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Chicago Shakespeare in the Parks presents DREAM: A Community Reimagining of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Full list of creative partners at chicagoshakes.com/parks_team

YOU ARE WELCOME TO DREAM!

Welcome to the 10th anniversary season of Chicago Shakespeare in the Parks—and an entirely reimagined summer tour!

Neighborhood artists, musicians, and dancers take center stage, lending their voices, instruments, dance moves, and brush strokes to this joyful take on A Midsummer Night's Dream. Shakespeare’s tale of love, friendship, and misplaced magic becomes an invitation for all of us to celebrate creativity and find connection through community.

Building on partnerships forged through the past decade, the new vision for this summer tradition deepens relationships, and redefines the artistic process as inclusive, equitable—and, above all, participatory. We hope you love what we have all created, together.

 

THE STORY

THESEUS, ruler of this city, prepares to wed HYPPOLYTA, Queen of the Amazons. But Theseus is less of a romantic, really, than he is a by-the-book kind of guy. When his buddy EGEUS arrives, demanding that his daughter HERMIA marry her father’s choice DEMETRIUS rather than LYSANDER, whom she loves, Theseus backs Egeus: after all, the law’s the law. Theseus gives Hermia two options: marry Demetrius or die. But she decides on a third course: to skip town with her love, Lysander. When Demetrius is tipped off by his ex-girlfriend HELENA (who, btw, is also Hermia’s BFF), he follows them in hot pursuit. And where Demetrius goes, so goes Helena...

Into the woods they go, where the fairy king and queen are having relationship troubles of their own—and this fight is a doozy. TITANIA has adopted an orphan boy—and OBERON isn’t having it. He orders his right-hand pal PUCK to retrieve the magic flower that makes anybody fall head over heels for the first creature they see—whatever that may be... In the midst of all this, Oberon spots Helena, now in desperate pursuit of Demetrius. He takes pity on her, and commands Puck to apply that same magic potion to Demetrius’s eyes, just when he’ll wake up and lay eyes on Helena. Unfortunately from Puck’s perspective, one Athenian looks like another—and soon both Lysander and Demetrius fall for Helena. Hermia is not amused.

This same night, a troupe of amateur actors meets in the woods to rehearse a play they hope to perform on Theseus’s wedding day. Puck finds them there and takes no time to target BOTTOM as the perfect love match for his fairy queen. And so it comes to pass that Titania will soon awake to dote upon this mortal—transformed, by Puck, into…well…an ass. Love all around seems destined for disaster—until Oberon steps in to set things aright...

A confusing DREAM, you might be thinking? Puck’s got your back—she’ll pop in throughout to fill in the blanks. So sit back, relax, and just let Puck be your guide.

 

EL CUENTO

THESEUS, el gobernante de la cuidad de Atenas se prepara para casarse con HYPPOLYTA, Reina del Amazonas. Theseus, como gobernante, le gusta las reglas y lo que él dice es la ley. Cuando su amigo, EGEUS llega demandando que su hija HERMIA se case con DEMETRIUS, el candidato que él quiere, Theseus lo suporta. Pero Hermia no se quiere casar con Demetrius porque ella ama a LYSANDER. Theseus se pone al lado de su amigo Egeus, y le da a Hermia dos opciones: casarse con Demetrius o morir. Hermia decide una tercera opción: escaparse a los bosques con su amor, Lysander. En su escape, su mejor amiga HELENA, le cuenta a demetrius lo que está pasando y como Hermia y Lysander se escaparon juntos. Demetrius le sigue a Hermia, y Helena le sigue a demetrius, porque Helena esta perdidamente enamorada de él.

A los bosques todos van, donde el rey y reina de las hadas están teniendo problemas de pareja, y esta pelea es tremenda. TITANIA adopto un niño huérfano—y OBERON no está contento. Oberon, le ordena a su mano derecha PUCK, que busque la flor mágica que hace que uno se enamore perdidamente de la primera criatura que ve—no importa cuál sea.

En el medio de todo esto, Oberon vea a Helena siguiendo a Demetrius, tratando de conquistarlo. Viendo esto, le da pena a Oberon, y le pide a Puck que use la misma poción mágica en los ojos de Demetrius para que se enamora con Helena. Lamentablemente, a Puck, todos los Atenienses se ven iguales—y pronto se equivoca. Ahorra, Lysander Y Demetrius están los dos enamorados de Helena, y Hermia no esta entretenida.

La misma noche, una compañía de actores aficionados, se encuentran en el bosque para ensayar una obra de teatro que esperan poder realizar en la boda de Theseus y Hyppolita. Puck los encuentra y tiene la idea de transformar a BOTTOM al nuevo amor de la Reina de las Hadas, Titania. Cuando Titania despierte, lo primero que va a ver, es a este mortal, transformado en burro. El amor parece estar destinado para desastre hasta que Oberon, decide involucrarse y arreglar las cosas.

¿Qué SUENO más confuso no? ¡A no preocuparse! ¡Puck está aquí para guiarles! Se aparecerá durante nuestro Sueño para guiar nuestra Aventura. ¡Así que acomódese, relájense y dejen que Puck sea su guía!

 

CREATIVE TEAM

Creative Facilitators CRUZ GONZALEZ‑CADEL, CAGE SEBASTIAN PIERRE, and PAIGE WHITSON‑MARTINI
Writer GQ
Original Music JORIAH KWAMÉ
Scenic Design FULTON STREET COLLECTIVE
Costume Design GREGORY GRAHAM
Sound Design JOSEPH E. DISBROW
Music Facilitator PABLO DAVID LAUCERICA
Verse Coach LARRY YANDO
Casting BOB MASON
Production Stage Manager LIZ ANNE LARSEN*

DREAM COMPANY

Theseus/Oberon/Snug BREON ARZELL*
The Changeling Boy BRASSEL CHANEY
Puck DANIELLE DAVIS*
Demetrius/Bottom MICAH FIGUEROA*
DJ DJ JEREMY HEIGHTS
Fairy RAVEN LEWIS
Enchantments HANA LIU
Hermia/Flute ASHLYN LOZANO
Electric Guitar ISAIAH MARTINEZ
Enchantments JANICE MEI
Lysander/Quince DEANNA MYERS*
Trumpet ANGELINA ORTIZ
Percussion TAINA RAMÍREZ
Soloist–Hip Hop ME’LO THE GENERATION HERO
Helena/Titania MJ D RAWLS*
Piano ADRIAN RUIZ
Percussion MARÍA SARANGO
Enchantments ANGELA TAM
Fairy MARY THOMAS
Soloist–Vocal/Flautist ALEXIS WILLIS
Enchantments JESSICA ZHANG

Understudies never substitute for listed players unless a specific announcement is made at the time of the performance: Shelby Lynn Bias for Helena/Titania; Devon Hayakawa for Demetrius/Bottom, Hermia/Flute, Lysander/Quince; Joseph Johnson for Puck, Theseus/Oberon/Snug.
* denotes members of Actors’ Equity Association

 

CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE THEATER ARTISTIC, EXECUTIVE, & PRODUCING TEAM

BARBARA GAINES   Artistic Director Carl and Marilynn Thoma Chair 
CRISS HENDERSON   Executive Director
RICK BOYNTON   Creative Producer

PRODUCTION STAFF

PAIGE WHITSON‑MARTINI Creative Community Engagement Manager/Producing Associate
BENITO BONDOC Outreach Coordinator
AISLINN FRANTZ Associate Producer
CHRIS PLEVIN Director of Production
JEFF WILLIAMS Associate Director of Production
DAN HESS Company Manager
ALEXIS TAYLOR Producing and Casting Associate
ALEXA BERKOWITZ Production Office Manager
DANNY FENDER Assistant Stage Manager
BETH KOEHLER Young Performers Supervisor
DIANA MUHAMMAD Choreographer, Move Me Soul
ELIZABETH BARTLOW BRESLIN, (CI/CT) American Sign Language Interpreter
WILL LEE, (NIC) American Sign Language Interpreter
JASON HARRINGTON Audio Description
RYAN MAGNUSON Costume Shop Manager
CATHY TANTILLO Costume Design Assistant
MAC VAUGHEY Lighting Supervisor
ALEC THORNE Assistant Lighting Supervisor
PERSEPHONE LAWRENCE‑WESCOTT Interim Properties Supervisor
ROBERT L. WILSON Scenery Supervisor
JAVIER “RESE” TORRES DREAM Muralist
JONATHAN HILL Sound Supervisor
JOSEPH E. DISBROW Sound Crew Head
JACK BIRDWELL, TYLER GUYNES House Carpenters
DAN SCHRECK, JESSE SNYDER Sound Engineer
MADDI WEGLARZ‑WARD Wardrobe

 

A SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR COMMUNITY PARTNERS

 

  • Austin Coming Together 
  • Segundo Ruiz Belvis Cultural Center
  • Chinese American Service League
  • Enlace Chicago
  • Dail Kirkpatrick
  • R.A.G.E. Englewood

 

Chicago Shakespeare in the Parks has been made possible by a civic, cultural, and corporate partnership between Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Chicago Park District, Boeing, and Lead Community Partner BMO Harris Bank. 

Chicago Park District

Boeing

Lead Community Partner

BMO

Lead Support

Art Works

Additional Support Provided By

The Paul M. Angell Family Foundation

Proud Partner of

Night out in the Parks

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