North Penn High School (NPHS) Theatre and Thespian Troupe 5464 will present Will Shakespeare' s greatest and most imaginative comedy A Midsummer Night' s Dream on November 15, 16 and 17 at 7:30 pm and Sunday, November 18 at 2:00 pm in the NPHS Auditorium. New this year, there will also be a Gold and Silver Card Matinee performance on November 14 at 1:00 pm.
Shakespeare was notorious for setting his plays in some faraway time, in this case classical Athens, and then filling the script with anachronisms that were more Elizabethan than Greek. Yet Midsummer has been making audiences laugh since Shakespeare' s day. North Penn has taken Shakespeare' s lead of playing with time and space by setting Midsummer in the world of the late Victorian Age known for the Industrial Revolution and steam engines. Even in the late 19th Century, artists and writers began imaging the future propelled by steam and technology. Their imaginings created a whole new genre of Science Fiction and art eventually known as "Steampunk." Popular still today, the look and concept of Steampunk has inspired the settings, costumes, music and feel of this production of Midsummer. Not to be outdone by Shakespeare, NPHS has thrown in their own anachronisms that add a lift and spirit to the show - and a whole lot of fun!
Students in grades 10 through 12 are creating the characters of the Court, the Young Lovers, the Rude Mechanicals (Tradesmen), and the fairies while other students are building the fantastic costumes, sets, and props, and creating amazing lights and sound.
Duke Theseus (Joshua Maier, senior) is wedding Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons, (Kristianna Fink, sophomore) in four days. Their joy is interrupted by Egeus (Ryan Jacob, sophomore) who demands that his daughter, Hermia (Samantha Stec, senior) weds his choice for her, Demetrius (Jaemon Crosby, junior) instead of her choice, Lysander (Paul Klemmer, senior). Hermia is stubborn and is willing to become a nun or be put to death, according to the law of Athens, rather than marry Demetrius who recently rejected her best friend, Helena (Molly Hofstaedter, senior). To protect his love, Lysander convinces Hermia to run away through the Athens forest to his aunt' s house where they will be safely married. Before eloping, Hermia confides in Helena, who, in an attempt to regain Demetrius' trust, tells him of Hermia' s flight - and all four lovers are off to the forest on a Midsummer night.
Except the forest is the haven of fairies and elves, particularly Oberon, King of the Fairies (Michael Klitch,junior) and his Queen, Titania (Madeline Burk, senior) who are also feuding. Oberon, with the help of Puck (Oliva Greco, sophomore) plans to put a special flower juice on Titania' s eyes to have her fall in love with some strange creature as payback for their spat. On cue arrive some Rude Mechanicals, tradesmen of Athens, who are rehearsing a play to celebrate Theseus' s nuptials - only they are better with carpentry and weaving than theatrical adventures. Bottom, (Haiming Lu, senior) is particularly bragging of his talent and acting like and ass - which inspires Puck to transform him to a strange creature near the sleeping Titania. Oberon, pitying Helena who Demetrius continues to spurn, instructs Puck to anoint Demetrius' eyes so that when he awakens he will love Helena. Only Puck mistakes Lysander for Demetrius, and, well as you can see confusion, mistaken identities and comic situations ensue. Whether all can be mended by dawn and in time for the wedding is anyone' s guess! But with the help of fairies and a bit of magic, all may yet be well.
Please join NPSD for a rollicking and romantic comedy of Fools & Lovers, Fairies & Madmen, & Things that go Bump in the Night! This production is appropriate for families and children over seven years of age will probably enjoy it.
Tickets are now on sale for $10 for adults and $5 for students. To purchase tickets, visit http:// nptheater.ticketleap.com/midsummer. To avoid online fees, visit http://www.npenn.org/theatre and download a ticket order form. Tickets will also be available at the door for all performances. Gold and Silver cards will be honored for all performances, but those wishing to use them will need to show the cards for all ticket users. For more ticket information, call 215-853-1309.