Karen Aldridge, Celeste Arias, Paul James & More to Star in A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM at The Old Globe

The Old Globe has announced the cast and creative team for William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. Globe Resident Artist Patricia McGregor (The Old Globe's Krapp's Last Tape, Measure for Measure, Broadway's 24 Hour Plays), who was recently named Artistic Director of New York Theatre Workshop, directs a cast of 20. The Bard's beloved comedy is the concluding production of the Globe's 2022 Summer Shakespeare Festival under the stars in the Lowell Davies Festival Theatre. A Midsummer Night's Dreamwill begin performances on July 31 and run through September 4, 2022, with the opening on Saturday, August 6. Tickets are available at www.TheOldGlobe.org.

Fall under the spell of Shakespeare's most joyful and popular comedy. Filled with magic, humor, music, and spectacle, the merriment unfolds in an enchanted forest where fairies play tricks on unsuspecting lovers and bumbling actors are transformed beyond their wildest dreams. With a magic potion that grants love at first sight, anything can, and does, happen!

"Patricia McGregor has graced San Diego and the Globe with her abundant talent for years now, and as she departs our city to become Artistic Director of the great and important New York Theatre Workshop, we can't imagine a better curtain call than her amazing new production of A Midsummer Night's Dream," said Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic DirectorBarry Edelstein. "Shakespeare is one of Patricia's loves, and this magical, funny, and totally marvelous play will allow her abundant talents to flourish. From the romantic lovers to the winsome fairies to the slapstick 'mechanicals,' Midsummer is chock full of delights. It really is the perfect play for this director, and the perfect Shakespeare to experience under the starts on a balmy San Diego summer night. This is a show that's certain to be unforgettable."

McGregor directs a cast of 20, which includes Karen Aldridge as Titania (Broadway's Matilda The Musical, FX's "Fargo"), Celeste Arias as Helena (The Old Globe's Uncle Vanya, Off Broadway's Anatomy of a Suicide), Paul James as Oberon (Showtime's "I Love That for You," Netflix's "Soundtrack"), Jake Millgard as Bottom (The Old Globe's Trouble in Mind, Macbeth), Victor Morris as Egeus (The Old Globe's Trouble in Mind, Oregon Shakespeare Festival's Twelfth Night), Carter Piggee as Fairy (The Old Globe's The Taming of the Shrew, MOXIE's Ironbound),Christopher Michael Rivera as Puck (Shakespeare Center of Los Angeles's Henry IV, Oregon Shakespeare Festival's A Midsummer Night's Dream), Jamie Ann Romero as Hermia (Oregon Shakespeare Festival's Shakespeare in Love, Off Broadway's Dracula), and Miki Vale as DJ (The Old Globe's Globe for All Tour's Measure for Measure, Shakespeare: Call and Response).

The cast also includes students in The Old Globe and University of San Diego Shiley Graduate Theatre Program:Brett Cassidy (Theseus, Mustardseed), Jacqui Dupré (Peaseblossom), Savannah Faye (Starveling), Komi M. Gbeblewou (Snout), Camilla Leonard (Hippolyta, Cobweb), Becca Lustgarten (Quince), Jeffrey Rashad(Demetrius), Bernadette Sefic (Lysander), Jude Tibeau (Snug, Fairy), Nathan VanAtta (Flute), and Maggie Walters(Moth, First Fairy).

In addition to McGregor, the creative team includes scenic and costume design by David Israel Reynoso, lighting design by Stephen Strawbridge, sound design and additional music by Melanie Chen Cole, original music by Mike Vale, choreography by Paloma McGregor, vocal coach Emmelyn Thayer, fight consultation by Ka'imi Kuoha, fight consultation by Jake Millgard, casting by Alaine Alldaffer, CSA and Lisa Donadio, production stage manager Chandra R.M. Anthenill, and assistant stage manager Avery James Evans.

The Old Globe's 2022 Summer Shakespeare Festival kicked off last month with The Taming of the Shrew, directed by Shana Cooper. The Festival also features the Globe's popular annual event Thinking Shakespeare Live!, hosted and directed by the Globe's Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein. This 90-minute exploration of the language of Shakespeare will be held on Sunday, July 17 at 11:00 a.m. on the Donald and Darlene Shiley Stage in The Old Globe Theatre, part of the Globe's Conrad Prebys Theatre Center.

A Midsummer Night's Dream will play in the Lowell Davies Festival Theatre at The Old Globe in San Diego's Balboa Park (1363 Old Globe Way). Performances play from July 31 through September 4, 2022, with the official opening on Saturday, August 6 at 8:00 p.m. The performance schedule is Tuesday through Sunday at 8:00 p.m. Schedule note: The performance on Sunday, September 4 will begin at 7:00 p.m. Tickets are available online at www.TheOldGlobe.org, by phone at (619) 23-GLOBE (234-5623), or at our Box Office in Balboa Park. Regular tickets prices start at $30.00. The Vicki and Carl Zeiger Insights Seminar, scheduled for Tuesday, August 2, 2022 at 7:00 p.m., will provide patrons an exploration of the themes and background of A Midsummer Night's Dream from selected artistic company members.

In alignment with the State of California, which has removed mask and vaccine requirements for indoor events, The Old Globe will not require patrons to provide proof of vaccination or to wear masks while attending shows or events in either our indoor or outdoor venues. However, the theatre still strongly recommends mask-wearing while at the Globe, and patrons should feel comfortable wearing a mask anywhere on our campus if they choose.

A Midsummer Night's Dream is supported by lead production sponsor Darlene Marcos Shiley, with additional support from Ann Davies, Hal and Pam Fuson, Globe Guilders, The Estate of Ann Steck and Family, Gillian and Tony Thornley, Vicki and Carl Zeiger, and artist sponsors Sue and Edward "Duff" Sanderson (for director Patricia McGregor). This production is supported in part by the Jean and Gary Shekhter Fund for Classic Theatre. The Theodor and Audrey Geisel Fund provides leadership support for The Old Globe's year-round activities. Financial support for The Old Globe is provided by The City of San Diego.

About The Old Globe

The Tony Award-winning The Old Globe is one of the country's leading professional not-for-profit regional theatres. Now in its 88th year, the Globe is San Diego's flagship performing arts institution, and it serves a vibrant community with theatre as a public good. Under the leadership of Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein and the Audrey S. Geisel Managing Director Timothy J. Shields, The Old Globe produces a year-round season of 16 productions of classic, contemporary, and new works on its three Balboa Park stages, including its internationally renowned Shakespeare Festival. More than 250,000 people annually attend Globe productions and participate in the theatre's artistic and arts engagement programs. Its nationally prominent Arts Engagement Department provides an array of participatory programs that make theatre matter to more people in neighborhoods throughout the region. Humanities programs at the Globe and around the city broaden the community's understanding of theatre art in all its forms. The Globe also boasts a range of new play development programs with professional and community-based writers, as well as the renowned The Old Globe and University of San Diego Shiley Graduate Theatre Program. Numerous world premieres-such as 2014 Tony Award winner for Best Musical A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, Bright Star, The Full Monty, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, and Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas!-have been developed at The Old Globe and have gone on to highly successful runs on Broadway and at regional theatres across the country.

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