IF YOU’RE seeking a gentle excursion into Shakespearean subtlety and subtext where you can perchance doze unnoticed whilst the Baird’s words gently lull you in the covering darkness of the auditorium, then this MadCap production of ‘The Dream’ is not for you.
If however, like me, you like your Shakespeare as Willy-boy intended it to be performed to the noisy eating, drinking, belching and baying patrons in the pit then you are in for a treat.
Emma Leigh’s direction takes us on a bawdy romp where the cast switches clothes, genders and characters at an almost breath-taking pace with clarity of story never getting lost amidst the mayhem. To be precise, when Matilda Bott’s engaging Hermia screams her seemingly endless ear-piercing scream of joy on hearing Lysander’s (Robert Moore) elopement plans – it is like the starters whistle has been blown for this company of tightly knitted-highly talented actors to be let off their leashes.
Whilst both lighting and setting is simple yet effective, the costumes by Patricia Hobday are anything but – with a seemingly endless wardrobe adding a glorious cacophony of colour and splendor to every scene.
The only exception being when the three fairies sing to their Queen and don cloaks and hoods which seemed more appropriate to the witches of ‘Scottish Play’. Add to this some strange lyrics and we are ‘hubble-bubbling’ round the cauldron on some desolate moor not fluttering and twinkling in the Fairy Faylin of ‘The Dream’.
However this, for me was for me the one, small unnecessary confusion on an otherwise seamless journey. Indeed the clever introduction of the odd modern day word or two in just the right places to bring a smile, the close up hand magic to bring a gasp and the odd bit of groping to bring a custard pie belly laugh were masterful director’s touches – the best of which was to very occasionally add asides from the male fairies to the audience.
At one point Starveling (James Labdarbs) sat in the empty seat next to me and leant on my shoulder whilst conversing with King Oberon (a majestic Edward De Gaetano) then apologised to me for the intrusion. We are told fairies are all around us yet we don’t notice them –well Madcap mixed the two worlds beautifully. I almost felt like saying as Tinkerbell asked of us in Peter Pan ‘I believe in fairies – I do! I do!’
The image of the night for me was of Queen Titani (Lindsey Chaplin- beautiful both in appearance and ability) sleeping with her arms round the Asses head on poor Bottom (Robert Moore again) – I couldn’t help but think – ‘This would make a wonderful poster’.
Anna Nicholson brought a lovely air of sophistication to Helena and delightfully doubled that with ‘Snout’ the commonest of our very common Mechanicals.
Oisin Porter was a joyous Puck sending us home happy and buzzing.
His final words ‘Give me your hands if we be friends – And Robin shall restore amends’ summed up my evening.
I went home happy to have discovered Madcap –catch them on the remaining dates and venues of this tour if you can and share the magic.
MadCap bring A Midsummer Nights Dream to Artrix on August 8.
Tickets, at £14 (£12 for students and under 16s) are available from www.artrix.co.uk or by calling 01527 577330.
Euan Rose
