A Director to Adapt Each of Shakespeare's Plays #20: A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM directed by Nick Park

The Plot: Hermia and Lysander want to get married. But Hermia’s Dad wants her to marry Demetrius. Add into the mix Helena, who wants to marry Demetrius, and we’ve got some matchmaking to sort out. Since this is Shakespeare, we better head into the forest! In the nearby woods, the fairy king and queen are fighting and both want custody of the kid. In a third plot, Theseus is getting married soon and is throwing a big party with entertainment. A group of local artisans wants to get on the bill, so they get together (also in the forest) to rehearse what is easily the most incompetent stage production of all time. The fairy king’s servant, Puck, is so offended by the rehearsal that he gives the leading man, Nick Bottom, the head of a donkey, leading his fellow thespians to run away screaming, "I hate you and I hate your . . . ass . . . FACE!!!" Puck takes the gag further by using magic to make the fairy queen fall in love with his hideous creation, much to the delight of the fairy king. He also attempts to use his magic to get the young lovers to pair up nicely, but screws it up, leaving both Lysander and Demetrius now in love with Helena. But never fear, by the end, there’s ton of marriages and the local group of actors gets their moment in the spotlight.

Why Park?

For a play that is frequently produced and ultra-familiar to some viewer’s minds, Park is a director that would truly be able to give us a production unlike any other. All the elements are there within Wallace and Gromit, as well as Chicken Run: romance and action, suspense and comedy. Plus, he would be able to provide inventive visual effects to accompany the more mystical aspects of Shakespeare’s play without resorting to predictable CGI. With Park, a whole new world of possibilities open up. He could decide to do Midsummer with humans, or he could do it with penguins or badgers or whatever he saw fit. The humor in Park’s characters often comes from unwarranted courage in the face of danger. This gift would serve all three of Shakespeare’s interwoven plots and result in a film that captures both the comedy and magic of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Park could provide a freshness that allows even those who have seen it countless times to enjoy it anew.

Park films I have seen:

1. The Wrong Trousers ****
2. Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit ***1/2
3. Chicken Run ***1/2
4. A Close Shave ***1/2

Also recommended: A Grand Day Out