A Midsummer Night's Dream Study Guide

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM

By William Shakespeare
Developed in collaboration with Groundling Theatre
Directed by Graham Abbey

GRADE RECOMMENDATION

Grade 7+

CONTENT ADVISORY

Please see the show page for a detailed advisory.

SYNOPSIS

Hermia and Lysander are devoted to one another, but her father forbids their marriage and insists she wed Demetrius, with whom Hermia's best friend Helena is besotted. Hoping to escape her father's demands, Hermia and Lysander flee into the forest, with Demetrius and a determined Helena close behind. There, Oberon, king of the fairies, sets an enchantment to humble his queen, Titania - and, through the meddling of Puck, Oberon's jester, the four lovers are unwittingly ensnared in the magic's confusion. Meanwhile, Puck tangles with a troupe of amateur actors, heightening the night's mischief and wonder. As magic swirls and emotions shift, the question becomes: What resolution will dawn bring?

CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS

Global Competencies or Transferable Skills: Critical Thinking and Problem Solving; Innovation, Creativity and Entrepreneurship; Self-Directed Learning; Collaboration; Communication; Global Citizenship and Sustainability; Digital Literacy

Grades 7-8

The Arts
Health and Physical Education
History
Language
Science and Technology

Grades 9-12

The Arts
Canadian and World Studies
English
Health and Physical Education
Social Sciences and Humanities
Technological Education

Post-Secondary

Suitable for courses in disciplines such as Arts, Cultural Studies, Creative Writing, Dramatic Arts and Theatre, English, Fine Arts, Gender Studies, History, Human Rights, Literature, Music, Social Development Studies, Teacher Education

THEMES

Appearance and Reality
Conflict and Resolution
Control, Power and Freedom
Dreams
Gender, Love and Relationships
Home and Belonging
Identity
Imagination
Mischief, Magic and Illusion
Order and Disorder
Nature and Exploration
Self-Determination
Storytelling and Playmaking
Transformation
Youth as Changemakers

DISCUSSION AND REFLECTION QUESTIONS

PRE-SHOW QUESTIONS

Based on what you know about Shakespearean comedy, what do you expect to see in A Midsummer Night's Dream, and why?
What do you already know about Victorian England and the social expectations and values of that culture?
In what ways are our identities influenced by our families, communities and social norms and values? How do our parents shape our worldview? Do you think children inevitably rebel or depart from their parents' ways of thinking? Why or why not?
What does femininity mean to you? What does masculinity mean to you?
When you think of a circle or a ring, what feelings or ideas do they bring up for you? What do these symbolize?
How would you describe our society's relationship to nature? What is your relationship to nature? What changes would you like to see in how human beings view nature in the future? Explain your thinking.
Do you believe in magic? Why or why not? What role does it play in our lives?
What do you think our dreams mean? What can our dreams tell us about ourselves?
Why do you believe people behave differently in different contexts? Are there certain places or situations in which people can be their true selves? Do behavioural changes in diverse contexts reveal different aspects of who people are? Explain your thinking using examples.
What makes a good relationship between parent and child? Between friends? Between lovers?
What advice would you give to someone experiencing an argument or disagreement with a dear friend or family member? What would you suggest they do to reconcile?
What does love feel like? What does unrequited love feel like? What does forbidden love feel like? Why do you think unrequited and forbidden love are common tropes in stories?
Is chaos a positive force? Why or why not? Explain your thinking.
Why do human beings tell stories? What is the purpose of putting on a play? Do you believe that sharing stories and putting on plays can change the world? Why or why not? Explain your thinking using examples from the play or other dramatic and literary works or media texts.

POST-SHOW QUESTIONS

A Midsummer Night's Dream is many people's first encounter with a Shakespearean play. Why might that be? Using examples from your experience of this production, what elements of the play might make it accessible or appealing to new audiences?
What did the city and the forest each represent in the play? In what ways did the characters change between these two settings? Use specific examples to support your thinking.
Why do you think Hermia had the courage to defy the patriarchal control and violence of her society?
What examples of transformation did we see in the production? What caused each character to be transformed? Do you think any of the transformation will be lasting? Why or why not?
In your view, which character changed the most over the course of the play? Why do you think this was the case?
In your opinion, who was the most powerful character in the play and why?
What was your experience of the imagery of the forest and fairy world in the play? What elements of the design resonated with you?
Bottom often says the wrong words, or a comic technique Shakespeare uses called "malapropism." What effect did his use of language have on the other characters in the play? What did Bottom bring to your experience of watching the production?
What do you think Shakespeare is suggesting about imagination and the process of creating a play through the mechanicals' rehearsal and performance of Pyramus and Thisbe? Are the mechanicals simply comic relief or is Shakespeare suggesting something deeper?
In the Elizabethan period, there were anxieties about dreams. Some questioned whether they were supernatural in original while others like Thomas Nashe, an essayist and collaborator of Shakespeare's, argued they originated in dreamers and that "a dream is nothing else but the echo of our conceits in the day." What view of dreams do you think Shakespeare is exploring in A Midsummer Night's Dream? Are they something to be feared? What do dreams reveal to the characters?
What do you think Shakespeare is exploring about the nature of love in this play?
Which of the characters do you feel are truly in love at the end of the production? How do you think the relationships
at the end of the play will change over the next year? Explain your thinking.
Are there any unintentional harms that might be caused through the production of this play? If so, what are they and what might be done to take care of the artists and audience members participating in the work?

MINDS ON

Objective: Students will explore excerpts from A Midsummer Night's Dream to compare and contrast the different character groups, social contexts and power structures in the play, and what language reveals about each.

Materials:

William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream
Character Graphic Organizer
Writing utensils and/or highlighters
Laptops/tablets
Alexander Schmidt's Shakespeare Lexicon and Quotation Dictionary (iOS app or physical copies)
Dictionaries

Directions:

Lead a class discussion about the ways in which we interact with others in different scenarios. Invite students to think about how the following might change based on who we are speaking to or who we know is listening:
- comportment or behaviour
- the words we choose
- how we speak including pace, volume and silence
Ask students to compare and contrast different examples such as the difference between students speaking together in the hallway in comparison to students speaking in class to their teacher.
Divide the class into small groups and assign each one of the following excerpts from A Midsummer Night's Dream:
- Act 1, scene 1 (lines 21-80) – Theseus, Hippolyta, Egeus, Hermia, Lysander, Demetrius
- Act 1, scene 1 (lines 183-228) – Hermia, Helena, Lysander
- Act 2, scene 1 (lines 62-126) – Oberon, Titania, Fairies
- Act 1, scene 2 (lines 1-71) – Quince, Snug, Bottom, Flute, Snout, Starveling
You may already have access to physical copies of the text. One suggested resource is to view or download it through the Folger Shakespeare Library where you can easily search by act, scene and line.
Provide each group with a graphic organizer in addition to their excerpts.
Invite students to go through their assigned scene, reading the scene aloud together using a lexicon and/or dictionary to look up any unfamiliar words.
After reading through for meaning a couple of times, ask them to do so again, this time filling in the graphic organizer as they go. For each character, they will be recording their first impressions of the character, and providing examples from the text that support their position.
Once each group has finished, they will present their findings to the rest of the class. Ask students to share and read their excerpt first before explaining their findings.

DEBRIEFING QUESTIONS:

Why do you think Shakespeare uses different language styles for different characters?
What do you notice about the imagery in the text? Which character group uses the most imagery, and why do you think this is the case?
Shakespeare writes in a mix of verse and prose. Scan the excerpts and identify which characters seem to speak mostly in verse, and which in prose. Why do you think Shakespeare used this approach? What might this reveal about the characters?
What does the language tell the audience about the characters' status in the play? What do you think Shakespeare's intention was in using language to reflect status?

POSSIBLE EXTENSIONS:

Design/Collage

Invite students to select one of the character groups to focus on (Court, Lovers, Mechanicals, Fairies).
Ask them to choose a period and setting and collect images that represent how they envision that group might be portrayed.
Invite them to create a mood board, either digital or physical, with inspiration images and colours for the world of the play.
Have students compare their mood boards to the set and
costume design in the 2026 Stratford Festival production.

Silent Version:

Invite students to stage their scene without speaking any of the lines.
Ask them to use only movement, gesture, breath and proximity.
Then, ask students to add the text back in.
Invite them to consider what they discovered about physical storytelling. Which moments were strongest without words?

As part of a new partnership with St. Mary's University, we're pleased to share some learning exercises developed by teacher candidates in the Bachelor of Education program:

About the Play

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM

By William Shakespeare
Developed in collaboration with Groundling Theatre
Directed by Graham Abbey

Download House Program

GRADE RECOMMENDATION

Grade 7+

CONTENT ADVISORY

Please see the show page for a detailed advisory.

SYNOPSIS

Hermia and Lysander are devoted to one another, but her father forbids their marriage and insists she wed Demetrius, with whom Hermia's best friend Helena is besotted. Hoping to escape her father's demands, Hermia and Lysander flee into the forest, with Demetrius and a determined Helena close behind. There, Oberon, king of the fairies, sets an enchantment to humble his queen, Titania - and, through the meddling of Puck, Oberon's jester, the four lovers are unwittingly ensnared in the magic's confusion. Meanwhile, Puck tangles with a troupe of amateur actors, heightening the night's mischief and wonder. As magic swirls and emotions shift, the question becomes: What resolution will dawn bring?

CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS

Global Competencies or Transferable Skills: Critical Thinking and Problem Solving; Innovation, Creativity and Entrepreneurship; Self-Directed Learning; Collaboration; Communication; Global Citizenship and Sustainability; Digital Literacy

Grades 7-8

The Arts
Health and Physical Education
History
Language
Science and Technology

Grades 9-12

The Arts
Canadian and World Studies
English
Health and Physical Education
Social Sciences and Humanities
Technological Education

Post-Secondary

Suitable for courses in disciplines such as Arts, Cultural Studies, Creative Writing, Dramatic Arts and Theatre, English, Fine Arts, Gender Studies, History, Human Rights, Literature, Music, Social Development Studies, Teacher Education

THEMES

Appearance and Reality
Conflict and Resolution
Control, Power and Freedom
Dreams
Gender, Love and Relationships
Home and Belonging
Identity
Imagination
Mischief, Magic and Illusion
Order and Disorder
Nature and Exploration
Self-Determination
Storytelling and Playmaking
Transformation
Youth as Changemakers

Discussion Questions

DISCUSSION AND REFLECTION QUESTIONS

PRE-SHOW QUESTIONS

Based on what you know about Shakespearean comedy, what do you expect to see in A Midsummer Night's Dream, and why?
What do you already know about Victorian England and the social expectations and values of that culture?
In what ways are our identities influenced by our families, communities and social norms and values? How do our parents shape our worldview? Do you think children inevitably rebel or depart from their parents' ways of thinking? Why or why not?
What does femininity mean to you? What does masculinity mean to you?
When you think of a circle or a ring, what feelings or ideas do they bring up for you? What do these symbolize?
How would you describe our society's relationship to nature? What is your relationship to nature? What changes would you like to see in how human beings view nature in the future? Explain your thinking.
Do you believe in magic? Why or why not? What role does it play in our lives?
What do you think our dreams mean? What can our dreams tell us about ourselves?
Why do you believe people behave differently in different contexts? Are there certain places or situations in which people can be their true selves? Do behavioural changes in diverse contexts reveal different aspects of who people are? Explain your thinking using examples.
What makes a good relationship between parent and child? Between friends? Between lovers?
What advice would you give to someone experiencing an argument or disagreement with a dear friend or family member? What would you suggest they do to reconcile?
What does love feel like? What does unrequited love feel like? What does forbidden love feel like? Why do you think unrequited and forbidden love are common tropes in stories?
Is chaos a positive force? Why or why not? Explain your thinking.
Why do human beings tell stories? What is the purpose of putting on a play? Do you believe that sharing stories and putting on plays can change the world? Why or why not? Explain your thinking using examples from the play or other dramatic and literary works or media texts.

POST-SHOW QUESTIONS

A Midsummer Night's Dream is many people's first encounter with a Shakespearean play. Why might that be? Using examples from your experience of this production, what elements of the play might make it accessible or appealing to new audiences?
What did the city and the forest each represent in the play? In what ways did the characters change between these two settings? Use specific examples to support your thinking.
Why do you think Hermia had the courage to defy the patriarchal control and violence of her society?
What examples of transformation did we see in the production? What caused each character to be transformed? Do you think any of the transformation will be lasting? Why or why not?
In your view, which character changed the most over the course of the play? Why do you think this was the case?
In your opinion, who was the most powerful character in the play and why?
What was your experience of the imagery of the forest and fairy world in the play? What elements of the design resonated with you?
Bottom often says the wrong words, or a comic technique Shakespeare uses called "malapropism." What effect did his use of language have on the other characters in the play? What did Bottom bring to your experience of watching the production?
What do you think Shakespeare is suggesting about imagination and the process of creating a play through the mechanicals' rehearsal and performance of Pyramus and Thisbe? Are the mechanicals simply comic relief or is Shakespeare suggesting something deeper?
In the Elizabethan period, there were anxieties about dreams. Some questioned whether they were supernatural in original while others like Thomas Nashe, an essayist and collaborator of Shakespeare's, argued they originated in dreamers and that "a dream is nothing else but the echo of our conceits in the day." What view of dreams do you think Shakespeare is exploring in A Midsummer Night's Dream? Are they something to be feared? What do dreams reveal to the characters?
What do you think Shakespeare is exploring about the nature of love in this play?
Which of the characters do you feel are truly in love at the end of the production? How do you think the relationships
at the end of the play will change over the next year? Explain your thinking.
Are there any unintentional harms that might be caused through the production of this play? If so, what are they and what might be done to take care of the artists and audience members participating in the work?

Minds On

MINDS ON

Objective: Students will explore excerpts from A Midsummer Night's Dream to compare and contrast the different character groups, social contexts and power structures in the play, and what language reveals about each.

Materials:

William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream
Character Graphic Organizer
Writing utensils and/or highlighters
Laptops/tablets
Alexander Schmidt's Shakespeare Lexicon and Quotation Dictionary (iOS app or physical copies)
Dictionaries

Directions:

Lead a class discussion about the ways in which we interact with others in different scenarios. Invite students to think about how the following might change based on who we are speaking to or who we know is listening:
- comportment or behaviour
- the words we choose
- how we speak including pace, volume and silence
Ask students to compare and contrast different examples such as the difference between students speaking together in the hallway in comparison to students speaking in class to their teacher.
Divide the class into small groups and assign each one of the following excerpts from A Midsummer Night's Dream:
- Act 1, scene 1 (lines 21-80) – Theseus, Hippolyta, Egeus, Hermia, Lysander, Demetrius
- Act 1, scene 1 (lines 183-228) – Hermia, Helena, Lysander
- Act 2, scene 1 (lines 62-126) – Oberon, Titania, Fairies
- Act 1, scene 2 (lines 1-71) – Quince, Snug, Bottom, Flute, Snout, Starveling
You may already have access to physical copies of the text. One suggested resource is to view or download it through the Folger Shakespeare Library where you can easily search by act, scene and line.
Provide each group with a graphic organizer in addition to their excerpts.
Invite students to go through their assigned scene, reading the scene aloud together using a lexicon and/or dictionary to look up any unfamiliar words.
After reading through for meaning a couple of times, ask them to do so again, this time filling in the graphic organizer as they go. For each character, they will be recording their first impressions of the character, and providing examples from the text that support their position.
Once each group has finished, they will present their findings to the rest of the class. Ask students to share and read their excerpt first before explaining their findings.

DEBRIEFING QUESTIONS:

Why do you think Shakespeare uses different language styles for different characters?
What do you notice about the imagery in the text? Which character group uses the most imagery, and why do you think this is the case?
Shakespeare writes in a mix of verse and prose. Scan the excerpts and identify which characters seem to speak mostly in verse, and which in prose. Why do you think Shakespeare used this approach? What might this reveal about the characters?
What does the language tell the audience about the characters' status in the play? What do you think Shakespeare's intention was in using language to reflect status?

POSSIBLE EXTENSIONS:

Design/Collage

Invite students to select one of the character groups to focus on (Court, Lovers, Mechanicals, Fairies).
Ask them to choose a period and setting and collect images that represent how they envision that group might be portrayed.
Invite them to create a mood board, either digital or physical, with inspiration images and colours for the world of the play.
Have students compare their mood boards to the set and
costume design in the 2026 Stratford Festival production.

Silent Version:

Invite students to stage their scene without speaking any of the lines.
Ask them to use only movement, gesture, breath and proximity.
Then, ask students to add the text back in.
Invite them to consider what they discovered about physical storytelling. Which moments were strongest without words?

As part of a new partnership with St. Mary's University, we're pleased to share some learning exercises developed by teacher candidates in the Bachelor of Education program:

CONNECTION TO THE ARCHIVES

Across our history, this play has been set in 10 different time periods, ranging from the Elizabethan era to the 1950s, in locations ranging from Greece to a tropical rainforest. Our last mainstage production in 2014 was set at a backyard wedding, where actors playing wedding guests took on roles, creating a play-within-a-play scenario. This choice paralleled the playwithin-a-play that already exists in A Midsummer Night's Dream, where a group of Athenians perform Pryamus and Thisbe at the wedding of Theseus and Hippolyta. Why do you think the device of having a play-within-a-play is so popular among playwrights and directors? What effect do you think it has on the audience?

A Midsummer Night's Dream, 2014

Jonathan Goad as Titania, Stephen Ouimette as Bottom and Breanna Willis as a fairy in A Midsummer Night's Dream (Stratford Festival, 2014). By William Shakespeare. Directed by Chris Abraham. Designed by Julie Fox. Lighting design by Michael Walton. Music and sound design by Thomas Ryder Payne. Photography by Michael Cooper.
Stratford Festival Archives, GPO.2014.011.1162

The Stratford Festival Archives maintains, conserves and protects records about the Festival and makes those materials available to people around the world. Their collection contains material ranging from 1952 right up to the present and includes administrative documents, production records, photographs, design artwork, scores, audio-visual recordings, promotional materials, costumes, props, set decorations and much more. These materials are collected and preserved with the aim of documenting the history of the Festival, preserving the page-to-stage process, and capturing the creative processes involved in numerous other activities that contribute to the Festival each season.

RESOURCES

Study Guide PDF

Stratford Public Library's 2026 Season Reading Lists

STUDY GUIDES

View all 2026 Shorts and Study Guides for selected 2026 plays, along with those from previous seasons, free of charge.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

Shakespeare and A Midsummer Night's Dream

A Midsummer Night's Dream | Folger Shakespeare Library

A Midsummer Night's Dream: Themes | Bell Shakespeare

A Midsummer Night's Dream | Shakespeare at Play

All an Illusion | Donna R. Cheney | Utah Shakespeare Festival

Elizabethan Fairies in A Midsummer Night's Dream | Humanitas Learning

Exploring the Nature of Shakespearean Comedy | Shakespeare Online

In Our Time: A Midsummer Night's Dream | BBC

Karim-Cooper, Farah. The Great White Bard: How to Love Shakespeare While Talking About Race. 2023.

Malapropism | Britannica

A Modern Perspective: A Midsummer Night's Dream | Folger Shakespeare Library

Shakespeare Learning Zone: A Midsummer Night's Dream | Royal Shakespeare Company

Reading Shakespeare's Language: A Midsummer Night's Dream | Barbara Mowat and Paul Werstine | Folger Shakespeare Library

The Shakespeare Diaries: A Midsummer Night's Dream | Shakespeare's Globe

Renaissance Theories of Dreams | Penn State Centre Stage

Resource Guide for A Midsummer Night's Dream | Portland Center Stage

Thompson, Ayanna. (Ed.) The Cambridge Companion to Shakespeare and Race. 2021.

Thompson, Ayanna and Laura Turchi. Teaching Shakespeare with Purpose: A Student-Centered Approach. 2016.

Victorian Era

Victorian era | Britannica

Victorians | English Heritage

Victorian lives | National Archives

BOOKING INFORMATION: TICKETS, WORKSHOPS AND CHATS

STUDENT MATINEES

You may book any available date, but selected student matinee performances for this show are at 12:30 and 2 p.m. on the following dates:

12:30 p.m.

Thursday, May 14
Thursday, May 21

2 p.m.

Friday, May 1
Tuesday, May 5
Wednesday, May 6
Wednesday, May 13
Tuesday, May 26
Thursday, May 28
Tuesday, June 2
Tuesday, June 9
Tuesday, June 16
Thursday, June 25
Friday, September 11
Wednesday, September 16
Tuesday, September 22

WORKSHOPS AND CHATS

Visit our website or contact us at educate@stratfordfestival.ca to book:

InterACTive Preshows
Collaborative Learning Workshops
Customized Workshops
Post-Show Chats
Behind-the-Scenes Tours

2026 SEASON SPONSOR

The 2026 Season is generously supported by Ophelia Lazaridis

PROUD SEASON PARTNERS

2019_BMO_White Canada-Life_White(1) RBC_White(1)

Support for the 2026 season of the Tom Patterson Theatre is generously provided by

2019_BMO_White

Production Underwriter: The Westaway Charitable Foundation

Production Co-Sponsors: Priscilla Costello, Cathy & Paul Cotton, Erica Peresman & David Jaffe and Martie & Bob Sachs

TOOLS FOR TEACHERS

Tools for Teachers includes InterACTive Preshows, Study Guides and Stratford Shorts sponsored by

Canada-Life_White(1)

Connection to the Archives

CONNECTION TO THE ARCHIVES

Across our history, this play has been set in 10 different time periods, ranging from the Elizabethan era to the 1950s, in locations ranging from Greece to a tropical rainforest. Our last mainstage production in 2014 was set at a backyard wedding, where actors playing wedding guests took on roles, creating a play-within-a-play scenario. This choice paralleled the playwithin-a-play that already exists in A Midsummer Night's Dream, where a group of Athenians perform Pryamus and Thisbe at the wedding of Theseus and Hippolyta. Why do you think the device of having a play-within-a-play is so popular among playwrights and directors? What effect do you think it has on the audience?

A Midsummer Night's Dream, 2014

Jonathan Goad as Titania, Stephen Ouimette as Bottom and Breanna Willis as a fairy in A Midsummer Night's Dream (Stratford Festival, 2014). By William Shakespeare. Directed by Chris Abraham. Designed by Julie Fox. Lighting design by Michael Walton. Music and sound design by Thomas Ryder Payne. Photography by Michael Cooper.
Stratford Festival Archives, GPO.2014.011.1162

The Stratford Festival Archives maintains, conserves and protects records about the Festival and makes those materials available to people around the world. Their collection contains material ranging from 1952 right up to the present and includes administrative documents, production records, photographs, design artwork, scores, audio-visual recordings, promotional materials, costumes, props, set decorations and much more. These materials are collected and preserved with the aim of documenting the history of the Festival, preserving the page-to-stage process, and capturing the creative processes involved in numerous other activities that contribute to the Festival each season.

Resources