Midsummer Night's Dream by William Essay

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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.

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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 and her character is pivotal to the scene. Whoever plays Hermia must be believable and passionate, and Helena, who also appears, must be angry and jealous. This scene calls for important staging and acting. The actors should not appear too feminine, but feminine enough to warrant fighting over. The lines should be believable and emotional, but not so much that the characters appear like caricatures of themselves. This is another very emotional part of the play, and if the emotions are played too over the top, then the characters will simply be laughable. The men must deliver the lines as if they really believe them, and so get the audience to believe them, too.

In conclusion, this play could certainly work with only one gender playing all the roles, but it would take some participation of the audience to suspend their beliefs and let their imaginations take over. That may be possible, but it seems to get in the way of the play itself. It is a light, funny, and witty work that is entertaining. It might be too hard for many people to get over the all male cast and simply enjoy the work they way Shakespeare wrote it......

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