Review: A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Chichester Festival Theatre)

Review by Hywel Farrow-Wilton

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

As the curtain begins to come down on this year’s festival season here in Chichester, the team behind this great theatre have decided to end with a production of one of Shakespeare’s most performed plays, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, but with a West Sussex twist… it is entirely set during peak 90s rave Britain in the middle of the South Downs. With the addition of one of social media’s most popular satirists, Munya Chawawa, as Bottom, this show is unapologetically rebellious, loud, disruptive, and packs a (John) Major punch.

I imagine that most of you reading this will already be familiar with the plot of the show; maybe you wowed your secondary school stage with an exceptional rendition of Titania set entirely during a zombie apocalypse? Or perhaps in a modern production of Romeo and Juliet, you played Lord Capulet with the blue suit, blonde wig, and red tie of Donald Trump as I did? (All such photo and videographic evidence have since been destroyed) Such are the endless possibilities of modern Shakespeare productions!

This reimagining of the tale begins in 1994 in the office of the Conservative MP of the quaint West Sussex cathedral city of Chichester, Theseus. He, his fiancée Hippolyta, and Chief Constable Egeus, remand Egeus’ daughter Hermia for falling in love with her girlfriend Lysanda instead of Demetrius, a suitor that Egeus has chosen specifically for Hermia to marry. Rather than be forced into marriage with Demetrius, Hermia and Lysanda flee to the mystical and magical South Downs and are pursued by Demetrius and Helena, who is in love with Demetrius. Confused yet? I don’t blame you, but this is honestly one of Shakespeare’s least confusing love triangles. Whilst in the South Downs, they encounter fairies such as the fairy King and Queen Oberon and Titania, and their mischievous cousin Puck. In the meantime, the Chichester Young Conservative Association meet in the South Downs to begin rehearsals for their new production of the play "The Most Lamentable Comedy and Most Cruel Death of Pyramus and Thisbe", which they plan to perform at the wedding of Theseus and Hippolyta in a few days time. During one of their rehearsals, they are happened upon by Puck, who transforms Nick Bottom, the Association's newest member, into a Donkey and magically enchants Titania to fall in love with him. Hilarity ensues. 

Despite being one of his most popular plays in terms of sheer number of productions each year, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, is often a bit controversial among Shakespeare fans; you either love it and let yourself be swept away by the magical whimsy of the fairies and the comedic outcomes of the plot contrivances, or you despise the fact that any self-respecting adult could enjoy something so childish and fanciful and immediately book yourself a ticket to your closest production of Titus Andronicus. I, however, happen to love this play’s particular brand of woodland-based wonder, and as an avid enjoyer of modern interpretations of Shakespearean classics and being the patriotic Chichester resident I am, was greatly excited by the setting of rave-era West Sussex. 

Co-directed by the theatre’s Artistic Director Justin Audibert and Associate Director Hannah Joss, this show has been injected with about 200 litres of pure neon and shocked to life with the power of an acid house bassline. And all for the better. The visual power of the show is completely off the scale, with ravers, disco balls and dry ice all making this one of the most visually striking shows I have ever seen at Chichester. I also loved the theme of rebellion taking centre stage in this production. Set against the political backdrop of Michael Howard’s infamous Criminal Justice Act, civil disobedience is a recurring theme throughout, displaying the tension between the young ravers loudly claiming their right to self-expression and the forceful will of the government, which is reflected in the lovers' storyline with the tension between Hermia and her police constable father.

However, whilst I loved most of the direction, I think the presentation of some of the comedic moments in the show needed some further refinement. Being a comedy, there are jokes galore in the script, but the tendency in this production was to rely a bit too heavily on the comedy of the substitution of the Shakespearean setting of Athens with Chichester. Whilst it was funny hearing a character name-drop local towns like The Witterings, it was a joke that got old very quickly, but kept on recurring. Also guilty of this were the constant lewd hand gestures when characters were making genital-themed jokes. Whilst this can be funny once or twice, overreliance on it has become a cliché in modern Shakespearean adaptations, and I think some creative thinking could have been given to come up with funnier alternatives. 

Having already mentioned the stellar design work of the production, it needs to be highlighted further, as it really is the standout component in this show. The combined efforts of Lighting Designer Elliot Griggs and Set Designer Joanna Scotcher utterly transform the theatre into a neon-infused extravaganza, with laser lights ricocheting off each wall, twirling disco balls, falling confetti, DJ decks for Oberon, and even a bedazzled golf cart. All of this was perfectly played on the humour and raucous atmosphere of rave culture and made the show a veritable feast for the senses. 

Ever since he was announced, I have been waiting with curious anticipation to see Munya Chawawa’s Chichester debut as Nick Bottom, being a fervent fan of his character-driven comedy satire that has earned him a following of over three million and over one billion views on social media. I’m glad to say he does a tremendous job of bringing the characters to life, satisfying both die-hard Shakespeare purists with his command of the text whilst attracting a new generation of theatre-goers with his comedic expertise and young fans.

The four lovers are, again, some of the most famous and oft-quoted characters in all Shakespearean canon. You only have to enter the RSC gift shop to be greeted by an onslaught of bags, mugs, and notebooks emblazoned with the line, “Though she be but little, she is fierce”. My personal favourite among the four characters is Lysander, changed in this version to Lysanda, who is played by Ellie Larkin. The role is an absolute gift to an actor, as you get to play the full spectrum of emotions as they escape Athens/Chichester with Hermia, only to then be madly running around the forest as they are enchanted by the fairies to fall in love with Helena, to land back at Theseus and Hippolyta’s wedding with a happy ending after all. Ellie Larkin certainly captures the madcap nature of the character, and she brings a thrilling, roguish deviance to the role which I haven’t seen before in other productions. 

Whilst she is able to shine through, the same can’t quite be said for Angela Sant’Albano, Kieran Taylor-Ford, and Freya Parks, who play Hermia, Demetrius, and Helena respectively. The four didn’t seem to gel well with each other on stage, much like I have seen in previous productions. There felt like a lack of a spark between them that made it feel like their scenes were a bit jilted and slow, and it felt like there was minimal chemistry between the characters who are all supposed to be in love with each other. 

A surprising highlight was Gavin Rasmussen, who played the dual role of Changeling/Philostrate, a role that I have never thought about before, as it is so small. Despite only having about a page's worth of lines, his turn as Philostrate, the organiser of the wedding, was genuinely one of the funniest and best performances of the evening, masterfully proving that there are no small parts, only small actors.

Overall, despite a few gripes, the show is still extremely enjoyable. The rebellious subtext, the fun performances, and visual richness of this show make it a perfect introduction for someone who has never seen Shakespeare before, so please grab a friend who doesn’t usually see theatre and bring them along with you to witness the magic and whimsy of the South Downs first-hand. 

A Midsummer Night’s Dream plays at the Chichester Festival Theatre until 17th October 2026. Tickets from https://www.cft.org.uk/events/a-midsummer-nights-dream

Photos by Manuel Harlan