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Middle Grades
A Midsummer
Night’s Sleepover
A modern retelling of one of Shakespeare’s
greatest comedies. . .perfect for large casts.
Characters
by Elizabeth Boiko Burdick
Sleepover Party:
AMY, likes Andy
HERMIA, Egeus’s daughter, in love
with Lysander
HELENA, in love with Demetrius
OBERON, king of the fairies
ELLEN, Amy’s best friend, likes
TITANIA, queen of the fairies
ANDY, likes Ellen
PEASEBLOSSOM, fairy who serves
Teddy
TEDDY, Andy’s best friend, also
likes Ellen
MRS. SUE RAY, Ellen’s mom
MR. GEORGE SILVER, Andy’s dad
The Bedtime Story/Dream Characters
THESEUS, Duke of Athens
EGEUS, Hermia’s father
LYSANDER, in love with Hermia
DEMETRIUS, also in love with
Hermia
PHILOSTRATE, master of the revels
BOTTOM, a weaver
HIPPOLYTA, queen of the
Amazons, betrothed to Theseus
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PUCK, goblin who serves Oberon
Titania
COBWEB, fairy
MOTH, fairy
MUSTARDSEED, fairy
CHANGELING BOY
SETTING: In front of closed curtain at
left is a boy’s room set up for a sleepover, with two sleeping bags in front of
a night table with a lamp, cell phone,
and storybook. In front of curtain right
is a girl’s room set up for a sleepover,
with two sleeping bags, stuffed animals, in front of a night table with a
lamp, cell phone, and storybook. There
is a chair next to each night table. Each
room is strewn with sleepover junk-—
chip bags, soda, candy wrappers, etc.
Trees can be brought onto the stage as
1
soon as “dream” action begins center
stage.
ANDY (Answering): Hello.
TEDDY are sitting on top of their sleeping bags, in pajamas, getting ready for
bed. Girls pantomime talking and giggling. Boys pantomime playing video
games.
ANDY (Smiling): Oh! Hi, Ellen.
AT RISE: AMY and ELLEN, ANDY and
MRS. RAY (From off right): Lights out
in five minutes, girls!
AMY and ELLEN: O.K., Mom! O.K., Mrs.
Ray!
MR. SILVER (From off left): No more
video games, boys, it’s time for bed!
ANDY and TEDDY (Absent mindedly
while playing): O.K., Dad! Sure, Mr.
Silver! (Boys continue playing video
games while girls are talking.)
ELLEN: It’s not fair! Andy and Teddy
both like you, and I like Teddy. How
come you get two guys and I get none?
AMY: I’m really sorry, Ellen. I don’t
know how this happened. Andy and I
really liked each other, then all of a
sudden Teddy started liking me, too.
But I don’t like Teddy at all! I promise.
ELLEN: Teddy used to like me. I don’t
know what happened.
AMY: Why don’t you ask him? He’s
sleeping over at Andy’s house tonight.
Let’s call and you can talk to him.
ELLEN: No way! I could never do that.
AMY: Well, how about if I call Andy
and tell him to talk to Teddy?
ELLEN (After a moment’s hesitation):
Oh, all right, but don’t let him think I
had anything to do with it.
AMY (Dialing cell phone): Don’t worry.
(ANDY’s cell phone rings.)
2
AMY: Hi, Andy.
TEDDY (Grabbing phone): It must be for
me!
ANDY (Covering phone): No it’s not,
Teddy, it’s for me!
TEDDY: You are such a loser, Andy,
don’t you know that Amy likes me
now?
ANDY: She does not, she hates your
guts! (They fight loudly. The girls
mime confusion as they listen together
on the phone. MR. SILVER enters left.)
MR. SILVER: Hey! Boys, boys! What’s
going on?
ANDY: Amy called me, not Teddy, and
he’s trying to grab the phone.
MR. SILVER: A phone call? It’s 10:30 at
night! (Tries to grab phone from boys)
MRS. RAY (Entering right): Bedtime,
girls! (Sees girls on phone) How many
times have I told you, no phone after
8:00! (MRS. RAY and MR. SILVER
grab the phones at the same time.)
MR. SILVER (Speaking into phone): Now
see here, young lady, don’t you realize
how late it is?
MRS. RAY (Into phone): But. . .
MR. SILVER: Don’t you talk back to me!
Didn’t that mother of yours ever teach
you any manners?
MRS. RAY: George?
MR. SILVER (Offended): Excuse me! It’s
“Mr. Silver” to you!
MRS. RAY (Yelling): This is Mrs. Ray!
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MR. SILVER (After an embarrassed
pause): Oh, my gosh, Sue, I’m so sorry.
I thought. . .well, I thought. . .
MRS. RAY (Bemused): It seems we’re
both hosting sleepovers tonight.
MR. SILVER (Laughing): How do you
get them to fall asleep at a decent
hour?
MRS. RAY: Beats me. How about a bedtime story?
MR. SILVER: I’ll try anything at this
point.
MRS. RAY: Do you have a copy of the
stories of Shakespeare?
MR. SILVER (Miming looking through
bookshelves): I think it’s here somewhere.
MRS. RAY: Look up “A Midsummer
Night’s Dream.”
MR. SILVER (Smiling): I think I get
your drift, Sue. Good night.
MRS. RAY: Good night, George, and
sweet dreams to the boys! (MRS. RAY
and MR. SILVER sit in chairs and
open storybook.)
ANDY (Complaining): Not a bedtime
story, Dad! That’s so kindergarten!
AMY: Come on, Mom, give us another
chance! I promise we’ll go to sleep.
MRS. SILVER and MR. RAY (In unison):
Not another sound! I have a great story
for you tonight.
MRS. RAY: It’s a love story,
MR. SILVER: That takes place in
ancient Greece,
MRS. RAY: and fairyland.
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MR. SILVER: Where mythical creatures
make magic,
MRS RAY: and wreak havoc,
MR. SILVER: on unsuspecting mortals.
MRS. SILVER: Once upon a time,
Hippolyta, the mighty Queen of the
Amazons—
MR. RAY: and Theseus, the wise Duke
of Athens, were about to be married.
(Curtain opens slightly and HIPPOLYTA, THESEUS, and PHILOSTRATE
appear.)
THESEUS:
Now, fair Hippolyta, our nuptial hour
Draws on apace.
HIPPOLYTA:
Four nights will quickly dream away
the time.
MR. RAY: Theseus ordered his master
of revels, Philostrate, to find some entertainment for his wedding banquet.
THESEUS:
Go, Philostrate,
Stir up the Athenian youth to merriments. (PHILOSTRATE exits.)
ANDY: Uh, Dad? This is kind of boring.
AMY: What does this story have to do
with anything? (Boys and girls lie
down on top of sleeping bags, propping
themselves up on their elbows to watch
action on stage.)
MR. SILVER and MRS. RAY: Wait and
see.
MR. SILVER: The bliss was soon inter-
rupted when Egeus, Hermia’s father,
came to complain about his daughter.
MRS. RAY: Hermia refused to marry
Demetrius, her father’s choice of husband. She wanted to choose her own
3
husband, and that displeased her
father very much. (EGEUS appears
from break in curtain, dragging HERMIA by the hand. LYSANDER and
DEMETRIUS follow behind.)
THESEUS:
Good Egeus: what’s the news with
thee?
EGEUS:
Full of vexation come I, with complaint
Against my child, my daughter
Hermia.
THESEUS:
What say you, Hermia?
Demetrius is a worthy gentleman.
HERMIA:
So is Lysander. (She points to
LYSANDER who is standing alone.)
What if If I refuse to wed Demetrius?
MR. SILVER: Hermia was told that if
she refused to marry Demetrius, she
could be killed or never allowed to
marry at all.
ELLEN: That’s totally bogus!
AMY: She should be able to choose her
own husband!
MRS. RAY: Hermia told Theseus that
she’d rather die than marry Demetrius. Demetrius told Hermia he’s the
best choice for her because her father
likes him best. And Lysander said:
LYSANDER: If he likes you so much,
why don’t you marry Hermia’s father?
TEDDY: Oooh!
ANDY: That’s gotta hurt!
MR. SILVER: Wise Theseus and mighty
Hippolyta thought it best to hear more
from Egeus and Demetrius in private.
MRS. RAY: Lysander and Hermia
4
planned to run away the next day and
get married secretly at Lysander’s
aunt’s house in the woods outside of
Athens.
HERMIA:
My good Lysander!
Tomorrow truly will I meet with thee.
LYSANDER:
Keep promise, love. Look, here comes
Helena! (HELENA enters through curtain.)
HERMIA:
God speed, fair Helena!
HELENA:
Call you me fair? that fair again unsay.
Demetrius loves you fair: O happy fair!
HERMIA:
The more I hate, the more he follows
me.
HELENA:
The more I love, the more he hateth
me. (HELENA, HERMIA, and
LYSANDER exit.)
MRS. RAY: Poor Helena. She loved
Demetrius and was pretty upset that
he wanted to marry her best friend.
MR. SILVER: Lysander and Hermia
comforted Helena by telling her of
their plan to run away and get married
in secret.
AMY: Hold on a minute. . .this is confusing. Hermia loves Lysander?
ANDY: And Lysander loves Hermia?
ELLEN: And Helena loves Demetrius?
TEDDY: But Demetrius loves Hermia?
AMY: This story sounds very familiar.
ANDY: Was this a TV movie or something? (All story characters exit.)
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MR. SILVER and MRS. RAY: No more
interruptions, please. Just listen and
learn!
MR. SILVER: The sun rose the next day
on a busy wood outside of Athens.
Bottom, a humble weaver, got word
that the Duke and Queen were looking
for some entertainment for their wedding. Being a true ham, he hoped to
perform in a play to entertain at the
wedding. (Curtain opens a little bit
more to reveal a forest. BOTTOM
enters. He looks around to make sure he
is alone, then acts out both the parts of
a man [Pyramus] and a woman
[Thisbe] who are in love.)
BOTTOM (In a deep voice):
Thisbe, Thisbe;
(In a high voice) Ah, Pyramus, lover
dear! thy Thisbe dear, and lady dear!’
(BOTTOM exits, muttering his lines
over and over again.)
MRS. RAY: In that same part of the
woods, two magic spirits met. One was
a fairy named Peaseblossom, who
worked for Titania, queen of the
fairies.
MR. SILVER: The other was a goblin
named Puck, or Robin Goodfellow. He
worked for Oberon, the king of the
magical woodland creatures. (PUCK
and PEASEBLOSSOM enter through
curtain break.)
PUCK:
How now, spirit! whither wander you?
PEASEBLOSSOM:
Over hill, over dale,
Over park, over pale,
I do wander everywhere,
Swifter than the moon’s sphere;
And I serve the fairy queen,
To do her orbs upon the green.
PUCK:
The king doth keep his revels here
tonight:
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Take heed the queen come not within
his sight;
PEASEBLOSSOM:
Either I mistake your shape and making quite,
Or else you are that shrewd and knavish sprite
Call’d Robin Goodfellow.
PUCK:
Thou speak’st aright;
I am that merry wanderer of the night.
But, room, fairy! here comes Oberon.
PEASEBLOSSOM:
And here my mistress. Would that he
were gone! (Curtain opens a little bit
more to reveal woods. OBERON and
PUCK enter from one side; from the
other, TITANIA and CHANGELING
CHILD enter, with COBWEB, MOTH,
and MUSTARDSEED.)
MRS. RAY: Peaseblossom and Puck
were distressed because their masters
were at odds with each other.
MR. SILVER: Titania and Oberon were
fighting over a little changeling boy
stolen from humans and raised by
fairies.
OBERON:
Ill met by moonlight, proud Titania.
TITANIA:
What, jealous Oberon! Fairies, skip
hence:
I have forsworn his company.
OBERON:
Why should Titania cross her Oberon?
I do but beg a little changeling child,
To be my henchman. (OBERON tries
to grab CHANGELING. TITANIA
grabs child back. Fairies are frightened.)
TITANIA (Angrily):
Not for thy fairy kingdom. Fairies,
5
away! (TITANIA, CHANGELING, and
fairies run away.)
TEDDY: Demetrius isn’t being very nice
with Titania. He ordered Puck to find a
special flower, the juice of which would
make Titania fall in love with the first
beast or animal of the forest that she
meets. He hoped this would distract
Titania long enough to get her to forget
about the boy.
ELLEN: Maybe Helena should just get
MR. SILVER: Oberon was very angry
PUCK:
I’ll put a girdle round about the earth
In forty minutes. (PUCK runs off.)
MRS. RAY: While Oberon was waiting
for Puck to return, he spied Helena
chasing Demetrius through the woods.
Demetrius had decided to follow
Hermia and Lysander to break up
their impending marriage. And Helena
was following Demetrius in one last
attempt to regain his affection.
OBERON:
But who comes here? I am invisible;
And I will overhear their conference.
(DEMETRIUS enters, followed by
HELENA.
DEMETRIUS:
I do not, nor I cannot love you!
HELENA:
And even for that do I love you the
more.
DEMETRIUS:
I am sick when I do look on thee.
HELENA:
And I am sick when I look not on you.
DEMETRIUS:
I’ll run from thee
And leave thee to the mercy of wild
beasts. (DEMETRIUS runs off.)
HELENA:
I’ll follow thee! (HELENA chases him.)
6
to Helena. After all, they used to be
together.
over Demetrius and move on.
MR. SILVER: Oberon felt sorry for
Helena. He decided to use the flower to
help Helena get Demetrius back.
(PUCK enters.)
OBERON:
Hast thou the flower there?
PUCK:
Ay, there it is.
OBERON:
I pray thee, give it me.
MR. SILVER: Oberon gave a little bit of
the flower to Puck. He described the
young Athenian man he had seen in
the woods, and told Puck to put some
of the juice on his eyelids. He hoped
this would solve Helena’s problem once
and for all.
PUCK:
Fear not, my lord, your servant shall
do so. (PUCK runs off. OBERON moves
far upstage, out of view of TITANIA.
TITANIA, CHANGELING, and fairies
enter.)
MRS. RAY: Titania quietly crept into
her familiar forest clearing, careful to
take her afternoon nap far from
Oberon’s watching eyes.
TITANIA :
Come, now a roundel and a fairy song;
Sing me now asleep;
Then to your offices and let me rest.
FAIRIES (To the tune of “Twinkle,
Twinkle Little Star”):
You spotted snakes with double
tongue,
Thorny hedgehogs, be not seen;
Newts and blind-worms, do no wrong,
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Come not near our fairy queen.
Lulla, Lulla, Lullabye
Lulla, Lulla, Lullabye.
Weaving spiders, come not here;
Hence, you long-legg’d spinners, hence!
Beetles black, approach not near;
Worm nor snail, do no offence.
Lulla, Lulla, Lullabye
Lulla, Lulla, Lullabye.
(TITANIA and CHANGELING fall
asleep. PEASEBLOSSOM covers
TITANIA with a blanket.)
PEASEBLOSSOM:
Hence, away! now all is well. (Fairies
exit.)
MR. SILVER: But Oberon was not far
from the clearing. Once Titania was
asleep and her fairies were gone, he
cast his spell on her and stole the
changeling boy. (OBERON creeps close
and squeezes juice of flower onto
TITANIA’s eyelids.)
What thou seest when thou dost wake,
Do it for thy true-love take,
Be it cat, or bear, or boar with bristled
hair. (OBERON motions magically to
CHANGELING, causing child to sleepwalk off with him.)
OBERON:
MR. SILVER: As evening approached,
Lysander and Hermia grew weary and
stopped for the night to rest very close
to where Titania was napping.
HERMIA:
Be it so, Lysander: find you out a bed;
For I upon this bank will rest my head.
LYSANDER:
Here is my bed: sleep give thee all his
rest! (They fall asleep a distance from
each other. PUCK enters, and squeezes
flower juice onto LYSANDER’s eyelids.)
MR. SILVER: Puck was overjoyed to find
the Athenian that Oberon described!
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Little did he know this was the wrong
Athenian!
PUCK:
Churl, upon thy eyes I throw
All the power this charm doth owe.
(PUCK exits.)
MRS. RAY: Helena’s chase led her to
the place where Titania, Lysander,
and Hermia lay sleeping. She was
ready to give up. (DEMETRIUS runs
across stage chased by HELENA, who
stops.)
DEMETRIUS:
I charge thee, hence, and do not haunt
me thus.
HELENA:
O, I am out of breath in this fond
chase!
The more my prayer, the lesser is my
grace.
MRS. RAY: She didn’t see Titania or
Hermia. When she saw Lysander, she
feared the worst and tried to wake
him.
HELENA:
Lysander, if you live, good sir, awake.
LYSANDER:
And run through fire I will for thy
sweet sake.
Where is Demetrius? O, how fit a word
Is that vile name to perish on my
sword.
HELENA:
Yet Hermia still loves you: then be content.
LYSANDER:
Not Hermia but Helena I love:
Who will not change a raven for a
dove?
MRS. RAY: Helena, sure she was being
teased by Lysander, stomped off, only
to be chased by a lovesick Lysander.
7
(HELENA stomps off.)
LYSANDER:
Yes, all my powers, address your love
and might
To honour Helen and to be her knight!
(LYSANDER exits, sword in hand.
HERMIA wakes up.)
MRS. RAY: Hermia awoke to find
Lysander gone. She vowed to find him
no matter what.
HERMIA:
Lysander!
Either death or you I’ll find immediately. (HERMIA runs off.)
MR. SILVER: As evening turned to
night, Bottom the weaver was preparing for his role in the play for Theseus’
wedding. Little did he know, he was
rehearsing right next to the sleeping
Titania. And little did he know that he
was being watched by the mischevious
Puck! (BOTTOM and PUCK enter.)
BOTTOM:
Pat, pat; and here’s a marvellous convenient place for my rehearsal.
(BOTTOM clears throat, exits briefly.)
MR. SILVER: As Bottom prepared to
rehearse his grand entrance, Puck
quickly turned his head into the head
of a donkey in the hopes that Titania
would fall in love with Bottom. (PUCK
and BOTTOM reenter with donkey
head.)
BOTTOM:
If I were fair, Thisbe, I were only thine.
(TITANIA wakes up.)
TITANIA:
What angel wakes me from my flowery
bed?
I love thee! (PUCK runs off, laughing.)
BOTTOM:
Methinks, mistress, you should have
little reason for that! (BOTTOM starts
8
to walk away. TITANIA’s spell brings
him back.)
TITANIA:
Out of this wood do not desire to go:
Thou shalt remain here, whether thou
wilt or no.
I’ll give thee fairies to attend on thee,
Peaseblossom! Cobweb! Moth! and
Mustardseed!
(PEASEBLOSSOM,
COBWEB, MOTH, and MUSTARDSEED enter, giggling.)
PEASEBLOSSOM (Bowing):
Hail mortal!
(Bowing): Hail!
COBWEB,
MOTH,
MUSTARDSEED
ALL:
Where shall we go?
TITANIA:
Lead him to my bower.
(All exit.)
MR. SILVER: Puck was eager to tell his
master the news of Titania’s new mate
and his success in charming the
Athenian described by Oberon.
OBERON:
How now, mad spirit!
My mistress with a monster is in love.
PUCK:
OBERON:
This falls out better than I could
devise.
But hast thou yet latch’d the
Athenian’s eyes
With the love-juice, as I did bid thee
do?
PUCK:
I took him sleeping—that is finish’d
too. (HERMIA and DEMETRIUS
enter.)
OBERON:
Stand close: this is the same Athenian.
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PUCK:
This is the woman, but not this the
man.
DEMETRIUS:
Why rebuke you him that loves you so?
HERMIA:
Where is Lysander, give him to me!
DEMETRIUS:
I had rather give his carcass to my
hounds.
I pray thee, tell me then that he is well.
HERMIA:
DEMETRIUS:
An if I could, what should I get therefore?
A privilege never to see me more.
(HERMIA stomps off.)
HERMIA:
DEMETRIUS:
There’s no following her in this fierce
vein.
MR. SILVER: Because it was very late at
night, Demetrius laid down to rest.
Oberon ordered Puck to find Helena
and bring her close to him. He then put
the juice of the flower on Demetrius’
eyelids to make him fall in love with
Helena.
OBERON:
About the wood go swifter than the
wind,
And Helena of Athens look thou find:
By some illusion see thou bring her
here:
I’ll charm his eyes against she do
appear.
PUCK:
I go, I go; look how I go,
Swifter than arrow from the Tartar’s
bow. (PUCK runs off.)
OBERON:
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Flower of this purple dye,
Sink in apple of his eye. (PUCK reenters.)
MR. SILVER: Puck comes back with
Helena being chased by Lysander. He
thought it was terribly funny that
Helena would now be loved by both
Demetrius and Lysander.
PUCK:
Captain of our fairy band,
Helena is here at hand;
And the youth, mistook by me,
Lord, what fools these mortals be!
OBERON:
Stand aside: the noise they make
Will cause Demetrius to awake.
PUCK:
Then will two at once woo one!
(LYSANDER and HELENA enter.)
DEMETRIUS (Awakening):
O Helena, goddess, nymph, perfect,
divine!
O, let me kiss this princess!
LYSANDER:
You are unkind, Demetrius; be not so;
For you love Hermia; this you know I
know:
DEMETRIUS:
Lysander, keep thy Hermia; I will
none. (HERMIA reenters.)
MRS. RAY: By the time Hermia found
Lysander, he and Demetrius were both
in love with Helena. Lysander pushed
Hermia away and competed with
Demetrius for Helena’s affection.
LYSANDER:
Helena, I love thee; by my life, I do.
DEMETRIUS:
I say I love thee more than he can do.
HERMIA:
Lysander, whereto tends all this?
9
LYSANDER:
Hang off, thou cat, thou burr! vile
thing, let loose,
Or I will shake thee from me like a serpent!
Be certain, nothing truer; ’tis no jest
That I do hate thee and love Helena.
(LYSANDER and DEMETRIUS chase
each other off stage, swordfighting.)
MRS. RAY: Lysander and Demetrius
decide to fight to the death for the love
of Helena. Now Hermia turns her
anger toward Helena.
HERMIA:
O me! you juggler! you canker-blossom!
You thief of love! what, have you come
by night
And stolen my love’s heart from him?
HELENA:
Fie, fie! you puppet, you!
HERMIA:
Puppet? why so? ay, that way goes the
game.
How low am I, thou painted maypole?
speak;
How low am I? I am not yet so low
But that my nails can reach unto thine
eyes.
HELENA:
Your hands than mine are quicker for
a fray,
My legs are longer though, to run
away.
(HERMIA chases HELENA off.)
MR. SILVER: Oberon commands Puck to
lead Demetrius and Lysander through
the forest until they are exhausted and
fall asleep.
PUCK:
Up and down, up and down,
I will lead them up and down:
I am fear’d in field and town:
Goblin, lead them up and down.
MRS. RAY: As night turned to morning,
10
Titania, Bottom, and the fairies went
to bed. (TITANIA, CHANGELING,
and BOTTOM enter, with PEASEBLOSSOM, COBWEB, MOTH, MUSTARDSEED, and other fairies in attendance. They yawn and lie down to rest.)
MR. SILVER: Puck did his duty well:
Lysander and Demetrius fell fast
asleep in the same place. (They pantomime
chasing
each
other.
DEMETRIUS and LYSANDER sleep.)
MRS. RAY: Helena and Hermia did the
same. (HELENA and HERMIA enter
and lie down near them.)
MR. SILVER: At dawn, Oberon
approached the sleeping Titania with
Bottom, and he regretted that he
played such a mean trick on her. He
decided to take back the spell and give
back the changeling boy. Titania woke
and forgot that she was ever angry
with Oberon. (OBERON enters.)
OBERON:
Welcome, good Robin. See’st thou this
sweet sight?
Her dotage now I do begin to pity:
(He puts the flower juice on her eyelids.)
Be as thou wast wont to be;
See as thou wast wont to see:
Now, my Titania; wake you, my sweet
queen. (TITANIA and fairies wake and
stand up.)
TITANIA:
My Oberon! what visions have I seen!
OBERON:
Robin, take off this head.
(PUCK takes head off. BOTTOM runs
away. TITANIA and CHANGELING,
OBERON and fairies walk off, laughing. PUCK squeezes the juice of the
flower onto eyelids of DEMETRIUS,
HELENA, LYSANDER, and HERMIA, who are still sleeping.)
PUCK:
On the ground
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Sleep sound:
I’ll apply
To your eye,
Gentle lover, remedy.
When thou wakest,
Thou takest
True delight
In the sight
Of thy former lady’s eye:
Jack shall have Jill;
Nought shall go ill.
(All exit.)
MR. SILVER: The next morning Hermia,
Helena, Demetrius, and Lysander
were found by Egeus, Theseus and
Hippolyta. They were in big trouble for
running away.
EGEUS:
My lord, this is my daughter here
asleep;
And this, Lysander; this Demetrius is;
This Helena.
THESEUS:
Good morrow, friends. Saint Valentine
is past:
I pray you all, stand up.
EGEUS:
I beg the law, the law, upon his head.
MR. SILVER: The sleepy couples woke
up to find that their problems were
solved. Lysander was in love with
Hermia and Demetrius was in love
with Helena.
DEMETRIUS:
My love to Hermia,
Melted as the snow
The object and the pleasure of mine
eye,
Is only Helena. (All exit.)
MRS. RAY: And since Theseus and
Hippolyta were getting married, they
decided to make it a triple wedding!
MR. SILVER: Bottom was chosen to per-
form at the wedding.
MAY 2006
PHILOSTRATE:
“A tedious brief scene of young
Pyramus
And his love Thisbe; very tragical
mirth.”
BOTTOM:
Thus die I, thus, thus, thus.
Now am I dead
Now am I fled;
My soul is in the sky:
Tongue, lose thy light;
Moon take thy flight:
Now die, die, die, die, die.
(BOTTOM has a prolonged death scene
and drags himself offstage.)
MR. SILVER and MRS. RAY: And they all
lived happily, magically ever after.
MRS. RAY: I guess they’re finally
asleep.
MR. SILVER (Yawning): It’s about time.
(MRS. RAY and MR. SILVER exit.
Curtain closes to a small break. PUCK
enters through break, looks left and
right, then moves to front center to
address audience.)
PUCK:
If we shadows have offended,
Think but this, and all is mended,
That you have but slumber’d here
While these visions did appear.
Give me your hands, if we be friends,
And Robin shall restore amends.
(PUCK puts flower juice on TEDDY’s
sleeping eyelids. He stands back and
surveys the scene with glee.)
TEDDY (Sleepily): Andy?
ANDY: Yeah.
TEDDY: That was a good story.
ANDY: Yup.
TEDDY: Andy?
ANDY: Yeah.
11
TEDDY: Ellen’s kind of cool, right?
ANDY: Uh-huh.
TEDDY: So, how about you can have
Amy and I’ll take Ellen?
ANDY: Cool.
ELLEN: I was just thinking. Teddy and
Andy are pretty cool, but. . .
AMY: But. . .
ELLEN: What about James and Ralph?
AMY: They are really cool.
TEDDY: Cool.
ANDY: Good night, Teddy.
TEDDY: Good night, Andy. (PEASEBLOSSOM enters with fairies. She
taps PUCK on the shoulder, waves
teasingly and runs over to AMY and
ELLEN. She squeezes flower juice on
the girls’ eyelids. The girls sit up.)
ELLEN: Amy, are you awake?
ELLEN: Why don’t you sleep over at my
house tomorrow night and we’ll call
them!
AMY: Great idea!
ELLEN: Good night, Amy.
AMY: Good night, Ellen. Sweet
dreams! (Fairies giggle. PUCK makes a
fist and chases them offstage.)
THE END
AMY: I am now.
A Midsummer Night’s Sleepover
PRODUCTION NOTES
CHARACTERS: 3 male, 3 female for
sleepover party. 17 male and female
for bedtime story characters.
PLAYING TIME: 30 minutes.
COSTUMES: Pajamas for present-day
characters. Appropriate costumes for
Shakespearean players.
PROPERTIES: Video games; books; vial
of “flower juice”; donkey head (may be
made of papier-mache).
SETTING: In front of closed curtain at
left is a boy’s room set up for a sleepover, with two sleeping bags in front of
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a night table with a lamp, cell phone,
and storybook. In front of curtain right
is a girl’s room set up for a sleepover,
with two sleeping bags, stuffed animals, in front of a night table with a
lamp, cell phone, and storybook. There
is a chair next to each night table.
Each room is strewn with sleepover
junk—chip bags, soda, candy wrappers, etc. Trees can be brought onto the
stage as soon as the “dream” action
begins.
LIGHTING and SOUND: No special
effects.
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