LPO Rep debuts Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream
By Soncirey Mitchell Reader Staff
Debuting their tenth production — and first play by William Shakespeare — the Lake Pend Oreille Repertory Theatre will put on six performances of the popular comedy A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Tickets for this two-and-a-half-hour, PG-13 production are $17.50 for youth 17 and under and $28 for adults at panida.org.
Shows will take place at the Panida Theater (300 N. First Ave.) at 7 p.m. on Friday, April 3; Saturday, April 4; Thursday, April 9; Friday, April 10; and Saturday, April 11. The final performance will be a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday, April 12.
Aiden Phillips and Tobey Jensen as Helena and Demetrius. Photo by Tim Bangle
A Midsummer Night’s Dream is one of Shakespeare’s most famous comedies, weaving English folklore and Greek mythology into a chaotic, romantic story with three interwoven plots. Four young lovers’ lives are thrown into disarray when they cross paths with Oberon, Titania and their fairy courts while attending the wedding of Theseus and Hippolyta. The fantastical storyline — with love potions and a donkey-headed actor — celebrates and pokes fun at the nature of love.
LPO Rep’s modern adaptation includes ballet, musical numbers and an updated setting in New York City.
Andrew Sorg and Nikki Luttmann as Oberon and Titania. Photos by Tim Bangle.
“I think the New York culture lends itself nicely to the hierarchy that’s naturally built into the script; you’ve got the Athenians, the Mechanicals and the fairies,” said Director Tim Bangle. “The Athenians are the upper class, Wall Street, stockbroker people. The Mechanicals are blue-collar workers, so we’ve got them dressed as dock workers and apartment complex superintendents. For the fairies, we disguised them with what we’ve called ‘street personas.’” These personas include buskers, clowns, reporters and mobsters. The visually elaborate production also includes pre-recorded videos projected behind the actors to give certain scenes a dream-like quality while revealing the characters’ pasts and buried emotions. Overall, LPO Rep’s unique spin seeks to make the 430-year-old story more accessible and entertaining for modern audiences looking to add some joy to their lives.
“We need to laugh, and we need to love,” said Bangle. “There’s a lot of sarcasm and anger and hate in the world right now, and this show is just a real laugh. I’ve gone home after every rehearsal with a headache because I’ve laughed so hard throughout the show.”
For more information, visit lporep.com.
Want to support independent local journalism?
The Sandpoint Reader is our town's local, independent weekly newspaper. "Independent" means that the Reader is locally owned and operated by people who were born and raised in Sandpoint. The Reader is owned by Publisher Ben Olson, Editor-in-Chief Zach Hagadone and Senior Writer Soncirey Mitchell. Sandpoint Reader LLC is a completely independent business unit; no big newspaper group or corporate conglomerate or billionaire owner dictates our editorial policy. And we want the news, opinion and lifestyle stories we report to be freely available to all interested readers - so unlike many other newspapers and media websites, we have NO PAYWALL on our website. The Reader relies wholly on the support of our valued advertisers, as well as readers who voluntarily contribute. Want to ensure that local, independent journalism survives in our town? You can help support the Reader for as little as $1.
TIMBER WARS: Six-part series, February-November 2022. GO READ IT»
WHERE ARE THE WORKERS?: Five-part series, September-October 2021. GO READ IT»
THE AMERICAN REDOUBT: Seven-part series, November-December 2017. GO READ IT»
STANDOFF AT RUBY RIDGE: 25 Years Later. Five-part series, August-September 2017. GO READ IT»
Curious about what media the locals use? Check our 2018 Local Media Survey. GO SEE »
Sandpoint in Pictures
Filmmaker Jimmy Matlosz of the Idaho Film Company has made a series of mini documentaries about influential Sandpoint locals, including the late Dann Hall and Erik Daarstad as well as icons Diane Michaels and Dan Shook. He is currently working on a series of interviews connected to the history of the Panida Theater. Jimmy is a 30-year veteran filmmaker who's work can be seen at dpmatlosz.com.
Meet the Reader
Ever wonder who makes the Reader happen? Here's a behind-the-scenes look pieced together by summer 2017 intern McCalee Cain in which Ben, Cameron and Lyndsie explain what exactly about the Reader keeps them coming back to their shabby (but well-loved) office each week.
