Picture taken by Adrea Adinolfe/ Special to The Leader
REBECCA HALE
Assistant Reverb Editor
Students, faculty and alumni experienced the psychedelic culture of the ‘60s, coupled with a Shakespearean classic, in Marvel Theatre last weekend.
“A Midsummer Night’s Dream” is set in Ohio, at Athens College. The characters are separated into three groups: the college staff, the maintenance staff and the tribe. This differs from the groups that are classically presented in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”
The set itself, designed by Cameron Caulfield, was stationary, though it served to portray multiple scenes. The characters found themselves deep in the woods at times, and at other times on the steps of one of the college halls, underneath tall, Greek-style pillars. On either side of the pillars, ladders led up to an upper-level balcony where the fairies could dwell and watch the action below.
The edges of the stage were lined with vibrant green vegetation and mushrooms, signaling the woods, where much of the show’s action took place. In the center of the stage was a fountain in which the characters frequently got wet during the productions — beware of the first row splash zone.
The characters were dressed in elaborate and colorful ‘60s-esque garb, with flowing skirts, hair ribbons and the fairies in custom painted bodysuits that appeared to be bare, tattooed skin.
The show’s twist on the “Summer of Love” theme brought forth many aspects of fun, humorous and even controversial subject matter.
The interaction between characters was very personable, and though it is a Shakespeare show, each character’s personality cut through the verse. As the show contains a sort-of love knot, there are a lot of humorous interactions between angry and jealous characters.
One scene that is prominent is the interactions between a hot-headed, jealous Hermia (Joan Marie Cusick) and a baffled Helena (Morgan Troia), who is being idolized by her fiancée, Demetrius (Shane Zimmerman), and her beloved, Lysander (Cody Jones), who has been anointed with a love potion. The scene ends with both Hermia and Helena soaking wet and wrestling in the fountain onstage.
The “hippie” fairies walked around blatantly portraying drug use onstage, as well as risqué sexual behavior. The characters act as if they are under the influence for much of the production, and in one scene, the characters consume mushrooms and act as if they are “tripping.”
Puck, the fairy messenger, is portrayed as a sexy vixen who toys with the male characters, and the other fairies are all over each other like horny teenagers. The show also incorporated gender reversal, which caused one romantic scene to unfold between two females, Titania (Alexa Lindberg) and “Nan” Bottom, who is played by Ana McCasland.
Due to the sexual content, as well as drug use and references, the production is not well-suited for younger audiences, though it was apparent that the majority of the audience was not offended by the controversies portrayed. Two audience members, Douglas Lloyd and Barbara Mallette, loved the performance.
When asked about the drugs and sexual content, Lloyd responded that “that was just part of the reality” in the ‘60s.
Having lived through the ‘60s, the couple connected with the show, and Mallette sang along to every song that was played during scene changes and in the finale.
“It was just delightful, and the music was very good — it really matched,” said Mallette.
Mallette is a retired education professor, and she has attended many Fredonia shows and productions of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”
“Anything we come to here is very well done,” she said. “You can depend on Fredonia productions to stimulate some sort of discussion. [This production] is another way of looking at a classic.”
“It was great fun, [and] very enjoyable,” added Lloyd. “Very professionally done.”
Fun is exactly what director Tom Loughlin was going for. In the program notes, he explains:
“In some ways, the sixties have become a ‘dream’ decade, when the economy was good, society was prosperous, morals and inhibitions were breaking down, and rebellion abounded. To be sure, there was a dark side to the sixties, but for now, I chose to focus on the fun.”
“A Midsummer Night’s Dream” will continue its run on Oct. 23-25 at 7:30 p.m. in Marvel Theatre. Tickets are $12 for students and $20 general admission and can be purchased through the Ticket Office or at the door.