October 12 - October 18, 1995

B y  J a n a  R i v e r a

ARIZONA THEATRE COMPANY opens its 1995-96 season with the perfect fairy tale, replete with Shakespeare's most beloved mischievous fairy, Puck. Puck and his fellow fairies, of course, reside in that enchanted forest in A Midsummer Night's Dream.

I detect a few groans out there. I assume a fair number of you are groaning at the mere mention of Shakespeare, because we all know (but don't admit) that we spend half the time at a Shakespeare play trying to figure out exactly what the characters are saying to one another. By the time we've deciphered the "thee's" and "thou's" we've missed part of the action. Try this for example: "Fare thee well, nymph: ere he do leave this grove, thou shalt fly him, and he shall seek thy love." Huh?

But to those of you steering clear of ATC for this reason, let me say this: Fear not, fellow playgoers. Methinks A Midsummer Night's Dream is one of the Bard's more accessible plays, and thou shalt find it palatable.

By accessible, I don't mean to say that it's any less poetic than we'd expect from any Shakespeare play--in fact, it's poetry at its finest. But it's also light and fun and filled with humor.

I assume the rest of you groaners are die-hard Shakespeare fans who, upon hearing that ATC would produce a Shakespeare play this season, had hoped for something a little less accessible--by which I mean a little less produced. It seems A Midsummer Night's Dream is the director's choice whenever Shakespeare is mentioned. Why not The Winter's Tale or one of his other rarely produced plays? In fact, it was only a year ago that Tucson Parks and Recreation performed A Midsummer Night's Dream as its Shakespeare in the Park presentation.

Again, I say, fear not fellow playgoers. Maybe you've seen this play before, but I'll bet you've never seen it quite like this. And if you haven't seen it, you might not want to miss this opportunity. ATC's production is truly magical.

A quick synopsis: Hermia and Lysander love each other, but Hermia's father has decided she shall marry Demetrius. (Mean fathers forcing innocent daughters into loveless marriages seemed to be the thing in the late 16th century.) Demetrius also loves Hermia, and Helena loves Demetrius. When Lysander and Hermia sneak into the forest to escape her horrible fate for defying her father (death or a nunnery), Demetrius follows, and Helena follows Demetrius.

In the forest they encounter the prankish antics of those darned fairies, mixed with the hilarious foolery of a motley crew of tradesmen rehearsing a play for the wedding of the Duke of Athens and the Queen of the Amazons. After a little confusion and a lot of laughs, the couples find each other and live happily ever after. In the end, the tradesmen perform their play for the Duke and the Queen, and it is here that Shakespeare's true sense of humor shines. The play they perform is nothing more than a self-mocking parody of Romeo and Juliet.

The most enchanting character in A Midsummer Night's Dream is Puck, played by Francis Jue, last seen by ATC audiences as Song Liling in M. Butterfly. He was perfect then, and as the skittering little Puck, he's perfect again.

ATC's production rocks and flows with the music of Roberta Carlson and the choreography of Barbea M. Williams. Together they offer the dance scenes that make this production of A Midsummer Night's Dream so special.

David Pichette, who stole the spotlight as the demented Renfield in ATC's Dracula, does so here again every time he's on stage as the simple-minded Bottom--even when he's wearing the head of an ass.

Under the competent direction of ATC Artistic Director David Ira Goldstein, the entire cast speaks the poetry of Shakespeare as naturally as you please.

Arizona Theatre Company's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream continues with performances Tuesday through Sunday through October 21 in The Temple Of Music And Art Alice Holsclaw Theatre, 330 S. Scott Ave. Tickets are $17 and $26, available at the ATC box office and Dillard's. Call 884-4877 for information; and 622-2823 for reservations.

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