Bristol Old Vic and Handspring Puppet Co's A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM to Make American Premiere at Spoleto Festival USA, 5/25

Co-commissioned by Spoleto Festival USA, Bristol Old Vic's new production of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream will have its American premiere performance on Saturday, May 25 at 8pm at the Dock Street Theatre in Charleston, South Carolina. The production, which is directed by Tom Morris in association with South Africa's Handspring Puppet Company is the first collaboration between the two companies since their award-winning production of War Horse. Midsummer will run for 19 performances throughout the 17-day Festival and a full list of performances during the 2013 Spoleto Festival USA is listed below.

Midsummer made its world premiere performance in Bristol on March 7, 2013. The Guardian said the performance was "magical and mysterious," while The Times (London) described the show as "eerily beautiful...irresistibly funny." Spoleto Festival USA General Director Nigel Redden, who attended the world premiere, said, "I was expecting an inventive, delightful production but the performance exceeded my expectations. Puppets and actors work seamlessly together to bring life to the puppets and expand the emotional and physical possibilities of the actors."

A portion of the set, designed by Vicki Mortimer, will be shipped from the United Kingdom for the Charleston performances, but many of the set pieces will be built on site by the Festival's production team making it one of the most complex of the Festival's many theatrical offerings this season.

A number of special events have been planned around the Festival's presentation of Midsummer, including a conversation with director Tom Morris on Saturday, May 25, at 12pm in the Main Reading Room of the Charleston Library Society at 164 King Street. The Festival has also partnered with the luxury boutique hotel Zero George Street to offer a "Dream Package" that includes three nights' accommodations, tickets to the Morris conversation and a Midsummer performance, and a sunset sail on a private yacht, as well as dinner at a downtown restaurant and invitations to an exclusive party in honor of the Midsummer artists. Reservations for the "Dream Package" can be made by calling the Festival's Patron Services Manager at 843.720.1114.

A Midsummer Night's Dream Performance Schedule At-a-Glance:
THURS, May 23, 7:30pm (PREVIEW)
SAT, May 25, 3:30pm (PREVIEW) and 8:00pm
SUN, MAY 26 3:30PM
MON, MAY 27 3:30PM and 8:00PM
TUES, MAY 28 7:00PM
THURS, MAY 30 7:00PM
FRI, MAY 31 3:30PM and 8:00PM
SAT, JUNE 1 3:30PM
SUN, JUNE 2 3:30PM and 8:00PM
MON, JUNE 3 7:00PM
WED, JUNE 5 7:00PM
THURS, JUNE 6 7:00PM
FRI, JUNE 7 8:00PM
SAT, JUNE 8 3:30PM
SUN, JUNE 9 3:30PM

Tickets can be purchased online at spoletousa.org, by phone at 843.579.3100, or in person at the Festival's Box office located at the Charleston Visitor Center at 375 Meeting Street from March 25 - June 9.

Spoleto Festival USA runs May 24 - June 9, 2013. Considered America's premier international performing arts festival, Spoleto Festival USA fills Charleston, SC's historic theaters, churches and outdoor spaces with over 160 performances by world-renowned artists and emerging performers in opera; theater; dance; and chamber, symphonic, choral, bluegrass, and jazz music.

Photo Credit: Simon Annand