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A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare - Oberon/Theseus

- The London Bubble. Directed by Peter Rowe.

An excellent, small-scale production of this most magical of Shakespeare's pastoral comedies. The intimate sapce of the Bubble's big tent was beautifully used to provide a multi-level acting area for the scenes in the Athenian woods. Dim, shadowed lighting enhanced with hundreds of twinkling 'fairy' lights gave the woods the magical quality that acts as the catylyst for the transformations that take place in all the play's characters. The 'top and tail' scenes in the Athenian palace were, by contrast, austere black and white. At times, the woods were made even more magical by the sound of real wind outside the thin walls of the tent. Of course, at other times, other sounds from the outside weren't quite as evocative - a particular stand-out being the huge reggae soundstage fifty feet away at one venue!

The costumes were eclectic, being of no period and all periods. Theseuas and Hypolita were all in black, the severity of the robes only broken by subtle embroidery (actually beautiful coats made by and for the Jewish community and spotted by our costume designer some weeks before). By contrast, Oberon and Titania were in ripped Edwardian finery with animal skins and foliage bursting through the tears so that it was impossible to tell what was clothing and what was 'natural' - the idea was to convey their wild, animal nature literally erupting through the formal clothes. The lovers were in twenties party-wear. Puck was clad in shorts and a hawiian shirt!

I doubled Oberon, the king of the fairy realm, with Theseus, the ruler of Athens, and was partnered in both roles by the wonderful Lisa Spenz, a strong and passionate actress whose unconventional beauty and powerful performance made the rehearsal period and the performances a joy. We gave Oberon and Titania's relationship an almost animal-like intensity, switching between fierceness and tenderness in a moment, and for the Athenian rulers an equally fiery love was tempered by a cold formality that only hinted at the passion beneath.

All in all, this was a very satisfying production, marrying my love of Shakespeare with great fellow cast-members and clear direction from the Bubble's director, Peter Rowe.

Oberon cradles Titania's head in his hands tenderly

Oberon and Titania, reconciled, stare into each other's eyes