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Shakespeare at UCLA’s modern take on classic play lights up “˜Midsummer Night’s Dream’

Fourth-year English student Jonathan Callies, left, and second-year physiological science student Olivia Marik-Reis rehearse for “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” (courtesy of Arah Mcmanamna)

“A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM
Today through Thursday, 7 p.m.
Kerckhoff Grand Salon, FREE

By Jennifer Nguyen

May 24, 2011 12:52 a.m.

Black lights and glow paint are generally not the first things that come to mind when thinking of Shakespeare. In its upcoming production of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” Shakespeare at UCLA replaces typically used Athenian attire and traditional Elizabethan staging with such modern elements as these.

The show, which runs today through Thursday at Kerckhoff Grand Salon, offers a contemporary interpretation and a surprising twist on the playwright’s classic comedy.

According to Cassandra Dunn, a fourth-year English student and director of the production, the show is modern and minimalist with an emphasis on the visual.

Aesthetically, the play is a light show ““ black lights and tap-on lights are used to illuminate different parts of the set as well as the cast members, who dress in varying shades of white.

Actors who play the fairies wear glow paint on their costumes and change colors as they flit between the lights on stage.

“It’s a much darker, sort of creepier version (of the play), than most people are used to because we want to emphasize how people think it’s a fun light comedy, but there’s really important and heavy stuff there,” Dunn said.

According to Dunn, the production will break down the fourth wall that separates the viewers from the characters. The show embraces direct audience involvement ““ cast members address and even touch individuals sitting in the crowd, while the black box set production forces the audience to imagine the scenery and props.

“I really want the audience to feel like they’re a part of the show, so I want it to be as normal and minimal as possible so it can allow for imagination,” Dunn said.

According to Dunn, the revamped interpretation and striking visual elements of the production should engage the audience and make it accessible for those who are unfamiliar with the play.
“I hope (the audience is) just drawn into this world that we’ve created,” said Arah McManamna, a fourth-year English student who plays the role of the fairy queen Titania.

According to Dunn, while she examined the original text and took cues from the Hollywood film interpretation of the play, she actually drew most of her inspiration for the production from old class notes taken from a Shakespeare course at UCLA.

“I actually went through my notes I kept from class, and I gleaned a lot more from that than I did from anything else,” Dunn said. “While being very accessible, it is also a very scholarly approach to the show. I think it’s a very smart production.”

According to Dunn, the production highlights the subtleties of the work that can be overlooked if only read in text.

“What I really want (the audience) to take away is knowledge of the way that Shakespeare constructs his shows,” Dunn said. “Nothing is as simple as it seems. There’s a lot that is deeply rooted in the language of the play that people don’t really pay attention to.”

Dunn said the production process for the play began in 10th week of winter quarter, with extensive rehearsals throughout the spring quarter.

Jordan Joske, a fourth-year psychology student who plays the role of Hermia, said the long rehearsals were essential to illustrating the characters’ onstage chemistry.

“All four of the people who play the lovers get together outside of rehearsal and develop all our relationships with each other,” Joske said. “It’s become very natural, and we’ve figured out our backstories, like how (the characters) knew each other before the show.”

Dunn said that she hopes that the play reaches out to people other than English students.
“It’s very much about people coming together and building a community around Shakespeare, and trying to get people who don’t ordinarily come see Shakespeare,” Dunn said. “(We’re) trying to get those people interested and involved and (to) realize how much Shakespeare can mean even in a modern context.”

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Jennifer Nguyen
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