MIDSUMMER! by Tony Winner Jeff Whitty to Make World Premiere at Edinburgh Fringe
Director Kim Weild leads a Carnegie Mellon School of Drama cast in this AVENUE Q writer's Shakespeare adaptation.
William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream will be reinterpreted in a new adaptation by the Tony Award-winning writer of Avenue Q, Jeff Whitty. The production is directed by Drama Desk nominee Kim Weild.
This U.K. premiere production will be brought to life by a cast and team of Carnegie Mellon University School of Drama artists, offering an accessible American antidote to apathy. Bursting with magic, mischief and queer transformative joy, this is not your mother's Midsummer.
“In a world where it's easy to feel defeated, Midsummer! is all about choosing ecstasy,” says director Kim Weild. "We're remixing Shakespeare with Appalachian folk and house music, queer liberation, and a touch of Pittsburgh's industrial vibe. Created with the brilliant Jeff Whitty in the room, the show is a joyous act of resistance that invites everyone to share in laughter and hope."
This co-production with Play On Shakespeare is the grand finale of the CMU Center for New Work's inaugural season. Midsummer! not only marks the start of this ground-breaking new work program and partnership, but in the university's 125th anniversary year, CMU students will bring their work to Scotland — the birthplace of Andrew Carnegie — symbolically returning the institution's creative work to its origins while placing emerging artists on one of the world's most prestigious international stages.
“I'm honored and delighted to work with the beautifully-trained student artists at Carnegie Mellon,” said playwright Jeff Whitty. “Their enthusiasm brings life not just to my adaptation, but to me as an artist. I hope that we leave audiences giddy at curtain call, showing how fresh Shakespeare's humor and wisdom remain four-plus centuries on.”
Before this 90-minute adaptation premieres in the lush Bijou spiegeltent at the Assembly Rooms in Edinburgh, Midsummer! will hold two exclusive previews on July 31 and August 1 in downtown Pittsburgh at the Peirce Studio in the Trust Arts Education Center. Tickets are on sale now for both the Pittsburgh previews and the Edinburgh performances.
The cast features Celia Evans, Christian Trimmingham, Elijah Strain, Jakai-Nyasia Norfleet, Logan Yao, Moyo Ifafore, Rusty Daniel, Siahvash Marshall, Suri Noelle, and Von Markarian.
Creative team members include Randy Kovitz (Fight Director), Samantha Pazos (Choreographer & Intimacy Director), Matthew Kereama (Assistant Director), Abby Brunner (Production Stage Manager), Reigh Wilson (Stage Manager), Mags Holcolmb (Dramaturg), Zhuang Kang (Scenic & Props Designer), Bri Johnson (Costume, Hair & Makeup Designer), Julie Adams (Lighting Designer), and Rachel Laurence (Sound Designer).
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