Dieterle's AMidsummer Night s Dream" described it well as, "a vast!balletic-operatic extravaganza with huge casts, elaborate scenery, andlavish costumes." (37, Jorgens) Overall it was a very large film. TheBBC version, on the other hand, erred in the opposite. It was slow,relatively unemotional, and somewhat difficult to watch. After viewingboth these versions, I realized that my perceptions of the text weremuch different than either of the films. I wanted something morenormal, less mystical, more possible however, the time for me to voicethose desires had not yet come.PerformingThis third dimension of experiencing Shakespeare comes only when areader-turned-viewer decides to become the actor. This aspect of theShakespearean experience is nearly the only of the three mentioned thatsupports and encourages open creativity and self-expression. Now ourquestions of, "what would I have done differently" have a chance to beanswered. It is in the acting that the text becomes less detached fromus, becoming more our own. We are no longer in !the passive mode, butthe active. Now, we wait for no one, cut lines if we like, say it fast,draw it out. There are few, if any, limits to how a play can be done.Performing brings one's original, textual conceptions in synergy withthose viewed of others, creating a play that is both wholly collage, andwholly new. The play begins to conform to what we, as individuals,perceive to be the best or most right interpretation of the text. After viewing the two film versions of A Midsummer Night's Dream,I envisioned something much more casual and lighthearted, even funny,for our own performance of Act III, Scene ii. Because of this, andprobably because of the nature of the cast in general, our group took ona more youthful, somewhat ridiculous approach to the play. Demetriuswas played by a woman, Lysander dressed in ruffles and knickers, Helenavictimized and "shrewish" to the extreme, and Hermia was more often thanno...
