Primer
Ciclo de
E.S.O.
TRANSEDUCA, S.L.
RECURSOS EDUCATIVOS, S.L.
Tel. 902 318 319
Fax 902 320 321
Primer
Ciclo de
E.S.O.
TRANSEDUCA, S.L.
RECURSOS EDUCATIVOS, S.L.
Tel. 902 318 319
Fax 902 320 321
1. SYNOPSIS.
Read the story of A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
A young girl, Hermia, wants to marry her boyfriend Lysander. However, her father
wants her to marry Demetrius. Hermia refuses and is sentenced to death according
to the ancient law of Athens, where the play is set. She decides to run away with
Lysander, through the woods to another city. She tells her best friend Helena of her
plan. Helena, who is in love with Demetrius, tells him of their plan. Demetrius follows
the couple into the woods and Helena follows him.
Meanwhile, in the woods, the King and Queen of the fairies are fighting over a young
boy. Titania wants to look after the boy herself and refuses to give him to Oberon, who
wants to make him his servant. To get his revenge Oberon sends his servant, Puck, to
get a magical flower, which when placed on the eye will make a person fall in love with
the next person they see.
Oberon comes across Helena pleading with Demetrius and, feeling sorry for her,
tells Puck to put the juice of the flower on Demetrius’s eyes. Puck, however, puts the
juice on Lysander’s eyes and when he wakes he sees Helena and falls in love with
her. Realising Puck’s mistake, Oberon orders him to put it on Demetrius’s eyes. This
results in both men being in love with Helena. Helena thinks that the men are teasing
her and is very angry. When Hermia wakes up, she is also very angry and confused.
Oberon then puts the juice on Titania’s eyes and she falls in love with a comedian who
is drunk in the woods, wearing the head of an ass.
After much confusion all is put right and at the end of the play everyone is in love with
the correct person.
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Primer
Ciclo de
E.S.O.
TRANSEDUCA, S.L.
RECURSOS EDUCATIVOS, S.L.
Tel. 902 318 319
Fax 902 320 321
2. THE CHARACTERS.
Read the descriptions of the characters.
EGEUS. Egeus is the father of Hermia. He is very strict and domineering. He would
rather see his daughter die than refuse to marry the man he has chosen for her.
THESEUS. Theseus is the lord of Athens. He is a fair man but must uphold the law in
his city. He tries to make both Egeus and Hermia change their minds.
HERMIA. Hermia is a young woman in love with Lysander. She is strong-willed and
would rather die than have to marry someone else.
LYSANDER. Lysander is a rich young man who is in love with Hermia. He suggests
they run away to his aunt’s house in another city to be married and therefore escape
the death penalty in Athens.
HELENA. Helena is Hermia’s best friend. She is in love with Demetrius and is heartbroken because he has chosen Hermia over her. She will do anything to re-awaken
Demetrius’s love.
DEMETRIUS. Demetrius is the rich young man that Egeus has chosen to marry Hermia.
He was once Helena’s boyfriend but now claims to love and wants to marry Hermia.
OBERON. Oberon is the king of the fairies. He is powerful and used to getting his own
way. He is also kind and tries to help Helena.
TITANIA. Titania is the fairy queen. She has a young boy which she is unwilling to give
to Oberon, which causes the argument between them.
PUCK. Puck is Oberon’s naughty servant, who causes all the confusion by putting the
magic flower on the wrong person’s eyes.
FAIRY. The fairy is one of Titania’s servants.
THE COMEDIAN. The comedian is a drunk man who has come into the woods looking
for his friends. He has the head of an ass and is used as Oberon’s revenge on Titania,
when she thinks she is in love with him.
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Primer
Ciclo de
E.S.O.
TRANSEDUCA, S.L.
RECURSOS EDUCATIVOS, S.L.
Tel. 902 318 319
Fax 902 320 321
3. QUESTIONS.
Put the questions in the correct order and then
answer them. Use complete sentences.
0. Shakespeare/ William/ was/ who?
Who was William Shakespeare?
He was an English playwright and poet.
1. Hermia/ love/ is/ in/ who/ with?
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2. Titania/ Oberon/ arguing/ what/ are/ about/ and?
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3. Helena/ is/ why/ sad?
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4. why/ Helena/ tell/ does/ Demetrius/ about/ escape/ Hermia’s?
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5. a/ Puck/ naughty/ is/ spirit?
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6. Hermia’s/ what/ father/ her/ do/ to/ does/ want?
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Primer
Ciclo de
E.S.O.
TRANSEDUCA, S.L.
RECURSOS EDUCATIVOS, S.L.
Tel. 902 318 319
Fax 902 320 321
4. STORY ORDER.
Put the story in the correct order.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
i.
j.
Lysander wakes up and falls in love with Helena.
Oberon tells Puck to find the magical flower.
Lysander and Hermia plan to run away and marry in another city.
Oberon and Titania argue over the child.
Titania falls in love with the comedian.
Egeus takes Hermia to see Theseus, the Lord of Athens.
The lovers are all happily in love with the correct people.
Hermia discovers that both men are in love with Helena.
Titania agrees to give the boy to Oberon.
Helena tells Demetrius that Lysander and Hermia are going to run away.
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Primer
Ciclo de
E.S.O.
TRANSEDUCA, S.L.
RECURSOS EDUCATIVOS, S.L.
Tel. 902 318 319
Fax 902 320 321
5. WEDDING VOCABULARY.
Put the vocabulary in the correct place in the
text about weddings.
Traditionally, women and men have a last night out as a single person just before they
get married. For a woman it’s known as a ......................... night and for a man a ..............
...................... night. When they get married the man is called the ........................ and the
woman is called the ........................................ . They exchange ........................................
at the wedding which are like promises to each other and they also give each other
wedding ........................................ to wear. After this they have a party which is called a
........................................ where they have dinner and dancing and everybody eats some
wedding ........................................ . It is traditional for the woman to throw her .................
....................... at the end of the wedding and whoever catches it will be the next person
to get married! The couple then leave to go on a holiday called their .............................. .
A. stag
B. bouquet
C. reception
D. honeymoon.
E. groom
F. hen
G. bride
H. stag
I. vows
J. rings
K. cake.
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Primer
Ciclo de
E.S.O.
TRANSEDUCA, S.L.
RECURSOS EDUCATIVOS, S.L.
Tel. 902 318 319
Fax 902 320 321
6. PRE- AND POST-SHOW QUESTIONS.
A. PRE-SHOW QUESTIONS.
1. How much do you know about the life and works of William Shakespeare?
2. Do you think the play will be a comedy or a tragedy?
3. What is your opinion of arranged marriage?
4. What do you think the sets and costumes will look like?
B. POST-SHOW QUESTIONS.
1. Did you like the play? Why/ why not?
2. Describe or draw the sets and costumes.
3. Do you think Egeus had the right to decide his daughter’s future?
4. What do you think of Oberon’s trick on Titania?
5. Who was your favourite character and why?
6. Who was your least favourite character and why?
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Primer
Ciclo de
E.S.O.
TRANSEDUCA, S.L.
RECURSOS EDUCATIVOS, S.L.
Tel. 902 318 319
Fax 902 320 321
7. LISTENING ACTIVITY.
Listen to the tracks and answer the following
questions. Use complete sentences.
1. Why does Lysander leave Hermia? (track 35)
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2. Why are the men fighting? (track 39)
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3. What does the fairy think of Puck? (track 27)
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Primer
Ciclo de
E.S.O.
TRANSEDUCA, S.L.
RECURSOS EDUCATIVOS, S.L.
Tel. 902 318 319
Fax 902 320 321
4. Why do Hermia and Lysander stop in the wood? (track 32)
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5. What do the lovers think happened in the wood? (track 43)
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8. VOCABULARY.
Look at the list of vocabulary below. If there
are any words you do not know, ask your
teacher what they mean or look them up in your
dictionary. All these words appear in the play.
absurd
awful
back and forth
cause
delightful
elf
folly
fool
get away
imitate
liar
malicious
marriage
mask
mercy
misfortune
modesty
naughty
nightmare
obey
on the contrary
page
9
petal
prank
raven
recognize
run away
sentence
servant
stubborn
swear
ungrateful
wood
Primer
Ciclo de
E.S.O.
TRANSEDUCA, S.L.
RECURSOS EDUCATIVOS, S.L.
Tel. 902 318 319
Fax 902 320 321
TEACHER’S NOTES AND ANSWERS.
3. QUESTIONS.
1. Who is Hermia in love with?
She is in love with Lysander.
2. What are Titania and Oberon arguing about?
They are arguing about a young boy.
3. Why is Helena sad?
She is sad because she loves Demetrius and he doesn’t love her.
4. Why does Helena tell Demetrius about Hermia’s escape?
She tells him because she wants him to like her for something.
5. Is Puck a naughty spirit?
Yes, Puck is very naughty and likes playing tricks.
6. What does Hermia’s father want her to do?
He wants her to marry Demetrius.
4.STORY ORDER.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
f
c
j
d
b
e
a
h
i
g
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Primer
Ciclo de
E.S.O.
TRANSEDUCA, S.L.
RECURSOS EDUCATIVOS, S.L.
Tel. 902 318 319
Fax 902 320 321
5. WEDDING VOCABULARY.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
(F) hen
(A) stag
(E) groom
(G) bride
(I) vows
(J) rings
(C) reception
(K) cake
(B) bouquet
(D) honeymoon.
6. PRE- AND POST-SHOW QUESTIONS.
These questions should be used to provoke discussion in the classroom. There is also
the possibility of using some for project work, both drawn and written.
7. LISTENING ACTIVITY.
1. He leaves her because he thinks he is in love with Helena.
2. They are fighting to prove who loves Helena the most.
3. The fairy thinks Puck is a naughty spirit.
4. They stop to sleep because they are tired.
5. The lovers think they had a dream in the wood.
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Teaching pack: Julie Nash
A magic wood inhabited by fairies and nymphs, young people
in love, a naughty goblin with a dangerous love potion… What
a nice mess we’ve got here!
Chamber Theatre Company performs a fresh and funny
adaptation of one of William Shakespeare’s masterpieces.
Love misunderstandings and crazy passions mix in this wildly
amusing comedy.
Beware of what you dream on a summer night… It might come
true!
OTRAS OBRAS...
Primer Ciclo
de E.S.O.
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