A Midsummer Nights Dream
What happens when fairies meddle in the affairs of lovers?
Welcome to the world of A Midsummer Night’s Dream where comedy and fantasy meet romance, this Shakespeare has captivated audiences for over four centuries. First imagined by William Shakespeare in the 1590s, this magical play has lived many lives: on the Elizabethan stage, in lavish theater productions, in film, and perhaps most ethereally, as a ballet.
Lets take a look into the origins of Shakespeare’s original play and the stunning artistry of its ballet interpretations.
Written sometime between 1595 and 1596, A Midsummer Night’s Dream is considered one of Shakespeare’s most beloved comedies. The play is often celebrated for its intricate plot structure, where three worlds; noble Athenians, humble craftsmen, and mischievous fairies, collide in a forest just outside the city.
At the heart of the story are four young lovers whose romances are complicated by enchantments and misunderstandings. There's Hermia and Lysander, who wish to elope; Helena, hopelessly in love with Demetrius; and Demetrius, who only has eyes for Hermia, until the fairies intervene.
Meanwhile, Oberon, king of the fairies, and his queen Titania are locked in a dispute. Oberon’s servant Puck, a trickster sprite, unleashes a series of magical mistakes that cause characters to fall in love with the wrong people; including Titania, who wakes to fall in love with Bottom, a weaver transformed (hilariously) into a donkey.
It’s a chaotic dreamscape where nothing is as it seems but where, harmony is eventually restored.
This play also has deep undertones as Shakespeare plays with the nature of love, the tension between order and chaos, and the space between dream and reality. He uses the play to question how much control we truly have over our desires and whether love itself is just another kind of magic.
The famous closing monologue by Puck, asking the audience to think of the whole experience as a dream, reminds us of the power of theater itself; to enchant, to disrupt, and to heal.
A MIDSUMMER NIGHTS DREAM IN BALLET
It’s no wonder that such an astounding play would find new life in the world of dance. The ethereal quality of the forest, the physical comedy, and the emotional entanglements all translate beautifully into movement. In fact, the ballet adaptations of A Midsummer Night’s Dream are some of the most beloved in the classical and contemporary repertory.
The ballet history of Dream begins with its score. In 1826, a 17-year-old Felix Mendelssohn composed an overture inspired by Shakespeare’s play. His brilliant music perfectly captured the magic of the fairy world with light strings, flutes, and that now-iconic opening chord sequence. In 1842, Mendelssohn was commissioned to expand the piece into a full suite of incidental music for a German stage production; including the Wedding March, now a staple of wedding ceremonies around the world.
Mendelssohn’s music has since become the foundation for most ballet adaptations of A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
Several choreographers have taken on the challenge of translating a midsummer nights dream into dance, each bringing their own vision to the enchanted forest.
GEORGE BALANCHINE’S 1962 BALLET
One of the most acclaimed versions is George Balanchine’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, choreographed for the New York City Ballet in 1962. Balanchine used Mendelssohn’s music, creating a full-length story ballet that captures the whimsical and complex play. Known for his style, Balanchine blended narrative, character work, and abstract dance into a cohesive and delightful ballet. His version places heavy emphasis on the fairies, with stunning ensemble pieces for the corps de ballet and lyrical pas de deux.
FREDERICK ASHTON AND THE ROYAL BALLET
In the UK, choreographer Frederick Ashton also brought the play to the stage in a very different style. His version highlights the comedy and romantic confusion, drawing out the play’s more emotional and psychological threads. Ashton’s interpretation focuses on nuanced characterization through gesture and movement, underscoring the human follies at the center of the dream.
JOHN NEUMEIER’S CONTEMPORARY TAKE
More recently, choreographer John Neumeier created a modern retelling that blends classical ballet with theatrical storytelling. His production reinterprets the characters with psychological depth, offering a darker, more introspective version of the story while still honoring the play’s fairy-tale origins.
Each of these productions reveals something unique about Shakespeare’s original, whether its through the humor, the mystery, the humanity, or the transformation.
What makes A Midsummer Night’s Dream so enduring? Perhaps it’s the way it allows us to laugh at ourselves, or the way it gives us permission to believe in magic or maybe it’s simply the joy of watching chaos bloom into beauty.
Whether experienced as a witty stage play or a stunning ballet, A Midsummer Nights Dream presents a sense of wonder. It’s a reminder that love can be messy, that dreams can deceive, and that art, in all its forms, helps us make sense of it all.