In July, the Delacorte Theater will transform into the most enchanted forest in all of theater in Shakespeare’s beloved comedy, A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM. When the merry sprite Puck meddles with a magical love potion, young lovers lost in the woods mysteriously find themselves infatuated with the wrong person in this hilarious, fairytale fantasia that proves the course of true love never did run smooth. Lear deBessonet, Founder of The Public Theater’s groundbreaking Public Works program and Resident Director, brings her electric theatrical vision to the classic romance about the supernatural nature of love.

After its controversial, deeply serious production of Julius Caesar, The Public Theater’s second Shakespeare in the Park production aims for light-hearted fun and fantasy. A Midsummer Night’s Dream (directed by Lear deBessonet) captures all the magic of Shakespeare’s beloved comedy, while simultaneously adding a few touches of its own. As the program notes, the Delacorte Theater in Central Park is the perfect setting for this Shakespearean romp through the woods, and since we’re currently in midsummer, what time could be better? Possibly the most delightful aspect of this production (apart from its wonderful cast) is Clint Ramos’ bright, whimsical costume design. Theseus and Hippolyta’s various costumes alone are jaw-droppingly spectacular, while the two sets of lovers dress in simpler outfits that hark back vaguely to the fifties — in colors so bright they border on neon. Meanwhile, in a bold move, Ramos has clothed the fairy characters in white nightgowns and dressing robes (Puck wears striped pajamas). Combine this with the choice to cast all the fairies as elderly actors, and you end up with a dynamic that feels a bit like that of a nursing home crossed with a revivalist gospe …Read more