A Midsummer Night’s Dream by
William Shakespeare Directed by Tim Sekuless. Shakespeare by the Lakes 111. Lakespeare and Co. To Feb 23 (free
at various locations. www.lakespeare.com
)
 |
| Helen Way as Puck |
Caught this energetic and sumptuously costumed outdoor show
down in Tuggeranong Park on opening night.
It’s a very lean text of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, however,
and even the English and Drama teachers were scrambling to identify cuts,
interpolations and reassignment of lines. Whole characters went missing and if
you didn’t know the plot you might have been floundering.
No Theseus and Hippolyta, and Hermia’s oppressive father
Egeus vanishes also, although all three seem to leave a few of their lines
behind.
No matter. There is assurance and energy in this fast moving version and an
irony or two in the doubling of the lovers with some of the Mechanicals.
Thomas Cullen’s scornful Demetrius is balanced by the mild
mannered Snug, afraid of frightening the ladies with his portrayal of Lion. Anneka van der Velde’s lanky aggrieved Helena is well counterpointed
by her angular and vain Snout –as-Wall. Liam Jones doubles effectively as Hermia’s lover Lysander and
as poor Flute who has to play Thisbe despite having a beard on the way. Marni Mount, an energetic Hermia, deftly
becomes would-be stage director Peter Quince, attempting the organisation of
Pyramus and Thisbe in the face of a rather childish Bottom (Oliver Bailey) and
his constant attempts to take over.
Heidi Silverman as Oberon and Katerina Smalley as Titania make
a powerful couple well supported by Helen Way’s dark and eccentric Puck, one
who is always ready to talk to the audience and to include them in the action.
Costumes by Fiona Victoria Hopkins are lush and rich and
stand out well amid the distractions of an open air setting.
The fun, tensions and magic of the piece somehow largely
survive the axe of text cutting and a number of glowing small faces on opening
night showed that it was reaching the next generation.
Alanna Maclean