BYU Young Company’s Production, Set as a Magical Slumber Party, Shows Shakespeare Can Be For Everyone
BYU’s Young Company opens this semester with a fresh production of Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” However, this production has a twist with actors as teenagers at a slumber party putting on a show.
“A Midsummer Night’s Dream” is a Theatre for Young Audiences (TYA) production, which keeps the focus on telling the story so even the youngest children in the audience can keep up with the Shakespearean script.
The BYU Young Company team includes Director Kris Peterson, who has a Master’s Degree in Shakespeare, TYA instructor Teresa Love, and Phillip Bird who works in London at the Globe Theatre. Each member of the production leans on their experience to make this production come to life including leveraging a recent Bravo! Performance with the Actors From the London Stage, a touring British Shakespeare company.
“We hope the audience will realize that Shakespeare can be for everyone,” Peterson said. “Our play is interactive and encourages audience members to join in on the action. Shakespeare certainly would have had audience members interacting with ‘Midsummer’ in his day, so we don’t want our audiences to shy away from participating in our story.”
“This show is for young audiences first and foremost,” said Aunah Johnson, an acting student who plays Titania, Hippolyta and Quince in the production. “We are striving for intense, raw, fantastic creativity in every show, and that feeds off of the young artists watching us. Our goal is to inspire young minds to create and be confident and bold in the world that they are making. The more children in the audience, the more this production will fly.”
Families, children and newcomers of Shakespeare are sure to fall in love with the world Young Company has created. The production is also reaching out to a wider audience, having an ASL Interpreter on March 23. Peterson said, “We want our audiences to have a truly enjoyable time at the theatre. This show is meant to be a wild, zany experience you won’t forget.”
Tickets and Show Details
Performance Dates and Times:
- March 15-17, 22-24, at 7:00 PM
- March 18 & 25 at 2:00 PM & 4:00 PM
- ASL Interpreted: March 23