Opera North’s otherworldly adaptation of A Midsummer Night's Dream catches the audience in multiple love triangles and moulds Shakespeare's 1596 classic into a magical, musical soiree.
After defying her father/the ruler of Athens' wishes to marry Demetrive, Hermia (Katie Bray) chooses to hide out in the woods with her lover Lysander (Joel Williams) as the couple plot to elope. Shadowed by her unwanted fiancé Demetrive (James Newby) and Lysander’s crush Helena (Camilla Harris), the foursome pick a bad time to play in the woods as they get in the middle of the Fairy King and Queen’s tiff who only help to wreak havoc on the lover's lives.
Shakespeare’s knotty play has been injected with colourful pizzazz and given a modern twist by director Martin Duncan. Styled in 60s costumes and placed on a sterile stage, the production lays focus on Benjamin Britten’s whimsical music and the shows alluring cast of characters. Duncan’s direction blurs the forest fantasy with futuristic staging to reflect the time Britten’s opera was formed and the mind-bending substances that were on offer. Opera North’s youth ensemble whose creepy, black-winged, blonde Bowcut fairies, complete with blank stares swarm the Lowry stage, mirror the children from sci-fi horror, Village of the Damned (1960). With British influences popping up throughout the three Act production to add to the dreamlike quality that flows throughout the show.
The eclectic score is performed by Opera North’s live orchestra, headed by conductor Garry Walker, with lyrics that play with the natural rhythms of Shakespeare’s language. Throughout the emotional rollercoaster of the plot, Britten’s harmonious libretto helps to build on the ensemble’s spirited performances with heartfelt music that complements the original text. Personalised theme songs distinguish each cast of characters in Britten’s dark remixing of the Bard’s words, slicing the score between terrestrial and foreign.
In the forest alongside the disorientated lovers is a rehearsing theatre group, led by an overenthusiastic actor named Bottom (Henry Waddington). After being given the face of an ass by the meddling fairy Puck, Waddington’s exaggerated delivery plays between the impassioned speeches of Puck, the somewhat sinister fairies and the shenanigans of the lovers in the forest. Duncan’s fast-paced production presents plenty of surprises for those familiar with Shakespeare’s work and will win over new audiences willing to open themselves to the dazzling experience that opera has to offer.
Opera North’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream immerses its cast in Perspex and bubbles, showcasing a psychedelic and ethereal atmosphere in an accessible production that reshapes Shakespeare’s work for modern audiences. Adding some fairy dust to Shakespeare’s timeless classic, Britten wraps the story in an enchanting score that brilliantly captures the chaos and magic of love.
Tickets are available via the Lowry link