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PHILADELPHIA, PA – Shakespeare in Clark Park (SCP) returns to University City for its fifth anniversary with A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Bring a picnic blanket, a picnic dinner, the whole family (including the dog) --- and enjoy what has become a Philadelphia summer tradition: an evening of free theatre underneath the stars.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream runs July 28-August 1 at 7:00 pm in Clark Park, located in West Philadelphia at 43rd Street and Baltimore Avenue. Admission is free; bring chairs and blankets. For more information, call 215-462-2115 or visit www.shakespeareinclarkpark.org.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream --- comic and fantastical --- is a favorite of summer Shakespeare theatres across the country.  "A Midsummer Night’s Dream is the perfect way to celebrate the 5th anniversary of free Shakespeare in West Philly," says Marla Burkholder, co-artistic director of SCP. "From our very first year, folks have been asking when we would do Midsummer."

SCP's first production was Twelfth Night, produced in 2006. "When we started out that first year,” says Ms. Burkholder, “we weren’t thinking about longevity. We thought we would be lucky if a hundred people total showed up to the four performances. We were flabbergasted when almost 2,000 did!"

SCP knew at that moment that free Shakespeare had a future in Clark Park.

Twelfth Night was set in present-day Clark Park. A Midsummer Night’s Dream is also set in Clark Park --- but in a Clark Park that is mostly invisible to mortal eyes. “For me, the heart of Midsummer’s world is the world of the fairies,” says director and SCP co-artistic director Maria Möller. “In our production, Titania and Oberon’s court make their home under the trees in the park, only revealing themselves to a lucky few after sunset, when the odd world of the night transforms the everyday world and the everyday people.”

In this eclectic semi-urban world, fairies pedal their way through the park, kinetic sculptures made of bicycle wheels grow alongside trees and flowers, and musicians playing accordion and violin are joined by the clanging of anvils, brake drums and the #13 trolley. Elemental desires hold sway: love and jealousy, pride and hate. The warring passions of Oberon and Titania, the King and Queen of the Fairies (Bradley K. Wrenn and Victoria Frings) have upset the natural balance of the world, and their jealous games set into motion the mishaps of the play.

On a midsummer’s evening, on Oberon’s orders, the mischievous goblin Puck (Justin Jain) wreaks havoc with a quartet of young lovers (Cindy Spitko, Emilie Krause, Davon Williams, and Robert DaPonte) and replaces the human head of amateur thespian Bottom (Ryan Walter) with that of an ass. Bewitched by Oberon’s love potion, Titania falls in love with the donkey-headed man, while the lovers also have their desires confused by the touch of the magic potion. But as dawn approaches, the world is set right again, just in time for Bottom’s triumphant return to the stage, starring in a most “merry and tragical” play put on by his fellow “rude mechanicals” (Brian McCann, Mike Dees, Kristin Schier, Jess Conda, and Gwendolyn Rooker).

The design team that created last year’s The Comedy of Errors returns for A Midsummer Night’s Dream, with sets and lights by Stephen Hungerford and costumes by Erica Hoelscher. Andrew Nelson once again composes the original live music that is a hallmark of SCP productions. 

Shakespeare in Clark Park is committed to producing free, outdoor summer theatre in Clark Park, a vibrant green space that is the cornerstone of a diverse community. While engaging the community and expanding Philadelphia’s summertime cultural scene, Shakespeare in Clark Park re-imagines the world of the park through the works of Shakespeare.


Performance Summary: 
    
Show Title: A Midsummer Night’s Dream
               
Company: Shakespeare in Clark Park
               
Location: “The Bowl”, Clark Park, 43rd Street and Baltimore Avenue

Dates: Wednesday, 7/28 – Sunday, 8/1 7pm

Tickets: Free - Bring chairs and blankets

Information: 215-462-2115
www.shakespeareinclarkpark.org

Press Contact:
Sharada Tolton
434-989-3657
press@shakespeareinclarkpark.org