A Midsummer Night's Dream at Wanstead House

Wednesday 12th September 2018

Yes, winter might be approaching but here at The Acting Space we are still reflecting on our wonderful student’s open-air performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare this summer. 

Rehearsed and performed in just two days, our students, some of whom had never acted in a full play before, mastered the complex text, the boiling hot conditions and the unusual setting to pull off a wonderful show that our audience thoroughly enjoyed.

On day one, we met and read through the play, plus worked on characterisation, learned a dance routine and then spent the rest of the day blocking the show. We really saw our actors come to life, working well together and enjoying exploring Shakespeare’s story. As well as having the challenge of rehearsing in just a few hours, we also had an actor who had the added test of coming in as an understudy two days before the rehearsals and he did an amazing job at such short notice considering how hard the text is to learn.

On day two we re-joined and had our dress rehearsal before the performance in the afternoon. Nerves were rife among the cast, which is normal for anyone about to perform, but they managed to hold it together and channel their nervous energy into the show.

Picnic blankets were laid, drinks were poured and our audience had settled down on the lawn for our special performance. Some people had ventured from the other side of London to watch! They were brilliant and we were so very proud of what they achieved.

As a teacher, there is nothing more inspiring than seeing your students learning and growing in confidence and applying their new found skill in a live performance.

Our students said:

“Putting together a play in just two days was a challenge, but it was also fun and enjoyable. I absolutely loved it.” Gonzo

“Doing Shakespeare was a huge challenge for me but at the end I had an amazing time, learnt a lot and met really incredible people. It was all so fun, I’d definitely do it again!” Ines

 If you’d like to take part in one of our weekend challenges on the 15^th and 16^th of December we will be rehearsing and performing

Aladdin-a-bin

A pantomime parody, in two days at the Rosemary Branch Theatre in Islington.

 For more details contact us at info@theactingspace.co.uk

Katherine and Olivia