Mainstage Theatre to end its season with 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'
The School of Performing Arts at Virginia Tech will conclude its 2014-15 Mainstage Theatre season with William Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream." There will be 10 performances, running April 15-18 and 20-25 at 7:30 p.m. in the Squires Studio Theatre.
Faculty member Natasha Staley Johnson directs a cast of 22 Virginia Tech students in a whimsical tale that travels the course of true love. Follow two young couples as they venture into a forest inhabited by fairies and six oddball entertainers. In the forest, a fairy uses a magical flower to spark romance, but not without a little mayhem. In the end, true love conquers all.
Tapiwa Mugweni of Wood Green, North London, is a junior majoring in English and American literature at the University of Kent in England. Currently studying at Virginia Tech, Mugweni plays the role of Lysander, one of the four lovers.
Mugweni said he has cherished the opportunity to take part in the production as part of his study abroad experience, and he credits “the efforts of an incredible crew, a dedicated cast, and a brilliantly passionate director.”
“A Midsummer Night’s Dream” features lighting design by Alison Hall of Somers, Connecticut, an master of fine arts candidate in theatre in the School of Performing Arts. It includes 10 moons and is the culminating project for her degree. Four of Hall’s colorful mechanical moons set the stage for a magical night using 256 hand-placed LED lights on hand-fabricated, reusable panels.
Tickets for “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” are $10 general admission and $8 for seniors and students. Tickets may be purchased at the Student Centers and Activities Ticket Office on the first floor of Squires Student Center, online, or by calling 540-231-5615. Limited tickets may be available at the box office beginning one hour before each performance. For information about group sales, contact the School of Performing Arts.
Squires Student Center is at 290 College Ave. on the Virginia Tech campus. Free parking is available on weekends and after 5 p.m. weekdays in the Squires Lot, located at the corner of College Avenue and Otey Streets, in the Architecture Annex Lot on Otey Street, and the Perry Street/Prices Fork lots. Find more parking information online or call 540-231-3200. Alternative parking is available in the Kent Square parking garage and the Farmers Market metered parking lot, both located on Draper Road. Additional downtown Blacksburg parking information is available online.
Written by Daveisha Gibson of Mitchellville, Maryland, a graduate student studying arts leadership in the School of Performing Arts.
