A Bird's Eye Review

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A Midsummer Night's Dream - Octagon Theatre, Bolton. Monday 23rd February 2010.

Away With The Fairies.
Rating: 3 stars out of 5

This version of Shakespeare's original work is performed in its entirety and comes in at around 3hrs 20mins with interval and runs until 6th March. The cast is a mixture of local, established and fledgling talent. Rob Edwards and Paula Jennings appear as Theseus/Oberon and Hippolyta/Titania respectively. Octagon regulars Vanessa Kirby (Helena) and Russell Richardson (Egeus/Snug/Fairy Colonel) support, alongside RADA-trained Rosie Jones (Hermia) who makes her professional stage debut. Other key performances come from Jake Norton (Demetrius) and Kieran Hill (Nick Bottom).

Thacker's directorial vision is one of pursuit and romantic abandon in a 1960s 'Summer of Love' heat-haze. This is well supported by visuals and costumes from set designer Ashley Shairp, although these hints appear distinctly lacking at first as the courtiers open on a minimized thrust stage. Here, military uniforms convey an air of ceremony, accented by Rob Edward's (Theseus) incidental likeness to a minor golfing royal. This opening scene is dominated by a huge, curtained backdrop of the Athenian warlord in full-on propaganda pose. The image has a modern parallel, that of Greek radicals subverting legislative change to seize their military dictatorship of the late 60s. In the absence of that subtle knowledge, however, you may be forgiven for an expectation of dour visuals.



These fears are quickly negated when the stage opens fully to a riot of colour. Circular motifs and furnishings reek of sixties culture. Inflated spheres stippled with woodland texture litter the floor, large and small. Raised Chinese lanterns and a grassy hummock are foreshadowed by balcony steps leading up to Titania's impressive bower; an inverted dome that perhaps a young Terence Conran may once have plumped for in lieu of a love seat. The fairy costumes provide a vital impetus of 60s whimsy too, with Titania's white boots and maxi-dress a particular feature.

Lighting (Wayne Dowdeswell) completes the forestal impression with hints of shimmering leaves, filtered by fragile sunlight. Jimi Hendrix might easily have slept off a purple haze or two here back in the day. Finally, dry ice offers smoky ephemera without being overdone. The music of Carol Sloman, played from an attentive stage-side trio, is sturdy and mellifluous throughout, although I have to express personal disappointment at the omission of a jazz flute.

Ultimately, the theme works well, lending a sense of place and pace to the prosaic flow. Indeed, these disparate eras become more relevant to each other by progression, as does the twinning of roles, which is circular and unifying. Although not a tactic new to this play, the drab serge of Theseus complements the vibrancy of his fairy counterpart (and supposed alter ego), Oberon, as does Hippolyta's to Titania. Additionally, the design memes of altered consciousness are consistent with the myriad 'druggings' that follow, while the 'mechanicals' manage to steal the show at the end with their wonderfully painful rendition of Thisbe and Pyramus. Overall, perhaps not one for purists, but for others, a quirky rendition with an infectious style owing much to its word-perfect cast and their ability to navigate lengthy prose and oversized beach-balls with equal aplomb.