How G&S is it? How AMND is it?

The characters, the plot, the locations and structure etc. of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream have been kept near to that of the original play. The words have been rewritten to suit the style and format of a typical Gilbert & Sullivan operetta, and also to reflect the end of the millennium context in which this show was written, having its first performance in 1998 when Lloyd-Webber, Les Mis and The Full Monty were popular contemporary cultural influences. But it was written specifically to mimic the roles and chorus needs of a G&S Society, so it should suit companies to whom G&S is familiar.

Likewise, the solo parts are written with typical G&S roles in mind. In the original performance  Hermia had previously played Yum-Yum, Hippolyta had been Katisha,  Lysander Nanki-Poo, Oberon Pooh-Bah,  Bottom had been Koko (of course, Bottom has to be the patter-man), the chorus sing and dance to 'Music Ho Music' instead of a 'Cachucha', and Stags and Hens collide for a classic double-chorus at the begining, and the frantic end to the first act, 'False or True?', derives directly from  'A man who would woo a fair maid'. So, even if some of the songs are more late 20th Century in style than late 19th Century, at its heart this is a traditional G&S show.

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The title 'Another Dream'

The show is named after the opening song of Act 2 Another Dream, sung here by the first Hermia, Caroline Palmer:

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Originally, the show was simply called 'Dream' as that is how it was referred to in the first rehearsals and it just stuck. But as 'dream' is a generic short form of 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' it needed something to differentiate it. 'A G&S Dream' was one option but it's not  actually by G&S, just heavily influenced by them. So, the opening song of the second Act 'Another Dream' seemed appropriate, and this show is, after all, 'another' version of Shakespeare's 'Dream' (it is literally 'another dream').  

 

Running Time

Approximately 2hrs to 2hrs 15min including a break between Acts.

 

Scenes

The show is in two acts but there are essentially three scenes:

1. Outside the forest 

2. Inside the forest

3. Outside the forest

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Can it be changed to suit the times?

As with all good  G&S shows, the libretto has never been performed exactly as it was written. Even the first performance was altered to include Monica Lewinsky and the UK National Lottery amongst other events of the week, and any new production might consider continuing the tradition of making it relevant to the day. Also, things that worked in the 1990’s might not work 20 or more years later, so make as many changes as you want and, of course, play for laughs whenever you can. 

Some parts can be played by any gender; Puck has been played by both tenor and soprano, and the players (Wall, Moon, Lion etc) are easily interchangeable.There's no particular reason why Bottom needs to be a male part, women have few opportunities in G&S to sing patter songs, Bottom could be male, female or non-binary, so it really doesn't matter.

 

How hard is it? Will our company be able to perform it?

If you can handle G&S then you should be able to do this show. Some of the more contemporary influences mean that there are some trickier time-signs, but they have a natural flow to them and don't seem to cause companies any bother. There is a lot of chorus work as it was written in a way to make sure everyone had plenty to do, but cuts can be made if required.

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I haven't heard of this show before, can it really be any good?

Yes, it's good. Critiques have called the quality of the music 'superb' and the libretto 'clever', the play is already well-known and loved by audiences, and companies have put on repeated productions because it is enjoyable to rehearse and perform. 

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Are there hard copies of scores available?

Yes. There are hard copies of vocal scores in circulation, though I have noticed a tendency towards singers using iPads and tablets instead recently. However, there are copies that can be made available.

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Is there a pit band?

There is an orchestration but the show has also been performed just with piano/keyboard(s), and also with less parts than the original orchestration. There are hard copies of the parts of the original orchestration available if needed, and again, it can be adapted for whatever forces you may have.

The orchestration available on this site is written for:

Fl, Ob, Cl, Hn, Trb, Perc, Keyb'd, Vn1, Vn2, Va, Vc Db.

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How Much does it cost?

Nothing. There are no fees or royalties, everything here is given freely to amateur societies (professional ones making a profit might be a different thing). It's costly enough for most societies to put on a show (hiring the venue, the costumes, a band if you can afford one etc.) and there is always the risk of putting on a new show that audiences don't know (albeit mitigated here as AMND is so well known). If scores etc. are needed then there might be a cost to cover postage/transport to get them to you, but otherwise the material for the show is all free, and the only costs you should incur are the normal ones of costumes etc. as mentioned.

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Do we have to tell someone that we are staging the show?

No. Just go ahead and perform it. But I would be pleased to hear from you if would like to let me know.

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Thank You,

Robert Wilsmore

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