Flabbergast Theatre’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream will be at Wilton’s Music Hall from 9th - 20th April, at 7.30pm. There are matinee performances at 2:30pm on Thursdays (11th, 18th) and Saturdays (13th, 20th). For tickets, visit: https://www.wiltons.org.uk/whatson/847-a-midsummer-night-s-dream-
If you ever studied Shakespeare in secondary school, you’ve probably encountered his classic comedy A Midsummer Night’s Dream - but you’ve never seen it like this. Flabbergast Theatre is a creative production group who made waves last year with their intense and deeply raw production of the tragedy Macbeth. This year, they’re bringing their unique aesthetic and highly expressive blend of acting, clowning, puppetry, dance, and music to A Midsummer Night’s Dream, with transcendent results. There are stilts, there are masks, there are animal skulls, and there are folk songs. We spoke to Vyte Garriga, who plays the lovelorn Helena in this chaotic, sumptuous, and enthusiastically silly production.
What was the silliest moment during rehearsals with this show?
Only one? Well, it has to be Snout's line "By our lady's kin, a parlous fear", which I simply could not pronounce, so I kept saying it in a different accent each time. And the lovers fight, of course. Especially in the beginning when we were messing up our lines, so the scene would never end. Oh, and there’s a day when we held the traffic in St Ives because we couldn’t fit the cart into the theatre. Some people really didn’t like it.
Aside from your own character, which character would you love to play in this version of Midsummer Night’s Dream?
I'd love to play Oberon - it would give me a chance to wear those stilts.
Did you have to learn any new skills for your character? What was the hardest part of that?
Mask work and puppetry. The quality of movement the mask requires is completely different from anything I’ve done before- it forces you to be bigger, broader and use your whole body to tell the story. As for puppetry- the "less is more" approach, it’s not the quantity but the quality of movement that creates the magic.
What was your pre-show routine to get into the mood for this show?
The show starts spoiler with all of us on stage and in the auditorium mingling around, which allows me to explore Helena outside of the script, which I really really enjoy. And all of us having popcorn during the interval, so we have enough steam for the lovers' fight.
Was this show different to other productions of Shakespeare you’ve worked on with Flabbergast? How about with other groups?
Absolutely! Every Flabbergast show is different from the one before- we don't like repeating ourselves. So aesthetically MSND is a complete opposite to Macbeth - it is full of colour, costume changes and has a different quality of movement. However, the skills we learned while making Macbeth are transferred to MSND (and other Flabbergast's shows).
How is it different from others? Flabbergast's shows are bigger, bolder and unafraid to tell the story our way.
What is the role of play and imagination in this production?
It’s vital, especially because it’s a comedy. Making people sad mainly relies on the subject matter. And it’s an inward expression. While making people laugh relies on the skill of the performer as it’s all about timing and rhythm. And us having fun on stage and playing with each other and the audience is key.
How does the set and design influence the performance of this show?
It’s a part of it - the 9th player. The staging of our MSND was heavily influenced by the cart and what we can do with and around it. Everything we have on stage is a toy to help us tell the story- a playground.
What do you like about the role of music in this performance?
Music adds another layer to the story. It was wonderful to work with Nick exploring English Folk song and finding ways of incorporating it into the script. The lullaby still gives me goosebumps- I adore it!
Flabbergast Theatre’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream will be at Wilton’s Music Hall from 9th - 20th April, at 7.30pm. There are matinee performances at 2:30pm on Thursdays (11th, 18th) and Saturdays (13th, 20th). For tickets, visit: https://www.wiltons.org.uk/whatson/847-a-midsummer-night-s-dream-
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