Venue: Sydney Opera House (Sydney NSW), Mar 2 – 30, 2024
Playwright: William Shakespeare
Director: Peter Evans
Cast: Ahunim Abebe, Isabel Burton, Mike Howlett, Matu Ngaropo, Ella Prince, Richard Pyros, Imogen Sage, Laurence Young
Images by Brett Boardman
Theatre review
Struck by jealousy, king of fairies Oberon casts a spell to cause mischief, and chaos quickly ensues. Meanwhile, further commotion arises from the play-within-a-play, “Pyramus and Thisbe” being attempted by a group of Athenian tradesmen. Director Peter Evans’ version of A Midsummer Night’s Dream places almost equal emphasis, on those two parts of the narrative, for an unusual experience of the Shakespearean classic.
Furtherly unconventional, what is often considered one of the Bard’s most exuberant works, is given the moodiest of treatments, featuring unmistakably macabre sounds and music by Max Lyandvert, and distinctly melancholic lights by Benjamin Cisterne. Although contentious in terms of their resultant effect, the staging bears a polish and stylishness that is unequivocal. Set and costume designs by Teresa Negroponte too, are elegantly rendered, in this unexpectedly serious incarnation of a show involving endless hijinks and shenanigans.
The cast thankfully invests in the true essence of the piece, bringing great ebullience and whimsy, each actor commendable with their respective inventiveness and commitment. Matu Ngaropo as Bottom, and Isabel Burton as Helena, are particularly memorable, both demonstrating exceptional acuity in the details they are able to find, for the performance. It is an outstanding ensemble we have the pleasure to encounter, extraordinarily well-rehearsed, and remarkable with the chemistry they harness.
By show’s end, we are gifted a feeling of resolution and harmony, one derived from a realm that we understand to be fantastical, or indeed magical. Only some of us can access that world of sylphs and spirits, but for all, there is the theatre inviting us to transcend the mundane, and become enchanted by something higher, even if only for a short sojourn.
Suzy Goes See 