By Tony Peregoy

Its comic collision of lovers – both mortals and fairies – and its blend of rhymed poetry, prose and music, have kept “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” high on the list of Shakespeare’s best loved comedies.

Newnan Community Theatre Company (NCTC) proudly presents William Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” the next two weekends – July 17, 18, 19, 24, 25, and 26. Show times are 8:00 pm on Friday and Saturday and 2:30 on Sunday.

Probably composed in 1595 or 1596, “A Midsummer Night's Dream” is one of Shakespeare's early comedies but can be distinguished from his other works in this group by describing it specifically as the Bard's original wedding play. Most scholars believe that Shakespeare wrote “A Midsummer Night's Dream” as a light entertainment to accompany a marriage celebration; and while the identity of the historical couple for whom it was meant has never been conclusively established, there is good textual and background evidence available to support this claim. At the same time, unlike the vast majority of his works (including all of his comedies), in concocting this story Shakespeare did not rely directly upon existing plays, narrative poetry, historical chronicles or any other primary source materials, making it a truly original piece. Most critics agree that if a youthful Shakespeare was not at his best in this play, he certainly enjoyed himself in writing it.

The main plot involves two sets of couples – Hermia and Lysander (Taylor Schaepe and Lenton Lees) and Helena and Demetrius (Samantha Johnson and Andre Bluehs). Their romantic cross-purposes are complicated further by their entrance into the play's fairyland woods. Here, the the King and Queen of the Fairies (Dave Dorrell and Lisa Boyd) preside and the impish folk character of Puck (Jessica Hill) plies his trade. Bottom (Chaz Ferguson) and his friends stumble upon the King and Queen, as they have entered the woods to rehearse a play.

“A Midsummer Night's Dream” contains some wonderfully lyrical expressions of lighter Shakespearean themes, most notably those of love, dreams, and the stuff of both, the creative imagination itself. The play features three interlocking plots connected by a wedding celebration, and set simultaneously in the woodland and in the realm of Fairyland, under the light of the moon.

Directed by Jennifer Dorrell, the cast includes Sydney Adams, Brian Anderson, Rachel Barrett, Andre Bluehs, Lisa Boyd, Annabelle Carter, Brianna Crouch, Dave Dorrell, Chaz Ferguson, Sam Fitzgerald, Hannah Godwin, Jessica Hill, Crystal Johnson, Samantha Johnson, Kyle Lashley, Lenton Lees, Morgan Miller, Becky Moody, Elizabeth Murphy, Ivanna Osma, Mike Patterson, Abigail Robillard, Taylor Schaepe, Annabelle Shiver, Elisabeth Smith, Mikayla Terrell, and Tyler Winn.

Tickets are $15 for adults, $12 for students and seniors (55+), and $10 for children (12 and under). Tickets for the show may be purchased via the theatre’s website, newnantheatre.org, or at the door. Reservations are recommended. To make a reservation, call the theatre at (770) 683-6282 or email info@newnantheatre.org. NCTC is located at 24 1st Avenue in downtown Newnan.

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