‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ at Will Geer’s Theatricum Botanicum:

Slapstick Shakespeare

By CJ Johnson
 
If you take a 13-year-old out for a night of Shakespeare, you’re not going to hear him to say, “I thoroughly enjoyed Hermia’s use of rhyming couplets in act one.” You’re lucky to get him to see Shakespeare at all. But if you’ve shrewdly tricked the apathetic adolescent to a night under the stars at Topanga Canyon’s beloved Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum, you’ll probably get a pleasantly surprised “That was kinda cool.”

And that’s the point.
 
Nestled deep within the woods of Topanga Canyon, the Theatricum Botanicum’s production of “Midsummer Night’s Dream” has been in the repertoire since the theatre’s beginnings thirty years ago, and it has since become a local family favorite. It’s continued success and popularity means that artistic Director Ellen Geer must obviously be doing something right.

The Theatricum is famous for its summer repertory season and its focus on the classics. “Midsummer” is being performed in rotation with “The Tempest,” Noel Coward’s “Blithe Spirit” and Bram Stoker’s “Dracula.” The Theatricum’s 2007 production of “Midsummer” is at times slapstick, sometimes downright silly, but is a sincere and charismatic take on the Bards’ eternal classic. (Shakespeare snobs have been duly warned). The Botanicum’s naturally rustic setting is simply meant for “Midsummer” and for two hours it explodes with vibrant color and inexhaustible frivolity: scheming sprites, bumbling minstrels, dueling lovers, song, dance and drink.

On the whole, the cast has an energetic chemistry that (for the most part) works. Thad Geer as Bottom is, beyond question, the show’s biggest asset. He is an unabashed scene-stealer and possesses a winning comedic timing that truly sets him apart from the capable cast. The fellow members of Bottom’s acting troupe are unabashedly silly, and win the great majority of the evening’s laughs. Willow Greer turns the part of Helena into a smart and sassy redhead who is, by far, the most engaging out of “Midsummer’s” lovers. David Pintado and Elizabeth Tobias alternate in the role of Puck, and Tobias’ wildly over-the-top gesticulations and downright strange sound effects become something of an irritation rather than an amusement.

The cast’s very genuine love of what they do is contagious indeed, and by the close of the last act they succeed in lighting up the faces of both the young and the young at heart.

Families are urged to picnic beforehand in the Botanicum’s ample picnic area. and Since the theatre is located deep within a canyon, picnicking isn’t such a bad idea. Don’t forget to pack a sweater and a blanket as well: seats are uncomfortable and temperatures plummet after sunset.

The Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum is located at 1419 N. Topanga Canyon Blvd., Topanga. Tickets run between $20-25 for adults, $18 for seniors and $8 for children. (Children under age five are free.) For tickets call (310) 455-3723 or visit www.theatricum.com