Midsummer / Bowie Elton Queen at The Baltimore Peninsula

Motte & Bailey, prod. is proud to present Midsummer / Bowie Elton Queen, a musical adaptation of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream featuring music by David Bowie, Elton John, and Queen. The third Shakespeare / Music adaptation from Hannah Fogler (following sold out performances of October’s Hamlet / Black Parade and March’s Caesar / Americana), Midsummer is a celebration of life, love, and embracing who you are - even if you have to get a little lost in the woods in order to find yourself. Following quarreling lovers, a horny fairy court in turmoil, and an uproarious band of players, Midsummer is at once hilarious, heartwarming, and incredibly mischievous. Extremely Queer and splendiferously colorful, with glitter and whimsy from asses-to-elbows, Midsummer / Bowie Elton Queen will leave you with a song in your heart and a smile you won’t be able to wipe away.

Directed and adapted by Hannah Fogler, Midsummer is about coming into your full self: “I didn’t come out as Queer until I was 30 years old, so I was well into adulthood before I got to be my whole self publicly and privately. Midsummer is not just a celebration of who you are, it also celebrates where you are on the journey to yourself. It’s hard to stop and just appreciate where you are now, but that’s what we’re doing with Midsummer - pausing the world for a couple of hours, just being, and celebrating our full, authentic selves.” 

The world of this Midsummer looks different: Athens and the Fairy Court are ruled by women - a matriarchal society where heterosexual partnerships are the minority. Fogler has taken several originally-male characters and switched their gender - most are now women and a few are non-binary. And different types of relationships (both platonic and romantic) that may or may not be what Shakespeare originally intended are represented on the stage.

As Midsummer is a celebration of self, Fogler has not employed any cross-gender casting - the actors are portraying the characters as their own gender (and sexuality). She, herself, plays Demetrius, who is (in our version) a bisexual woman - not the seemingly straight man of Shakespeare’s text. Fogler states, “Midsummer / Bowie Elton Queen, is a Queer Fantasia full of joy - and is definitely not a show you want to miss.”

In a production full of exciting new ideas, Motte & Bailey, prod. are also proud to be the first Baltimore Theatre Company to present outdoor theatre on the Baltimore Peninsula! Through special arrangement with the Baltimore Peninsula Partnership, Midsummer / Bowie Elton Queen will bring audiences to Elijah’s Park at 301 Mission Blvd. in Baltimore. The park itself was named for the late U.S. Representative Elijah Cummings, and serves as a 28,000-square-foot mixed-use green space. Audiences will be encouraged to bring camp chairs and blankets to sit on the lawn while they experience the joyful and raucous sounds of Midsummer on the Peninsula overlooking the middle branch of the Patapsco River.  

Midsummer / Bowie Elton Queen stars Vexara, Lance Bankerd, Amy Bell, Greg Bell, Mars Bell, Sophia Bell, Brad Bukowsky, Emily Classen, Omololu Collins, Gabriel Duque, Mars Duque, TJ Flem, Hannah Fogler, Donna Ibale, Libby Kane, Jess Miller, Gaya Mundlye, Jessica Preactor, Gray Sheridan, Aladrian Wetzel, and Caitlin Weaver as Puck. Live Band support by Rockin’ Robin Starveling & the Tweedly Deets. 

Performances will take place outdoors at Elijah’s Park, 301 Mission Blvd. Baltimore, MD 21230, on June 12, 13, 18, 19, and 20 at 8pm, with a special additional performance outdoors at Boordy Vineyards in Hydes, MD at 6pm on Sunday, June 14. Audiences are encouraged to make the most of the outdoor lawn seating and bring blankets and camp chairs for their evening with the Fairy Court. Tickets are $30 for general admission, and $20 for Students, Teachers, and Artists, and can be purchased online at www.motteandbailey.org

Content Warning: drug use, sexual themes, sexual situations, and overt sexuality (including references to kink culture), partial nudity (PG-13), and bawdy/blue humor. This show is not suitable for those under the age of 15. This production makes use of theatrical effects including haze/fog and live music.

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