The solstice this year fell on June 21st and I had the pleasure of attending a performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream in Central Park. What better way to spend the solstice in New York City?
A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare is presented by the award-winning Boomerang Theatre Company and Artistic Director Tim Errickson. It will have a five week run in Central Park located on 69th Street and Central Park West. For more information you can head on over to www.boomerangtheatre.org .
For those that have not read A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare, it is a play that centers around four teens that are in love. Meddling parents get in the way of their love and they decide to flee into the forest. Once there, they are caught up in a fight between the King and Queen of the fairyland. This is where the drama, comedy and confusion ensue.
Despite the crying babies and the barking dogs, this was an extremely enjoyable rendition of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The actors made great use of the space the park offered them. They also did not let any of the outside noises or disruptions bother them — for example, a man and his baby stroller just decided to walk right in front of the stage and stand there for a minute or so obstructing the view for some of the people watching the play. The fact that the actors did not break from their characters show true professionalism.
Costume Designer Jessa-Raye Court did an amazing job with the costumes. The garments worn by King Oberon and Queen Titania of the fairyland were absolutely striking and fit in perfectly with the backdrop of Central Park. Jessa-Raye cleverly used greens and yellows for the garments worn by the King and Queen of the fairyland as well as the garment worn by Puck. The colors chosen for the last costume change for Theseus, Duke of Athens and Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons, was another highlight of her Jessa-Raye’s outstanding job as a costumer designer. She used black and a very rich purple for both the King and Queen. Queen Hippolyta, played by Cassandra Johnstone, wore a beautiful dress that had purple panels on the side to match the purple sash that King Theseus, played by Caleb Carlson, wore.
All the actors were very outstanding in their roles. There was one actor that really caught my eye throughout the play. Vinnie Penna who plays Bottom did an exceptional job in his role. The best part of reading A Midsummer Night’s Dream is reading the troubles Bottom gets into and seeing Vinnie Penna bring that to life was exactly what I pictured whenI first read A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Vinnie Penna had me in stitches throughout the play.
Overall, this was a very enjoyable interpretation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. If you have not seen a performance yet then you should definitely go and catch one. Take into considering that these are free performances!! While the performance is free, please do leave a donation so that the Boomerang Theatre Company can continue to bring these amazing performances to Central Park each summer.
Twisted Talk: What is your favorite Shakespeare play? Are you going to be checking out A Midsummer Night’s Dream? Discuss below!
