Theater review by Raven Snook
Eleven years ago, the Classical Theatre of Harlem presented Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream as its first summer show in Marcus Garvey Park. Since then, its annual romps have remained free, fast, fun and family-friendly, but they are much more fabulous now—particularly this fetching new version of the Bard's enduring romcom, which has been edited down to a single act.
Director Carl Cofield sets the action in the Harlem Renaissance: a fitting choice, as the company has been part of Harlem’s 21st-century rejuvenation. Lovestruck humans and fairies—bedecked in feathery and glittery getups by costume designer Mika Eubanks—chase each other around Christopher and Justin Swader's two-tiered set, which shifts from a '30s nightspot to enchanted forest with help from Alan C. Edwards's luscious lighting and Brittany Bland's illustrative projections. The seductive visuals are complemented by a high-energy ensemble of performers who act in broad strokes so that Shakespeare neophytes don't get lost in the poetry.
A Midsummer Night's Dream | Photograph: Courtesy Richard
Doubling as the welcoming emcee Philostrate and the playful sprite Puck, Mykal Kilgore commands every scene he's in, belting out songs by Duke Ellington and the Gershwins with backup dancers in tow. The four lovers in a daisy chain of romance—hopelessly devoted Helena (Noah Michal), who adores chilly Demetrius (Brandon Carter), who is betrothed to Hermia (Ra'Mya Latiah Aikens), who only has eyes for Lysander (played by understudy Marcus Fitzpatrick at the performance attended)—are the play's beating hearts. Queen of the Fairies Titania (Jesmille Darbouze), who's tricked into falling for a literal ass by her meddling mate Oberon (Victor Williams), gets short shrift in the streamlined script, but perhaps that’s for the best: Mega-comedian Russell Peters, who officially plays the dunce-turned-donkey Bottom, is scheduled to be out for most of the run. Happily, his understudy Jaylen D. Eashmond is excellent, and a great improviser to boot. (His off-the-cuff, in-character response to a barking dog earned howls.)
As usual, the biggest laughs come from the overeager-to-please “rude mechanicals,” a group of laborers/aspiring actors who perform the amusingly amateurish tragedy of Pyramus and Thisbe at the comedy’s denouement. Classical Theatre of Harlem stalwarts Carson Elrod and Allen Gilmore are great, but the scene is stolen by León Tak’s hilariously awkward Thisbe. That play within a play is community theater at its funniest; the entire entrancing production is a very fine example of theater for the community.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Richard Rodgers Amphitheater at Marcus Garvey Park (Off Broadway). By William Shakespeare. Directed by Carl Cofield. With ensemble cast. Running time: 1hr 45mins. No intermission.
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A Midsummer Night's Dream | Photograph: Courtesy Richard Termine