This Fall, the CCDS theater community is bringing “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” to the Keeler stage. This Shakespeare play is a comedy from the 1590s that centers around the marriage of two characters, Theseus and Hippolyta. Many of the characters get lost in a forest inhabited by manipulative fairies that cause mischief throughout the play. With witty characters, humorous plots, and a happy ending (unlike many of Shakespeare’s works), this play will be fun for people of all ages to watch when it comes to Keeler in the Fall. The man behind this production will be CCD’s theater director, Nick Rose, who is also a founding member of the Cincinnati Shakespeare Company. Since he is so familiar with Shakespeare, I spoke with him to get more information about A Midsummer Night’s Dream, what we can look forward to, and when tryouts and interviews are.
Firstly, I asked Mr. Rose what he likes about “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” and he gave me a very passionate and detailed response. He began, “I absolutely love ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ as a comedy and a play. It is almost a perfectly told story in structure and plot.” He mentioned that its comedy and fantasy elements are timeless, and that the play continues to get big laughs from audiences today. He said that “it’s a play that can fit any time and anywhere, and still make sense.” He noted that its characters are both big and broad as well as human and relatable, which is a detail that makes the play stand out in a great way. I asked Mr. Rose what his favorite character was and he told me that, by far, his favorites are the community theater actors called the mechanicals who are trying to put on a play for the Duke. “They are so determined and excited to be the best they can be despite their shortcomings, Especially the egotistical Nick Bottom” he started. “He is a character that gets to experience it all in the play. Sure, he is bombastic and egotistical, but he is also charming and down to earth at the same time. Despite having his head transformed into a donkeys, as well as be accosted by a lovesick queen of the supernatural, he manages to take it all with stride. He’s such an amazing character from such an amazing play.”
Since Mr. Rose has so much experience working with Shakespeare, you might guess that he has worked with this play many times before – and you would be right. “I have performed in ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ close to ten times and have directed once before this year,” he said. He has played characters from the Duke and Oberon to various fairies, some of the mechanicals, and Bottom. He stated that “as a Shakespearean performer, ‘Midsummer’ tends to be a play that you will perform again and again because it is so well known and popular.” He said that even though he has worked on it so many times, the magic of it is that it never gets old.
Despite Mr. Rose’s glowing reviews of the play, there are still challenging aspects of it that will make the play difficult, yet impressive for students to put on. The play is very technically demanding, especially if you want to go all in on effects, but Mr. Rose said that it comes down to two big things in the end. “First, you have to make sure that it is well balanced. The play has three big plots that all intertwine, and it is easy to put all of your energy into one plot and let the others falter a little. For it to really work, you have to make sure that the whole play is balanced. The other thing is what to do with the donkey head effect for Bottom. Believe it or not, whatever you decide to do affects the performance tremendously, so it’s something you have to decide going into the play since the actor has to act in it.” CCDS students have tackled difficult effects in productions before, though, so there is no worry that this play would be any different.
If you’re on the fence about whether you want to participate in the play this Fall, Mr. Rose has a message for you: “Try it out! It’s the easiest of Shakespeare’s stories to follow and often serves as the best introduction to Shakespeare for general audiences. It is a LOT of fun with a LOT of funny moments in it for everyone. Since the play is structured the way it is, the majority of actors will only have to rehearse two days a week until the tech week process in November, so it’s low key on time commitment in terms of rehearsals. It’s also great on a college resume. Most importantly, the Upper School productions at CCDS always have some of the best people participating in them. Real friendships are formed here. It’s work, yes, but it’s also a blast. Don’t just take my word for it! Ask any one of the great performers or people on the tech team about it.” Bottom line? Give it a try!
If this article succeeded in sparking your interest about the Fall play, here are the dates and times for cast tryouts and tech interviews:
Saturday, August 24th: There will be a Shakespeare workshop in Keeler for anyone interested in learning how easy it is to speak the language. This will be at 3 pm on Saturday. Anyone interested should Teams or email Mr. Rose and he will set you up.
Monday, August 26th: Cast auditions at 3:30 pm in the choir room. Those who attend will play around with some of the characters and small scenes from the play to help figure out how to cast it. This should be low stress as it should be a little fun.
Tuesday, August 27th: Crew interviews with Mr. DiTullio. If you’re interested in participating backstage, this is for you. This will take place at 3:30 pm.
Friday, August 30th: The Cast and Crew list will be revealed! Rehearsals will officially start on Tuesday, September 3rd at 4 pm. Everyone will be provided with a detailed rehearsal schedule during auditions.
Hopefully you want to be a part of the CCDS theater community! Get ready for auditions to come quickly at the start of the year and get excited to put on Shakespeare’s comedy “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”
