Under saturated blue light and thick stage fog, several performers lie curled or sprawled on the floor while a distant silhouette moves at the back of the octagonal playing area.

The Cockpit Theatre, Marylebone2024

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

The Production

The Bridge Theatre Training Company staged Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream at The Cockpit Theatre, Marylebone, in February 2024. Directed by Mark Akrill, the production was billed as a riotous, adult take on Shakespeare’s comedy of love and imagination.

48 photographs in the curated edit

Director: Mark Akrill
Commissioned by: The Bridge Theatre Training Company
Photography: Steve Gregson

A large ensemble stands in a circle on a blue-and-purple octagonal stage, surrounded by dark tiered seating and overhead theatre lights.

Two performers in black stand close together in an intimate embrace, lit by vivid purple and blue stage light against a dark background.

Performers move across the stage in blue haze while two figures in military-style coats face each other at the centre, creating a busy, dreamlike crowd scene.

A performer in a black shirt and pale tie stands in the foreground with one hand on his chin, while others behind him gesture and watch under blue-purple light.

A lone performer stands near the edge of the empty octagonal stage with arms open, framed by low purple-blue lighting and faint smoke.

A performer stands on a chair with one arm raised dramatically, surrounded by an ensemble seated and standing around the stage in casual clothes and hoodies.

Three performers in black leather and dark clothing cluster around a short staircase, one seated on the steps looking back under magenta-blue light.

Two performers smile closely at each other in a warm embrace, their faces lit by soft purple and blue stage lighting.

At the centre of a smoky, backlit stage, two performers face off in a tense gesture while an ensemble encircles them and watches from the shadows.

Three performers in black leather and club-style costumes cluster closely under magenta-blue light, one gripping another's shoulders with an intense, pleading expression.

A couple embrace at the center of a smoky, brightly lit stage while an ensemble crouches and reaches toward them around the edges.

Two performers hold each other face to face in a tense close embrace, watched by others in dark costumes under purple haze.

A performer in a dark suit lifts a performer in a pale blue dress off the floor as another watches from the back of the blue-lit stage.

A performer in an ornate black jacket places a hand on another performer's forehead as they look up at him under vivid blue and pink lighting.

An ensemble surrounds a taped hexagonal stage, with one performer standing center front and others holding red rope lines across the back.

A performer in a tuxedo-style outfit dances alone with both arms raised beside a silver boombox on a purple-blue lit stage.

Two performers kneel close together in an intimate moment, smiling with their foreheads nearly touching under blue and pink light.

A distressed performer in a blue dress holds her head in the foreground while a shirtless performer stands hands on hips in smoky blue light behind her.

A shirtless performer stands center stage pointing outward through blue haze, with a covered figure and scattered clothing on the floor nearby.

A performer crouches on a bare stage in blue light, smiling upward with one hand to her ear and the other reaching out.

Four casually dressed performers huddle closely around an open book, one reading aloud under a warm spotlight against a dark stage.

A performer in a green jumpsuit gestures animatedly toward a man in a dark jacket, with a shopping trolley and blue haze behind them.

A bearded performer wearing a tall animal-eared headpiece holds a phone to his ear, hand on hip, in a tight spotlight.

An ensemble poses on a blue-lit stage as a horned-headpiece performer stands front and centre with one leg lifted, while others handle red ropes around him.

Performers crowd around a horned-headpiece performer, laughing and pulling at his costume as others hold red ropes in bright blue stage light.

A lone performer stands in a deep blue spotlight on an empty marked stage, raising a long flexible prop into a small cloud of haze.

A performer sits inside a metal shopping trolley with mouth open and hand raised, while another performer stands close behind in blue-purple light.

A performer in black strides forward with one knee high and arms spread, while two leather-clad performers crouch and stand behind on a smoky stage.

In close-up, a woman looks tensely to the side as blurred performers argue or gesture behind her in blue-purple lighting.

A performer in a blue draped dress stands center stage with arms outstretched while two kneeling performers lift the fabric around her under blue lighting.

Two performers in black dancewear stride forward holding clasped hands overhead, with other performers seated or standing behind them on a blue-lit stage.

A performer in black dancewear sits astride another performer lying on the floor near a yellow stage line, looking upward as others watch from the smoky background.

A dense cloud of stage smoke billows across the set as one performer in black recoils and another is partly hidden inside the haze.

Two performers in dark formal costumes face each other closely with hands on each other's arms, framed by a red rope and soft purple lighting.

Several performers lie curled under blankets around the edge of a marked stage while four formally dressed figures stand in the centre beneath pink and blue spotlights.

A performer blows a small horn beside others in elaborate costumes, including one with a long blond wig and branch-like headdress, in warm purple light.

A smiling performer in a grey hoodie carries a large painted brick-wall prop strapped over their shoulders, with seated performers blurred behind.

A performer in a shaggy brown animal-like costume reaches forward beneath a projected full moon, while others sit watching in the blue-lit background.

A performer in a cap and denim jacket holds a bare branch and a teddy bear in front of seated performers, with a large moon projection behind.

A performer in ornate dark costume stands wide-legged at center holding a long red scarf, with seated performers in white and a large full moon projection behind them in blue-purple light.

A performer in a long blonde wig and patterned dress kneels over an ornately dressed performer lying on the stage, while others seated nearby watch under purple-blue lighting.

Close-up of a performer in a long blonde wig and sleeveless patterned dress stretching both arms outward beneath a large moon projection.

On a wide thrust stage, a performer in a long blonde wig holds their arms open at center as other performers move behind them under a bright full moon projection.

Two performers in white dance closely together in front of a glowing orange moon projection, with seated performers watching in saturated purple light.

An ensemble dressed mostly in black stands in a solemn formation beneath a large full moon projection on a blue-lit stage.

Several performers in black stand close together under the moon projection, their faces lit in blue and magenta as they look outward.

A sparsely staged scene shows chairs beneath a huge moon projection, with one performer elevated near the back, another seated nearby, and a silhouetted figure watching from the foreground.

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