D R E A M

Opera by Benjamin Britten

A «weak and idle theme, no more yielding but a dream» is how Puck describes the Midsummer Night’s Dream in his final speech, simultaneously raising the question: Who was actually dreaming here? Was it the young lovers, or the craftsmen who were lost on stage in the nocturnal realm of the elves? Or was the audience in the hall also slumbering?

Set in a forest on Midsummer’s night, the story is driven by the machinations of the King of Fairies, Oberon, and the impish Puck who use a love potion to cause mayhem and misunderstandings. The victims of their pranks are two pairs of would-be lovers, and Bottom the Weaver, the leading man in an amateur theatrical group. The story is a rare ‘light’ opera among Britten’s repertoire, with farcical as well as magical elements.

Britten’s opera follows the consequences of a falling-out between the fairy-king Oberon and his queen, Tytania. Mistaken identities, confused lovers and alarming transformations are the result.