Midsummer Night's Dream by William

¶ … Midsummer Night's Dream" by William Shakespeare. Specifically it will discuss how an all male cast affects three pivotal scenes and explain how this staging tactic demands that audiences respond in a particular way. This play is one of Shakespeare's most famous and most loved. It is funny, entertaining, and fanciful. Using only men in all the roles would have been common in Shakespeare's time, but today, it seems to take away from the impact and humor of the play.

Clearly, the implications and consequences of the play are different when all the cast members are one gender. Some of the passion goes out of the play, and some of the scenes may even seem ridiculous or far-fetched. Personally, the play is funny and emotional, and some of that might just seem like farce to the audience when the cast was all male. It might seem more like "The Bird Cage" or other gay films.

Giving hints of femaleness may work with some of the cast, but in other scenes, giving hints may simply take away the dramatic effect and lessen the impact of the play. The femaleness of the female characters is very important to the play, but it can be overcome with actors who believe in what they are doing and deliver their lines with conviction. Tongue-in-cheek lines will ruin the entire meaning and impact of the play.

The first scene chosen is in Act I, Scene i, and this scene is pivotal because it sets the entire action of the play in motion. In this scene, Helena, who loves Demetrius, hopes to win his love back, and so she will tell him Hermia is running away with Lysander, because Demetrius loves Hermia. She says, "I will go tell him of fair Hermia's flight. / Then to the wood will he tomorrow night / Pursue her, and for this intelligence / If I have thanks, it is a dear expense" (Shakespeare 1401).

This scene would be very different with only men playing the parts, for it would seem a bit ludicrous for two men to be declaring their love for each other and plotting to gain back the love of another man.

One way to stage this scene to make it less silly would be to make sure the men were costumed very well, and make sure they did not play the scene "over the top" as too feminine, which could make the entire scene seem campy when it should show passion and emotion. The man playing Helena has to make her believable by making the lines seem real and the motives selfish, because she is setting the entire play in motion because she is selfish and willful.

If she really loved Demetrius, she would want his happiness more than anything else would, and the actors need to use this to their advantage. The second scene takes place in Act II, Scene i. This is the scene when Oberon first decides to use the love potion on Titania, and it is also pivotal, because it creates the sub-plot that continues throughout the forest. Oberon tells Puck, "And with the juice of this I'll streak her eyes / And make her full of hateful fantasies" (Shakespeare 1410).

This scene at first just seems to be between two men, so it would not be a problem in this production. However, Titania appears in this scene and so does a fairy who is probably female. The biggest problem for the audience would be Titania, who is supposed to be beautiful and wise, which helps the audience understand why Oberon is so obsessed with gaining her love. If Titania is not believable, the play will not work.

This scene also needs to show Oberon's weak will, but not turn him into a buffoon. This scene would need special handling from the director to make sure Titania seems right to the audience. Too strong a male presence will ruin the mood, so the actor must show a hint of femaleness and a hint of seduction to indicate just why Oberon wants her so badly. Too much femaleness would again take away from the entire scene.

These characters make poor choices and are emotional, and that needs to come through to the audience, too. A good actor, no matter what gender, can certainly get those things across. Critic Harold Bloom writes, "Not surprisingly, a preoccupation with the idea of imagination, and with some of its products -- dreams, the illusions of love, poetry and plays -- is central to this comedy" (Bloom 8). Therefore, imagination could also be key to a play with only men.

If the audience can use their imaginations to believe in fairies and frolic in the woods, then they can imagine a man is a woman in this play. The final scene takes place in Act III, Scene ii when Demetrius and Lysander fight over Helena. Demetrius says to Lysander, "Follow? Nay, I'll go with thee, cheek by jowl" (Shakespeare 1427), and they head off into the woods to fight.

At first, this scene also seems to be only about the men, and so, it would not take much effort for the audience to believe in it and understand it. However, Hermia declares her undying love for Lysander in this scene, and so it is pivotal to the action.