The style of costuming is also odd. Costuming Shakespeare can be extremely challenging (does one go totally modern, traditional Elizabethan, choose a different period or style?); in this play the choice seems to be modernish steampunk-adjacent. But within this odd aesthetic, the costumes are well put together and suited to each of the characters.
In contrast to the costumes, the set is not overthought. It is simple, dynamic, and elegant, perfect for Shakespeare and perfect for this particular play.
The Shakespeare scholar and Midsummer superfan in me would like to nitpick more about the few ill-advised production choices, but I have to admit that even when questionable choices were made, the production made them work. And because of that I suppose they are not so ill-advised. Overall Capital Rep puts on a well-paced, funny, and highly enjoyable production of Shakespeare’s comedy. As I said, I went into the performance with high hopesーand I had a blast!
Capital Repertory Theatre presents A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare, directed by Maggie Mancinelli-Cahill, runs from April 14 – May 7, 2023, at the REP, 251 North Pearl St., Albany, NY 12207. Cast: Ethan Botwick as Lysander, Ellen Cribbs as Helena, Jovan Davis as Francis Flute/Peaseblossom, Kyle Garvin as Puck aka Robin Goodfellow/Philostrate, David Girard as Egeus/Snug/Moth, Taylor Hoffman as Snout/Cobweb, Kevin McGuire as Peter Quince, Raya Malcolm as Hermia, Tamil Periasamy as Demetrius, Yvonne Perry as Hippolyta/Titania, John Romeo as Starveling/Mustardseed, Chauncy Thomas as Theseus/Oberon, Oliver Wordsworth as Nick Bottom, Gabrielle Bazinet Douglas and Josh DeMarco as dancer fairies. Casting Director: Stephanie Klapper, csa. Production Stage Manager: Kristine Schlachter. Assistant Stage Managers: Rose Biggerstaff and Shayne David Cameris. Set design by Brian Prather. Costume design by Sera Bourgeau. Lighting design by Shelby Loera. Sound design by Jane Shaw. Wig design by Michael Dunn. Choreography by Freddy Ramirez. Fight choreography by David Girard.
Performance dates are Tuesday–Sunday (April 14-May 7). Wednesday and Thursday performances are at 7:30pm, with one weekday matinee on Wednesday April 26 at 2pm, Friday performances are at 8pm, Saturday performances are at 3pm and 8pm, and Sunday performances are at 2pm. Tickets are $27 – $62 depending on seating. Runs approximately 2 hours and 10 minutes with one 15 minute intermission. Contains sexual innuendo, moving lights, and haze. Recommended for ages 12+. Tickets are available at the door, by phone at (518) 346-6204, or online at https://capitalrep.org/.