Shakespeare returns to famed Congress Park

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. » For lovers of theater, and who knows, maybe lovers in general, there are few things in summer more pleasing that an outdoor performance of a great play.

Since William Shakespeare is considered the finest English playwright to ever write for theater, attending one his plays in an idyllic setting might be a summer highlight.

On Tuesday, Saratoga Shakespeare opens Shakespeare’s delightful pastoral comic romp, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” that runs Tuesdays through Sundays until July 29. That the production is offered free of charge is a happy bonus.

One of the special qualities of attending Shakespeare presented in a park-setting is the familyfriendly atmosphere it fosters. Groups come together, arrive early (you must bring your own seats), and picnic on the grass while waiting for the performance to start. A treat for the younger audiences is that at the end of the performance the actors mingle with viewers while still in costumes. They play with the kids while seeking donations from the parents.

Introducing youngsters to theater, and Shakespeare in particular, has a special resonance with the director of “Midsummer,” Wesley Broulik. In a recent interview he explained the concept of free theater to family-oriented audiences is what drew him to become a member of Saratoga Shakespeare.

This is Broulik’s third season with the company, Audiences might remember him as playing the title character in last year’s ”Cyrano de Bergerac” or performing Don Armado in the 2015 production of “Love’s Labour’s Lost.”

He says he was teaching at U Albany in 2015 (he’s now teaching theater at the Johnny Carson School of Theatre and Film at the University of Nebraska) and he had heard about the quality of the work Saratoga Shakespeare was doing. But he was more intrigued by their mission of offering free theater to the public. “I believe in what they do,” he says.

In way of explanation, he says, ”One of my fondest memories was as a young actor spending a summer performing theater through the Montana State Park system. We toured Montana, Idaho and western Washington State. We performed 63 shows in 64 days and played upwards to a 1,000 people a performance, all enjoying free theater. It shaped me as an artist and as a person.”

Indeed, the image of family was a major influence on his deciding to direct “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” and it influences his interpretation of the material.

Broulik describes a quiet moment on stage last year when he gazed out to the audience being in awe of the large assemblage and their rapt attention to the play being performed.

“I was reveling in the moment, thinking to myself I am the only person in the world who can see this magical moment from this perspective. Then my eyes fell on a company member, Tim Dugan, who was not in the production, standing there watching with his family. There was Tim – I think of him as ‘Superdad’– with his kids. It was a magical moment that gave me a vision and a concept for ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream.’”

He pitched the idea to the producers who agreed to let him direct it this year.

Completing the circle, Tim Dugan is in the production playing Bottom, who leads the band of comic rustics as they attempt to put on a play to please the king. Bottom’s rehearsal is interrupted when he is turned into an ass and becomes the romantic obsession of Titania, the Queen of the Fairies.

Don’t ask about the logic of the plot – it’s magic – which is the theme of Saratoga Shakespeare’s 2017 season. It’s the kind of magic Broulik is hoping to bring to the entire production of “Midsummer.”

He says, “At Saratoga Shakespeare we have developed an aesthetic that our audiences recognize. Its friendly atmosphere respects the playwright, the audience and the performers. Most of all, we have learned to respect the space of Congress Park. ‘Midsummer’ takes place in the woods. We are turning the park into our own welcoming forest filled with fairies, acrobats, actors and happy families.”

“A Midsummer Night’s Dream” at Congress Park in Saratoga Springs Tuesday, July 18 - 29. It runs Tuesdays-Saturdays starting at 6 p.m. with a 3 p.m. matinee on Sundays. It is followed by a one-week run of “A Winter’s Tale” which runs August 1-5. For information go to saratogashakespeare.com