Episode 22 - A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Shakespeare's original comedy, A Midsummer Night's Dream follows young lovers and old lovers into the mystical, natural space of the forest, where the rules don't apply the way they do anywhere else. Continuing the increasing sophistication of his plays of late, Shakespeare comments on both the nature of love and the nature of the theatre. Join us as we discuss one of our favourite of the Bard's comedies!

Notes:

- The content of 1 Corinthians is partly mixed up by Nick Bottom after his sojourn in the woods; it's one of the most famous parts from the New Testament, and passages from it are routinely recited at weddings (much like Shakespeare's sonnets!)
- Joseph Campell's monomyth and later amendments by scholars like David Adams Leeming discuss the mythological underpinnings of the journey all heroic figures take as their stories are told; though not a strictly heroic tale, Midsummer does borrow from these ideas to describe the journey of the lovers from civilization to chaos and back again.
- For more discussion about forests and liminal spaces, check out this blog post
- Read up on the Coffee Shop AU, a common trope in the world of fanfiction
- A funny version of the Tragedy of Pyramus and Thisbe, starring The Beatles, from 1964 for Shakespeare's 400th birthday -- a must watch!
- We had the opportunity to chat with John Bernardy of 25YL Site about the thematic links between Midsummer and our old fave, Twin Peaks -- check out our discussion about faeries and Lodges and forested liminal spaces (oh my!)
- If you haven't seen the 1999 theatrical version of this play, we recommend it!

- ...and if you don't know what Nanaimo Bars are, here's a recipe

Ancient Bickerings

Of all the pairings and couplings going on in A Midsummer Night's Dream, which couple is our favourite?