Shakespeare & Company Announces Outdoor Shakespeare at The Mount

Shakespeare & Company presents William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, directed by Jonathan Croy and Douglas Seldin, and performed outside at The Dell at The Mount. This magical favorite, presented by Shakespeare & Company's Northeast Regional Education Tour and Riotous Youth Faculty, runs from July 11 to August 19, 2017.

"I honestly believe that this is the most perfectly constructed comedy ever written," said director Jonathan Croy. "Shakespeare gives us several perfectly balanced stories filled with characters that are filled with passion, both whimsical in their extremity and absolutely recognizable. The language is delicious, and the range of comedic style is astonishing. From Oberon's high wit to Bottom's well-intentioned malapropisms; the mistaken identities in the effects of the love potion and in Bottom's transformation; the way that the charming pathos and silliness of the Mechanicals opens into the broad genius of Pyramus and & Thisbe, Midsummer is an absolute buffet of comedy and promises to be an unforgettable adventure for the whole family."

In this 40th Anniversary Season, this production brings Shakespeare & Company back to where it all began, honoring the company's inaugural production of A Midsummer Night's Dream at The Mount in 1978. The Company's 2017 production of A Midsummer Night's Dream features costume design by Govane Lohbauer and vocal coaching by Gwendolyn Schwinke and Ariel Bock, stage managed by Cindy Wade. The cast features a mix of Shakespeare & Company veterans and newcomers, including David Bertoldi, Caroline Calkins, Tim Dowd, Lori Evans, Rory Hammond, Luke Haskell, Kate Kenney, Mairead Kohler, Caitlin Kraft, Madeleine Rose Maggio, Devante Owens, Thomas Randle, Thomas Reynolds, Leon Schwendener, and Dara Silverman.

Tickets for A Midsummer Night's Dream are available online at Shakespeare.org, or by calling Shakespeare & Company's box office at (413) 637-3353. The show is family-friendly, general admission, and tickets are $25 for adults and $10 for youth. The Mount is located at 2 Plunkett Street in Lenox, Massachusetts. The grounds open 90 minutes before each performance. Audience members are encouraged to bring chairs or blankets and a picnic; chairs are also available to rent for a fee of $2 per chair.

AT A GLANCE
PRODUCTION: A Midsummer Night's Dream
PLAYWRIGHT: William Shakespeare
DIRECTORS: Jonathan Croy & Douglas Seldin
COSTUME DESIGNER: Govane Lohbauer
VOCAL COACHES: Gwendolyn Schwinke & Ariel Bock
STAGE MANAGER: Cindy Wade
WARDROBE: ElizaBeth Bray

CAST MEMBERS
OBERON - David Bertoldi
HERMIA - Caroline Calkins
BOTTOM - Tim Dowd
EGEUS - Lori Evans
QUINCE / COBWEB - Rory Hammond
LYSANDER - Luke Haskell
TITANIA - Kate Kenney
SNOUT - Mairead Kohler
HIPPOLYTA / SNUG - Caitlin Kraft
HELENA / MUSTARDSEED - Madeleine Rose Maggio
THESEUS - Devante Owens
PUCK - Thomas Randle
DEMETRIUS - Thomas Reynolds
FLUTE - Leon Schwendener
PHILOSTRATE / STARVELING - Dara Silverman

SCHEDULE
July:
11 - 6:00 PM
13 - 6:00 PM
15 - 11:00 AM
18 - 6:00 PM
20 - 6:00 PM
22 - 11:00 PM
25 - 6:00 PM
27 - 6:00 PM
29 - 11:00 PM
August:
1 - 6:00 PM
3 - 6:00 PM
5 - 11:00 AM
8 - 6:00 PM
10 - 6:00 PM
12 - 11:00 AM

About A Midsummer Night's Dream's Plot
Lysander and Hermia love one another. Helena loves Demetrius; Demetrius used to love Helena but now loves Hermia. Egeus, Hermia's father, wants Hermia to marry Demetrius, and enlists the aid of Theseus, the Duke of Athens, to enforce his wishes upon his daughter. Hermia and Lysander flee into the forest, pursued by Demetrius and Helena, where they all become entangled in the antics of the fairy king and queen, Oberon and Titania. Meanwhile, a group of working-men preparing a play for the Duke's wedding finds themselves caught up in the magic and mischief of the fairy world. The Fairy Kingdom is at odds, spells are cast and the devilish sprite Puck weaves his mischief amongst the mortals.

About Jonathan Croy
(Director, A Midsummer Night's Dream; Michael, God of Carnage; Associate Director of Education). A company member since 1982, Jon has played more than 70 roles in over 60 plays at Shakespeare & Company, including: Uncle Billy/Old Man Potter, It's a Wonderful Life; Pistol/French King, Henry V; John of Gaunt, Richard II; Gloucester, King Lear; Morris, Kaufman's Barbershop; Dr. Watson, The Hound of the Baskervilles. Directing credits with the Company include The Two Gentlemen of Verona, Richard III, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged), Twelfth Night, The Real Inspector Hound, Hamlet, A Midsummer Night's Dream, The 39 Steps, Julius Caesar, Private Eyes, Romeo & Juliet, and Scapin. Additionally, Jon has created and directed numerous Northeast Regional Tour productions, worked with Shakespeare in the Courts, the Summer Training Institute, and our Young Companies.

About Douglas Seldin
(Director, A Midsummer Night's Dream) S&Co: Comedy of Errors (Luce), Mother Courage (Ordinance Officer), The Liar (Cliton), Tartuffe (Title Role), Macbeth (Banquo, Porter), Richard III (Grey), The Winter's Tale (Dion), Les Liaisons Dangereuses, All's Well That Ends Well (Clown). Regional: Comedy of Errors (Dromio of Ephesus), Hamlet (Laertes), Macbeth (Ross), Much Ado About Nothing (Borachio). Doug serves as a fight director and teacher for S&Co. and has also worked at Skidmore College, Worcester Shakespeare Company, Seattle Shakespeare Company, Seattle Rep, New England Youth Theatre, University of Washington, Boston College, and Williams College. He holds a BS in Theatre from Skidmore College and was a founding member of The Conservatory at Shakespeare & Company. Doug is also a Certified Advanced Actor-Combatant through Dueling Arts International & The Society of American Fight Directors.

About William Shakespeare
(Playwright, Cymbeline, The Tempest, A Midsummer Night's Dream) He was an English poet, playwright, and actor, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. His works, including some collaborations, consist of about 37 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and several other poems. His plays have been translated into every major living language and are performed more often than those of any other playwright.

About Shakespeare & Company?
Located in the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts, Shakespeare & Company is one of the largest Shakespeare Festivals in the country. Founded in 1978, the organization attracts over 30,000 patrons annually. The Company is also home to Shakespeare & Company's internationally renowned Center for Actor Training and nationally renowned and an award-winning Education Program. More information is available at www.shakespeare.org.

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