It’s 1994 in Tory Britain. Rave culture is abundant. Free spirits take to the fields around Chichester and dance the night away. There’s fairies, love potions and tales of same-sex obsession. This is Shakespeare, but not as you know it.
Chichester Festival Theatre’s astounding adaptation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream transports us from the 1590s to the 1990s for a fairy fever dream you won’t forget in a hurry. The performance hits all the notes you’d expect from the much-told tale, but with new inspiration that makes it infinitely more interesting and engaging to watch. Think a Tory bonkbuster wedding. The Young Conservatives Club conceiving a farcical play. Frenetic dancers getting down on the South Downs. All to a soundtrack of 90s bangers. Yes please.
Highlights from the cast include Munya Chawawa as a reimagined, Young Conservative, (Nick) Bottom. Bumbling, hyperactive and surprisingly endearing, Chawawa fleshes out the role to full aplomb. There’s a real star in the making here.
Eve Ponsonby is an absolute vision as Titania, and we mean this in the broadest sense of the word. She has an extraordinary presence on stage, managing to evoke power with vulnerability. A touch of the ethereal, with authoritative dynamism that leaves followers trailing wide-eyed in her wake. Bravo.
Also of much delight, Theseus (Tom Kanji) and Hippolyta (Celeste Dodwell), now conceived as the newly-elected Chichester MP and his soon-to-be-bride. The pair are seldom on stage, but they bring beautifully-characterised silliness, cheer and physical energy to every scene they enter.
In more minor roles, Kishore Walker as Frankie Flute and Anna Soden as Robyn Starveling, both members of the Young Conservative Club cast, add a lively injection of fun to the farcical play- within-a-play. Walker has broad-range, from beleaguered schoolboy, to an indulgently theatrical side that is such a delight to watch. While Soden is a pleasingly peppy presence as a swoony sales assistant making eyes at Bottom.
If we had one tiny quibble in this near-perfect production, it would be powerful to see the male members of the fairy clan take a little more delight in their mischief. There’s so much fun to be had here, which isn’t exploited to its full potential.
Kudos must to go the stage and lighting designers (Joanna Scotcher and Elliot Griggs respectively), who have created a real feast for the eyes. The lighting brings a touch of techno with fairy whimsy – a significant task to accomplish, and one which is perfectly executed. There’s even fluorescent light adorning many costumes and props, giving a pleasing nod to the rave culture at the heart of this adaptation.
Co-Directors Justin Audibert and Hannah Joss have made really smart choices with the support of their talented cast. This interpretation extracts humour from the text, and infuses it where there is none. It makes it immensely palatable for younger audiences, Shakespeare purists and theatre fans alike.
This reviewer must confess, A Midsummer Night’s Dream is not her favourite Shakespeare play. Having seen it performed traditionally, and in more modern style, no version has ever really hit the spot. Until now. This is world-class theatre, which could easily see a home in the West End, or further afield. The comparison between the free spirits of rave culture and the world of the fairies is so beautifully appropriate it’s almost impossible to imagine it wasn’t originally designed this way. This is quite the feat. Funny, fresh and exciting, this production sets the standard for contemporary interpretation of classic texts. A resounding round of applause for all involved.
Reviewed on 25 September 2026.
-
10
