A Midsummer Night's Dream in performance

Aims of the course

This course aims to:
1. Discover how to bring the words off the page by looking at form, structure and imagery.
2. Allow the verse to guide the actor and support him/her to speak and to perform with confidence.
3. Consider various styles of writing other than blank verse.

Content

Many lovers of Shakespeare’s plays are nervous about speaking the words aloud. How does the verse ‘work’? Shakespeare did not set out to make things difficult for his audiences or his actors. There are some simple ways of allowing the verse to guide the actor and support him/her to speak and to perform with confidence. Most of A Midsummer Night’s Dream is written in blank verse but there are various other styles to be considered. We all love this play, one of Shakespeare’s most popular comedies but there are darker elements as we move from the opening scene set in the “civilised” Athenian Court of Duke Theseus to the wildness of the woods outside the city. There are three very different worlds in the play, the world of the Court, the “rude mechanicals,” who meet to rehearse a play which they hope to present to the Duke and his bride, Hippollyta Queen of the Amazons, on their wedding day. The third world is the Fairy Kingdom in the forest, ruled by Oberon and Titania. These three groups enter the forest where they collide with one another, to both comic and frightening effect. Everyone will be taking part in a selection of key scenes exploring the language which helps to bring the words “from page to stage”.

Presentation of the course

We will start each workshop with a brief physical and vocal warm up, therefore comfortable clothes and footwear are advisable. Each participant will bring their own copy of the play to each session, including the first day. Please ask questions and be ready to make comments and suggestions. Some people will perhaps have more familiarity with the play than others, but everyone will be expected to engage with the text with a sense of fun. If there are particular scenes and / or speeches you feel passionate about, do say so.

We will use parts of Titania’s speech from Act two, scene one, beginning with the line, “These are the forgeries of jealousy”, in our group vocal warm up so it would be a helpful to look at this speech beforehand.

Class sessions

1. Act one, scene one. The start of a comedy? The stakes are very high in this opening scene.

2. Rhyming couplets. What effects do they have? See Helena’s speech at the end of Act one, scene one.

3. Prose. Meet the Mechanicals.

4. Into the Woods. The fairy world. The dispute between Oberon and Titania. Blank Verse.

5. Act two, scene two. Disturbance and Fear. Many changes of style and metre.

6. Act three, scene one. Rehearsal and Panic. Many changes of verse form. Titania meets Bottom.

7. Act three, scene two. The lovers’ quarrel. It’s a long scene, so come having read it through.

8. Reconciliation Act four, scene one.

9. Act five, scene one. Return to the Court. The play Pyramus and Thisbe. Serious fun.

10. An overview of the play.

Learning outcomes

The learning outcomes for this course are:

1. To learn to rely on Shakespeare’s dramatic language for guidance and to help the actor develop confidence.
2. To learn to examine the words on the page really closely before worrying about the emotional content.
3. To consider what Shakespeare seems to have wanted from his actors by using the words spoken in Hamlet Act three, scene two.

Required reading

Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night’s Dream (any publication) 

Peter Hall, Exposed By the Mask, Oberon Books 2000

Typical week: Monday to Friday

Courses run from Monday to Friday. For each week of study, you select a morning (Am) course and an afternoon (Pm) course. The maximum class size is 25 students. 

Courses are complemented by a series of daily plenary lectures, exploring new ideas in a wide range of disciplines. To add to the learning experience, we are also planning additional evening talks and events.

Evaluation and Academic Credit 

If you are seeking to enhance your own study experience, or earn academic credit from your Cambridge Summer Programme studies at your home institution, you can submit written work for assessment for one or more of your courses. 

Essay questions are set and assessed against the University of Cambridge standard by your Course Director, a list of essay questions can be found in the Course Materials. Essays are submitted two weeks after the end of each course, so those studying for multiple weeks need to plan their time accordingly. There is an evaluation fee of £75 per essay.

For more information about writing essays see Evaluation and Academic Credit.

Certificate of attendance

A certificate of attendance will be sent to you electronically after the programme.