A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM Barbican

The South African Handspring Company made their name in the UK with War Horse, one of the most brilliant and unforgettable productions of modern times. Now they turn their attention on Shakespeare’s most famous comedy. The puppeteers, as in Japanese puppetry, remain totally visible. Oberon is just a huge mask and a huge hand. The forest is created by planks carried by the whole company. Bottom is normally transformed into an ass. Here he is transformed into a huge bottom on a bicycle trolley contraption. (The theatre was filled with schoolchildren. The cruder it got the better they liked it.) Puck, the merry wanderer of the night, used to be acted by actresses in the 19th century. It is only in modern times he has been acted by men. Here he is played by a lot of junk (oil-can, basket, etc) and three puppeteers. It doesn’t work. Puck is no longer a discernible character. Tom Morris’s production has some funny moments, but the play is completely ruined.