How Would You Stage the Mechanical Scenes In ‘a Midsummer’S Nights Dream’, With Particular Reference To the Portrayal of Bottom.
HOW WOULD YOU STAGE THE MECHANICAL SCENES IN ‘A MIDSUMMER’S NIGHTS DREAM’, WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO THE PORTRAYAL OF BOTTOM.
A Midsummer’s Night Dream was produced under the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, she never married as she thought a man would take away all her power as Queen. Commoners used to refer to her as the ‘Fairy Queen’. This was because her clothes were so elegant and beautiful. This may have something to do with the Fairy Queen Titania in a Midsummer’s Night Dream. They almost mirror each other in their similarities with clothing and their authority over men. Shakespeare may have done this in his portrayal of Titania’s power over Oberon.
The Government sometimes used plays for propaganda in this era. Some people would use them to send secret messages to another, but most of the people used plays for a source of news and entertainment. Historians also believe his plays were greatly influenced by his good friends the Earl of Essex and the Earl of Southampton.
In a MSND there are a group of Actors who play the parts of the ‘Mechanicals’, they are a small theatre group made up of weavers, potters and other things alike. They prepare a small play to be performed in fort of royalty, the royalty is made up of people such as Lysander. The ‘Mechanicals’ are made of these Actors: - Starveling, who is shown to be slightly grumpy and maybe the most dominant in the group alongside Bottom; Flute is a young man who seems to lag behind the others in the ways of wit and growth, as he is worried about his part in MSND playing the part of Thisbe and is anxious that he may have to cut of his beard in order to play the part; Snug is very anxious to learn his part but soon finds he is a lion and is only to growl! ; Snout has an enquiring mind and plays the part of Wall; and finally there is Bottom, a simple weaver but also an ambitious, an outgoing actor whose ‘over’ enthusiasm of acting, does not always help. Quote Act I Scene II Bottom “ An I may hide my face, let me play Thisbe too I’ll speak in a monstrous little voice: ‘Thisne Thisne’, ‘Ah Pyramus my lover dear, thy Thisbe dear and lady dear’”, he says this after taking the part of Pyramus and then later on he also tries to ask for the part of the lion as well!
