Liz Lauren
Cristina Panfilio as Puck.
American Players Theatre always promises an enchanting experience: theater under the stars with a backdrop of forest, chirping crickets and the songs of whippoorwills. This summer, the magic is magnified by season opener A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Under the direction of John Langs, this production is nothing short of stunning, taking Shakespeare’s comedy to new levels with a vibrant energy and bold choices.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream has been staged at APT many times over the years, but the choice to open the 2017 season -- and christen a brand new stage -- with it is significant. A Midsummer Night’s Dream was the company’s very first production in 1980, and as American Players enters a new chapter in its history with this major renovation, it’s a meaningful selection.
There’s an immense confidence and joy in this production. The actors are clearly having a ball. There’s no better example of this than Cristina Panfilio as Puck, a rascally sprite who takes pleasure from messing with mortals. Panfilio’s energy is electric. She gives 100 percent to every leap, mischievous grin and outburst, and it pays off in creating an unforgettable character who can be simultaneously wicked and whimsical.
The other fairies, too, are a dark bunch, delightfully naughty. Murell Horton’s costumes have a slightly steampunk look and lots of layers of metallic and pearlescent fabrics. Puck is wrapped in some kind of tubing and has wings that spread at what seems like the push of a button. Queen Titania (Colleen Madden) conjures up Lady Gaga with pastel purple hair, fishnet stockings and platform heels. Fairy King Oberon (Gavin Lawrence) is fierce with antler-like adornments, an immense cape and cloven hooves.
There are mortals in the mix, too. Jonathan Smoots, who played Theseus in the 1980 production, regally reprises the role, with Laura Rook as his soon-to-be bride Hippolyta at his side. As Helena, Elizabeth Reese is fun to watch. She’s head-over-heels in love with Demetrius (Nate Burger), who doesn’t love her back, but she remains self-aware enough to keep her character multi-dimensional. Melisa Pereyra brings a dance-like physicality to her role as Hermia. She and Lysander (Juan Rivera Lebron) make an irresistibly cute couple.
Music and dance are woven throughout the show. Choreography by Ameenah Kaplan is wonderfully frenetic with lots of stomping, accompanied by the beat of drums. The music (by Josh Schmidt) and movement help create an overall energy that is contemporary, youthful, and a little bit wild. That touch of wildness is what takes this iconic play and shakes it up a bit, drawing the audience’s attention to new places: slightly darker ones where stomping feet start to sound like heartbeats, where magical flowers cause people to fall in and out of love, and where impossible relationships become possible.
One of the most magical things about APT’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream — and this is a slight spoiler, I will warn you — comes in its very final moment. The show ends with Puck, that devilish fairy, bidding the audience farewell. Then, with a single clap of Puck’s hands, the theater plunges into darkness, except for a few glowing lamps on stage. I immediately looked straight up to the sky (somehow, it felt like the natural thing to do). My eyes were met with an open sky full of stars — a breathtaking way to wake up from a dream.
