BYU reinterprets Bard's 'Dream'

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM, Brigham Young University, through Feb. 9 (422-4322), running time: 2 hours, 30 minutes (one intermission)

PROVO — Fortunately Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream" provides such strong material that — in this Brigham Young University production — it ultimately transcends some uneven line delivery and an unusual director's concept.

The Thursday preview performance got in gear about one-third of the way into the play, and the power of the fantasy sustained the piece and captivated the audience with the laborers earnest and humorously inept attempts at presenting a "comical tragedy" for the Duke's marriage festivities and with the resolution of the fairy royals' dispute and the magical intervention smoothing true love's path for the mixed up mortal lovers.

The crisis of Hermia's resistance to her father's plan for her to marry Demetrius because her heart belongs to Lysander is complicated by her friend Helena's passion for Demetrius. The plot also includes plans for escape by the doomed lovers, intervention by the fairy King Oberon and his energetic sidekick Puck, a quarrel between Oberon and the fairy Queen Titania over an adopted infant human boy, and the famous practical joke of placing a donkey's head on self-important peasant thespian Bottom to further Oberon's revenge on his queen.

Director Megan Sanborn Jones' vision sets the play in a mythical South American country, which adds a colorful ethnic look to some of the fairy costumes and prompts the use of ethnic music as well. While festive and lively, the overall look of the fairy costumes designed by Shilow Cheney lacks unity.

Eric Fielding's set is simple but striking and functions well.

However, the director's attempt to make the play into a statement about colonialism seems forced, and the suggestion that Hippolyta and Egeus are from the fairy world just isn't supported by the text.

The audience appeared to enjoy this production, particularly the performances of Liliana Corona as Hermia, Genna Shepard Gardner as Helena and Clotile Bonner as Titania, who were usually able to articulate the dialogue competently enough to convey the sense that they understood what they were saying. Most enjoyable for the audience were the rustic actors, Mathew Leavitt, Christopher Davis, Erik Eckern, Rafe Gandola and Doug Kaufman.

---

Jean Marshall is a former newspaper arts editor and drama critic with a master's degree in English literature from Brigham Young University. Contact her at babettesfeast@hotmail.com.