A Midsummer Night’s Dream Who’s Who

Where and when is this play set? The story is set in and around the city and woods of Athens, Greece, back during the age of legends. A war between the Athenians and the Amazons, a tribe of beautiful warrior-women, has just ended, while a war of wits between the faeries of Underhill, the woodland realm outside of Athens, has just begun. Athens is a city of philosophers, soldiers, and statesmen, a “civilized” place dominated by strict rules. Meanwhile, the forest is a primal, untamed place, and when the night falls, it is where the chaotic faerie courts run wild.

Theseus The ruler of Athens, a brilliant warrior, smart leader, and hot-headed lover. He fell in love with Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons, but when she refused him, he made war upon her nation and conquered them by force. He now means to marry her, even though he knows she could try to kill him at any time.

Hippolyta The fiercely independent queen of the Amazons, legendary tribe of beautiful warrior-women. She is now Theseus’ captive, and part of her wants to kill him, but part of her finds him so darn hot… Both are anxiously awaiting their approaching marriage, and every time they’re around each other, the sparks fly.

Egeus & Philostrate Egeus is the grumpy father of Hermia, the dreamgirl of Athens. Remember that in this time period, women are viewed as the property of their fathers, then later their husbands. Marriages are arranged, and daughters get no say in who they are given to. Philostrate is the grumpy servant of Theseus, who’s in charge of making the duke’s wedding to go well. Good luck with that…

Lysander & Demetrius Lysander is a sweet, artistic, kinda nerdy young Athenian lordling. Through writing her poems, singing her songs, and generally being sweet and kinda emo, he has won the love of Hermia, a beautiful young heiress…but Hermia’s dad hates his guts. Demetrius is the guy Hermia’s dad approves of…but he’s an arrogant, jockish playboy. Before he set his sights on Hermia, he was romancing Hermia’s BFF, Helena, and it is rumored to that he slept with her— remember, in this sexist time period, an unmarried woman’s value is determined by her virginity, and now Helena is in big trouble unless she marries Demetrius.

Hermia & Helena Hermia is a short, pretty, popular young heiress who is a sweet and ladylike, but also strong-willed enough to defy her dad in an age where girls are considered the property of their fathers. Think “smart, sassy prom queen.” Helena is her tall, awkward BFF. She seems nerdy, but underneath the bookish façade is one sneaky, freaky lady. Think “librarian gone bad.” She knows she should hate Demetrius, but she still has the hots for him after everything…plus if she doesn’t marry him, then she’s in serious trouble.

The Rude Mechanicals A bumbling bunch of part-time actors and handymen who hope to make a quick buck performing at Theseus’ wedding—Theseus has ordered a big celebration to please Hippolyta, and there’s a big reward for the best show. – Quince – Their useless director – Starveling, Snout, Flute, Snug – A cast of scatterbrained nitwits – Bottom – The worst actor of the bunch, who thinks he’s the best.

Titania & Oberon Proud and powerful Titania the Faerie Queen loves and hates her husband, the wily and wicked Lord Oberon. Their latest argument is over a magical changeling child she has stolen for her own…a child Oberon wants to twist into one of his dark minions. Oberon and Titania have cheated on each other a million times, but neither one can quit the other…after all, where’s the fun in that? Both are planning on crashing the wedding of Theseus and Hippolyta…since both had affairs with these mortals in the past. In case you haven’t noticed, the faerie king and queen are references to the Greek gods Zeus & Hera.

Puck & the Faeries Puck is Oberon’s chief henchman, a charming, devious trickster who often makes mistakes. In the play, Puck will act kind of like Cupid, the naughty love god who carelessly makes people fall in love with the wrong people. This is to symbolize the chaotic nature of love in human society. The faerie-maids are Titania’s faithful servants…who love to watch the lunacy their lord and lady (and faerie manservant) get into. All of the faeries really serve as symbols of the wild, naughty desires that we in “polite society” try to keep buried inside us…the faeries come out at night, and our dark sides come out at night, too.

Who am I? 1.I’m the setting of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. 2.I kinda hate Theseus because he conquered my people, but I kinda like him. He’s such a magnificent beast! 3.I’m the ruler of Athens, and as much as I don’t trust my future wife, I want her so bad… 4.I wish my daughter would obey me. She’s such a brat! Females are supposed to belong to their men! 5.I’m gonna marry Hermia whether or not she likes it, even though I may have just slept with her best friend. Booya! 6.I’m nothing but trouble, and King Oberon sends me to do all his dirty work. I also symbolize Cupid…because love is often nothing but trouble, too. 7.I’m the best actor in Greece! A genius, I tell you! A genius! 8.I’m not much of a jock, but I write the best love poems around. 9.We love and hate each other sooooo much. We’ve cheated on each other more times than we can count, but we just can’t quit each other. We’re also fighting over who gets this magical changeling child. 10.I wish these crazy actors would listen to me, instead of that idiot Bottom… 11.We symbolize the dark side of human nature, all those exciting, terrifying, and socially unacceptable impulses you humans keep bottled up. 12.Shakespeare was remarkable in part because he wrote a lot of strong female characters, and I’m one of them! I’ll break all the rules to be with the man I love!