September may be coming to an end, but there are still three more chances to catch one of William Shakespeare’s most famous comedy ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ at The Classic Theatre of San Antonio. It consists of four interconnecting love stories, connected by a celebration of the wedding of Duke Theseus of Athens and the Amazon queen Hippolyta, which is set simultaneously in the woodland and in the realm of Fairyland, under the light of the moon. Sometimes while dreaming and desiring, a little magic is all it takes to set the course of love, comedy and reality in motion. Upcoming showtimes Friday and Saturday at 8p.m. and Sunday at 3p.m. Tickets are available online or by calling the box office at (210) 589-8450.

‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ opens with four characters who are wrapped up in a love quarrel: Hermia who is in love with Lysander but whose father has promised her to Demetrius and Helena, Hermia’s best friend who secretly pines for Demetrius who broke up with her to be with Hermia. There is also Peter Quince, who along with his friends Nick Bottom, Francis Flute, Robin Starveling, Tom Snout and Snug are preparing to put on a play for the wedding of the Duke Theseus of Athens and the Amazon queen Hippolyta, which is titled “Pyramus and Thisbe.” In the parallel realm of Fairyland, Oberon, king of the fairies and Titania, his queen are estranged because of her refusal to give him her changeling. He plans to shame her into changing her mind and instructs his faithful servant Puck to help him. With the help of a magical flower, Puck wreaks havoc in the forest by causing everyone to fall for the wrong person. Eventually everything returns to normal and the actors perform the play for Theseus, Hippolyta and the lovers but the actor’s performances are so bad that the guests laugh as if it were a comedy. When everyone goes to bed, Oberon, Titania, Puck and the other fairies bless the house and its occupants with good fortune.

The story and the subplots can get confusing but the cast does a splendid job of moving the action along under the expert direction of Joe Goscinski. The poetic dialogue flows effortlessly throughout the production and the lighting and staging create a magical environment. Compared to Shakespeare’s other works, this is a light-hearted comedy and had the audience laughing all night. Jordon Acker, Kacey Roye, Tyler Smith and Hunter Wulff are excellent as the quartet of lovers but Maggie Tonra steals the show as the fiendish Puck. For anyone who has ever wanted to see a Shakespearean play but found the material intimidating, The Classic Theatre’s performance of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ is the perfect way to dive right in. The combination of magic, action, love and humor along with the high-grade caliber performances from the entire cast makes this a show not to be missed. This is classic Shakespeare at its best.