Minnesota Shakespeare Company Presents A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM

The Minnesota Shakespeare Company presents A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare. Opening at the Caponi Park Shakespeare Festival, playing June 25th at 6:30 and continuing at Saint Paul's Gremlin Theatre from July 5th to 10th, 2011.

A PAY-WHAT-YOU-CAN performance begins the run on July 5th. All shows are evenings at 7:30 except the closing matinée, Sunday July 10th at 2:00 PM.

The Gremlin, 2400 University Avenue Saint Paul, MN 55114-1706

is near the corner of University & Raymond, an intersection with roads-in-progress. Free parking is in the US Bank's ample lot at the same intersection, diagonally across the street.

Minnesotashakes@gmail.com or phone 651-641-0906 for reservations.

A Midsummer Night's Dream opens looking like tragedy. An Athenian woman, Hermia, rejects Demetrius, her parent's choice for a husband, and is ordered to accept Demetrius, enter a nunnery, or be put to death.

So Hermia elopes into the woods outside Athens, accompanied by HER choice: Lysander. The couple is followed by Demetrius, the rejected suitor. Demetrius is followed by Helena, who loves HIM.

The woods are full of ancient mythic beings. Best-known of this group is Puck, a resident fairy whose mischievously earnest enchantments keep humans and spirits in an uproar .Although they embody Father & Mother Nature's powers, Oberon and Titania--the king and queen of the Fairies--have their own troubles. Added to the forest ensemble are a group of innocent workmen, who go to the forest seeking a peaceful spot to rehearse a play they're working on. Little do they know . . .

Accompanied by a live band, and including magic spells, mayhem, and a live dog--the play leaves us wondering, Was it all a dream?

Begun in 1977, Minnesota Shakespeare Company is one of the oldest ongoing theatres in the Twin Cities. Although patently favoring Shakespeare, the group performs other classics like Chekhov, chestnuts like Arsenic & Old Lace, and contemporary playwrights like Jane Martin and Noreen K. Brandt. MSC consists of incredibly talented migrant theatre workers. Still, five of our original troupe continue as permanent residents in the company.