A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM

by William Shakespeare

CAST:

Theseus,  Duke of Athens Starveling,  a tailor/Moonshine

Egeus, father to Hermia Hippolyta,  Queen of the Amazons, betrothed to
Lysander,  suitor to Hermia Theseus
Demetrius,  suitor to Hermia Hermia,  daughter to Egeus, in love with Lysander
Quince,  a carpenter/Prologue Helena,  in love with Demetrius
Bottom,  a weaver/Pyramus Oberon,  King of the Fairies
Flute,  a bellows-mender/Thisby Titania,  Queen of the Fairies
Snout,  a tinker/Wall Puck,  or Robin Goodfellow
Snug,  a joiner/Lion (Fairy, 1 fairy, 2 fairy)

ACT ONE
ENTER THESEUS, HIPPOLYTA, PHILOSTRATE
Scene I
The.    O fair Hippolyta, our nuptial hour is near.  But the days are passing too slowly.
Hip      You’ll see. Four days will quickly dream away the time, and the moon shall behold the night of our marriage
rites.
The.    Hippolyta, I wooed you with my sword, and won thy love doing you injuries; but I will wed you with pomp,
with triumph, and with reveling.
ENTER EGEUS WITH HERMIA, LYSANDER, AND DEMETRIUS (BOW TO THESEUS).
The.    Good Egeus.  What's the news with you?
Ege.     Full of anger I come to you, with complaint against my daughter Hermia.  - Stand forth Demetrius. - My lord,
this man has my consent to marry her. -  Stand forth, Lysander. – But this man has bewitched the bosom
of my child.  He made her stubborn and harsh instead of obedient. My gracious Duke, I beg the ancient
privilege of Athens:  As she is mine, I can either make her marry Demetrius or have her killed.
The.    What say you, Hermia?  To you your father should be as a god; Demetrius is a worthy gentleman.
Her.     So is Lysander.
The.    In himself he is; but in this kind, wanting your father's voice, the other must be held the worthier. Take time
to pause, and by the next new moon, the sealing day between my love and me, prepare to die for
disobedience to your father's will, or else be wed to Demetrius.
Dem.  Relent; sweet Hermia, and Lysander, stop acting like she’s yours. I’ve got more of a right to her than you do.
Lys.     You have her father's love, Demetrius.  So why don’t you marry him and let me have Hermia.
The.    I must confess that I have heard so much. Demetrius and Egeus, come. You shall go with me.  For you, fair
Hermia, get yourself ready to do your father's will, or else the law of Athens yields you up to death, or to a
vow of single life.  Come, Hippolyta, my love.  Demetrius and Egeus come along.
EXIT
Lys.     My love, why is your cheek so pale?  Listen, they say that true love always faces obstacles. Hear me,
Hermia.  I have a widow aunt, who lives twenty miles from Athens.  She respects me as her only
son. There, gentle Hermia, I may marry you, and there, the sharp Athenian law cannot pursue us.  If you
love me, sneak out of your father's house tomorrow night; and in the woods I’ll wait for you.
Her.     My good Lysander, I swear to you, by Cupid's strongest bow, I will meet you at that spot tomorrow. Look,
here comes Helena.
ENTER  HELENA
Her.     God speed, beautiful Helena!
Hel.     You called me beautiful?  You’re the beautiful one as far as Demetrius is concerned.  O, teach me how you
look, and how you sway the motion of Demetrius' heart?
Her.     I frown upon him; yet he loves me still.
Hel.     If only my smiles could inspire love as effectively as your frowns!
Her.     It’s not my fault. Don’t worry. He shall see my face no more. Lysander and I will leave this place.
Lys.     Helena, we’ll tell you about our plan; tomorrow night, we plan to sneak out of Athens.
Her.     And in the woods, Lysander and I shall meet.  Farewell, pray for us, and good luck to you and Demetrius.
EXIT HERMIA                
Lys.     Goodbye, Helena.
EXIT LYSANDER
Hel.     How happy some o’er other some can be!  Through Athens I am thought as fair as she.  But what of
that?  Demetrius thinks not so, and that’s all that matters.  I will go tell him of fair Hermia's flight.  Then to
the woods he will, tomorrow night, pursue her, and for this intelligence if I have thanks, it will be a dear
expense.  
EXIT HELENA
Scene II
ENTER QUINCE, SNUG, BOTTOM, FLUTE, SNOUT, AND STARVELING.
Quin.   Is all our company here?
Bot.     You should call their name generally, one by one, in the order by which their names appear on the paper.
Quin    Here is the scroll of every man's name. Answer as I call you.  Nick Bottom the weaver.
Bot.     Ready.  Name what part I am for, and proceed.
Quin.   You, Nick Bottom, are set down for Pyramus, a lover that kills himself for love.
Bot.     That will ask some tears in the true performing of it.  If I do it, let the audience look to their eyes.  I will
move storms.  Now name the rest of the players.
Quin.   Francis Flute, you play Thisbe. It is the lady that Pyramus must love.
Flu.     No, come on, don’t make me play a woman.  I’m growing a beard.
Quin.   You can wear a mask, and you may speak as small as you will.
Bot.     Let me play Thisbe too.  I'll speak in a monstrous little voice, "Ah, Pyramus, my lover dear!
Quin.   No, no, you must play Pyramus; and Flute, you Thisbe.
Bot.     Well, proceed.
Quin.   Robin Starveling the tailor.
Star     Here, Peter Quince.
Quin.   Robin Starveling, you must play Thisbe's mother.  Tom Snout the tinker.
Snout  Here Peter Quince.
Quin.   You, Pyramus' father; I, Thisbe's father; Snug the joiner, you the lion's part.
Snug   Have you the lion's part written?  If there is, give it to me, for I am slow of study.
Quin.   It is nothing but roaring.
Bot      Let me play the lion too.  I will roar so that I will do any man's heart good to hear me.  I will roar, that I will
make the Duke say,”Let him roar again; let him roar again."
Quin    I bet you’ll do it terribly, you would frighten the ladies and they would shriek, and that would be enough to
hang us all. Now, here are your parts.  Tomorrow night, meet me in the woods, a mile from town, by
moonlight; there will we rehearse.
EXIT ALL

ACT TWO
Scene I
Puck   Hello, spirit, Where are you going?
Fairy   I wander everywhere faster than the moon revolves around the Earth. I work for Titania, the Fairy Queen. O
well, I’ve got to go. Our Queen and all her elves are coming here soon.
Puck   The King’s having a party here tonight. Make sure the Queen does not come anywhere near him, because
King Oberon is extremely angry. And that’s because she has a boy stolen from a Indian king.  And jealous
Oberon wants the child for himself.  But she, withholds the boy and now they refuse to speak to each
other.
Fairy   Unless I’m mistaken, you are that shrewd sprite called Robin Goodfellow.  Aren’t you the one who goes
around scaring the maidens of the village, and sometime mislead night-wanderers laughing at their
harm? 
Puck   What you say is true.  I am that merry wanderer of the night.  I am Oberon’s jester. But step aside,
fairy! Here comes Oberon.
Fairy   And here’s my mistress.  What do we do?
ENTER OBERON AT ONE DOOR WITH HIS TRAIN AND TITANIA AT ANOTHER WITH HERS.
Obe.    How not nice to see you, proud Titania.
Tita.    Fairies, let’s get out of here. I swore I’ll never talk to him again.
Obe.    Just a minute!  Am I not your lord and husband?
Tita.    Then I must be your lady and wife, but I know for a fact that you snuck away from fairy land, and sat all day
playing on pipes and verging love to Amazon Hippolyta.  And now that se’s getting married to Theseus,
you’ve come to celebrate their marriage.
Obe.    How can you stand there shamelessly talking aout Hippolyta, knowing that I know your love for Theseus?
How long within this woods do you intend to stay?
Tita.    Maybe until after Theseus' wedding-day.  If you will patiently dance in our round, and see our moonlight
revels, go with us.
Obe.    Give me that boy, and I will go with you.
Tita.    Not for your fairy kingdom.  Fairies, let’s go! 
EXIT TITANIA AND FAIRIES
Obe.    Well, go your way.  You won’t leave this grove till I torment you for this injury.  My gentle Puck, come
here.  Do you remember a little western flower, purple with love's wound, and maidens call it love-in-
idleness. Fetch me that flower, and come here again.
EXIT PUCK
Obe.    I’ll trickle some drops of that flower on Titania’s eyes while she’s sleeping. She’ll fall madly in love with the
first thing she sees when she wakes up (be it on lion, bear, or wolf, or bull, or monkey, or busy ape. And
before I take the charm off her sight, I'll make her render up her page to me.  But who’s that coming this
way?  I’ll be invisible and I will overhear their conference.
ENTER DEMETRIUS, HELENA FOLLOWING HIM.
Dem.   I don’t love you, so stop following me around.  Where is Lysander and Fair Hermia?  
Hel.     You attract me to you, you cruel magnet.  Leave your power to attract and I shall have no power to follow
you.
Dem.   Just looking at you makes me sick.
Hel.     And I feel sick when I can’t look at you.
Dem.   You’re risking your reputation by leaving the city and committing yourself into the hands of one that loves
you not. Leave me alone. If you follow me, I’ll do something bad to you.
Hel.     Shame on you, Demetrius!  Your behavior is an insult to all women.  We cannot fight for love, as men may
do.  We should be wooed, and were not made to woo.
EXIT DEMETRIUS
            I'll follow you and make a heaven of hell, to die upon the hand of the man I love so well.
EXIT
Obe.    Goodbye,nymph.  Before he leaves this grove, you shall be the one running away from him and he shall
seek for your love.
ENTER PUCK
            Do you have the flower?
Puck   Yes, here it is.
Obe.    Give it to me.  I know a bank where the wild thyme blows, there sleeps Titania sometime of the night.  And
with the juice of this I'll streak her eyes and make her full of hateful fantasies.  Take some of it, and seek
through this grove:  A sweet Athenian lady is in love with a disdainful youth. Put some in his eyes, and
make sure to do it in such a way that the next thing he sees will be the lady. 
Puck   Don’t worry, my lord!  I’ll do as you say.
EXIT

Scene II
ENTER TITANIA, WITH HER TRAIN
Tita.    Come, dance around, and sing a fairy song. Sing me now asleep, and then to your offices, let me rest.
FAIRIES SING AND DANCE
1Fair   Okay, let’s go! Everything’s fine now.
EXIT FAIRIES.   TITANIA SLEEPS.
ENTER OBERON AND SQUEEZES THE FLOWER ON TITANIA'S EYELIDS.
Obe.    Whatever you see first when you wake up, think of it as your true love. Love him and yearn for him, even if
he’s a lynx, a cat, a bear, a leopard, or a wild boar. Whatever’s there when you wake up will be dear to
you. Wake up when something nasty is nearby.
EXIT
ENTER LYSANDER AND HERMIA
Lys.     My love, you look like you’re about to faint from wandering in the woods for so long, and to tell you the
truth, I’ve gotten us lost. We’ll take a rest, if you think it’s a good idea, and wait until daylight when things
will be easier.
Her.     Let’s do that, Lysander. Find something to cushion you while you sleep. I’m going to rest my head on this
little slope.
Lys.     I’ll sleep over here. Sleep well!
THEY SLEEP.
ENTER PUCK
Puck   I’ve been through the entire forest, but I haven’t found any Athenian man. (SEES LYSANDER AND HERMIA)
But who’s this?  He’s wearing Athenian clothes.  And here’s the girl.  Pretty soul, she must not lie near this
heartless man.  (PUTS FLOWER JUICE ON LYSANDER’S EYES) Upon thy eyes I throw all the power this
charm has.  So awake when I am gone, for I must now go to Oberon.
ENTER DEMETRIUS AND HELEAN RUNNING
Hel.     Wait for me, Demetrius!
Dem.   I told you to get out of here. Stop following me around!
EXIT
Hel.     Happy is Hermia, wherever she is, for she has been blessed and has attractive eyes. If only my eyes were like
hers.  No, I am as ugly as a bear.  For beasts that meet me run away for fear.  But look who’s
here?  Lysander!  On the ground?  Is he dead, or asleep?  I see no blood, no wound.  Lysander, if you live,
awake.
Lys.     (Awakening.)  Radiant, beautiful Helena! I feel like Mother Nature has allowed me to see into your heart, as
if by magic. Where is Demetrius? Oh, I’d kill that name with my sword if I could!
Hel.     Don’t say that. Why do you care that he loves Hermia? What does it matter? Hermia still loves you, so be
happy.
Lys.     Happy with Hermia? No. I regret all the boring time I wasted with her. I don’t love Hermia. I love Helena.
Hel.     Why does everyone always make fun of me? What have I done to deserve this kind of treatment from you?
Is it not enough, that I’ll never be pretty enough to get a kind look from Demetrius? I have to tell you, I
thought you were a much kinder person than this.
EXIT HELENA FOLLOWED BY LYSANDER
Her.     (Starting up).  Help me, Lysander! Get this snake off of my chest. Oh, my God! What a terrible dream I just
had! I thought a snake was eating my heart while you sat smiling and watching. Lysander? Lysander, my
love? Say something if you can hear me. Say something, please! I’m almost fainting with fear. I guess
you’re nowhere nearby. I’ll find you right away.           

ACT THREE
Scene I
ENTER QUINCE, SNUG, BOTTOM, FLUTE, SNOUT, AND STARVELING
Bot.     Are we all here?
Quin.   Right on time. This is the perfect place to rehearse. 
Bot.     Peter Quince!
Quin.   What is it, jolly Bottom?
Bot.     There are things in this comedy of Pyramus and Thisbe that will never work. First of all, Pyramus has to take
out a sword to kill himself, which the ladies in the audience won’t be able to stand. What should we do
about that?
Star     That’s a real problem.
Snout It’s true.
Bot.     I’ve got a plan that will fix everything. I’ll tell them that we won’t hurt anyone with our swords, and that
Pyramus isn’t really dead. And to make it even clearer, we can make a prologue and tell them that I’m
playing Pyramus but I’m not really Pyramus—really, I’m Bottom the weaver. That’ll keep them from being
afraid.
Quin    Good idea.
Snout  Will the ladies not be afraid of the lion?
Star     I fear it, I promise you.
Snout  Therefore another prologue must tell that he is not a lion.
Quin.   If we can do that, everything will be all right. Now sit down, everybody, and rehearse your parts—Pyramus,
you start. When you have said your lines, go hide in that bush.—Everyone else, go there too when you’re
not onstage.
ENTER PUCK
Puck   Who are these country bumpkins swaggering around so close to where the fairy queen is sleeping? What?
Are they about to put on a play? I’ll watch. And I’ll act in it, too, if I feel like it.
Quin.   Speak, Pyramus.  Thisbe, stand forth.
Bot.     "Thisby, the flowers of odious savors sweet."
Quin.   Odors ! Odors !
Bot.     "Ordors savors sweet; so hath thy breath, my dearest Thisbe dear.  But hark, a voice!  Stay thou but here a
while, and by and by I will to thee appear."
Puck   That’s the strangest Pyramus I’ve ever seen.
Flu.     Must I speak now?
Quin    Yes.
Flu.     "Most radiant Pyramus.  As true as truest horse, that yet would never tire.  I'll meet thee, Pyramus, at
Ninny's tomb".
Quin.   "Ninus' tomb," mam.  And don’t say all of that yet. You’re supposed to say some of it as a reply to Pyramus.
You just said all your lines at once, cues and all.—Pyramus, enter. You missed your cue. It’s “never get
tired.”
Flu.     "As true as truest horse, that yet would never tire".
ENTER PUCK AND BOTTOM WITH AN ASS'S HEAD      
Bot.     "If I were fair, Thisby, I were only thine".
Quin.   Help! It’s a monster! We’re being haunted. Run, everyone, run!
EXIT QUINCE, SNUG, FLUTE, SNOUT, AND STARVELING
Puck   I’ll follow you. I’ll run you around in circles
EXIT
Bot.     Why did they run away?  This is some joke of theirs to scare me.
ENTER SNOUT
Snout  O Bottom, You are changed!  What happened to you?
Bot.     What do you see?  You see an ass-head of your own, do you?
EXIT SNOUT
ENTER QUINCE
Quin.   Bless you, Bottom!  You’ve been changed. Reborn.
Bot.     I see what they’re up to. They want to make an ass of me, to scare me if they can. But I won’t leave this
spot, no matter what they do. I’ll walk up and down and sing a song, so they’ll know I’m not afraid.
(PRETEND TO SING)
Tita,    What angel wakes me from my flowery bed?
Bot.    (CONTINUE HUMING)
Tita.    Gentle mortal, my ear is enamored of your note; so is my eye enthralled to your shape; and they fair virtue
does move me to swear y love for you.
Bot.     I don’t think you’ve got much of a reason to love me. But to tell you the truth, reason and love have very
little to do with each other these days. It’s too bad some mutual friend of theirs doesn’t introduce them.
Ha, ha! No, I’m just kidding.
Tita.    You’re as wise as you are beautiful.
Bot.     No, that’s not true. But if I were smart enough to get out of this forest, I’d be wise enough to satisfy myself.
Tita.    Don’t bother wishing you could leave this forest, because you’re going to stay here whether you want to or
not. I’m no ordinary fairy. Come with me. I’ll turn you into a spirit like us, so you won’t die as humans do.
—Come here, fairies!
ENTER FAIRIES
1Fairy Ready.
2Fairy Where shall we go?
Tita.    Be kind and courteous to this gentleman.  
1Fairy Hello, mortal!
2Fairy Hello!
Bot.     Hello. 
Tita.    Take good care of him. Now, go, take him to my place.
EXIT
Scene II
ENTER KING OF FAIRIES, OBERON
Obe.    I wonder if Titania is now awake. I wonder what the first thing she saw is. Whatever it is, she must be
completely in love with it now.
ENTER PUCK
            Oh, here comes my messenger.  How now, mad spirit?
Puck   My mistress Titania is in love with a monster. While she was sleeping, a group of bumbling idiots, workmen
from Athens, got together nearby to rehearse some play they plan to perform on Theseus’s wedding day.
The stupidest one, who played Pyramus in their play, finished his scene and went to sit in the bushes to
wait for his next cue. I took that opportunity to stick a donkey’s head on him. When it was time for him to
go back onstage and talk to his Thisbe, he came out of the bushes and everyone saw him. They were all so
afraid that they completely lost their common sense. They left sweet Pyramus there, transformed into
someone with a donkey’s head. At that exact moment, Titania woke up and immediately fell in love with
him.
ENTER DEMETIUS and HERMIA
Obe.    Step aside. Here’s the Athenian coming now.
Puck   That’s definitely the woman I saw, but it’s not the same man.
Her.     Tell me. What did you do to my Lysander?  Where is he?  O, good Demetrius, will you find him for me?
Dem.   I would rather feed his corpse to my dogs.
Her.     You’ve driven me to my wit’s end. From now on I won’t even consider you a human being. Oh, just tell the
truth for once. tell the truth, if only for my sake.
Dem.   You’re getting all worked up over a misunderstanding. I didn’t kill Lysander. ?As far as I know, he’s not even
dead.
Her.     Then please tell me he’s all right.
Dem.   And if I could, what should I get?
Her.     A privilege never to see me again.  And from your hated presence I shall part.
EXIT
Dem.   Sadness gets worse when you haven’t had enough sleep. I’ll try to sleep a little here.
LIE DOWN AND SLEEP
Obe.    What have you done?  You’ve made a mistake and put the love-juice on someone else, someone who was
truly in love. About the woods, swifter than the wind, and go, find Helena of Athens.  Bring her here with
some trick or illusion, and I’ll put the charm on his eyes for when she comes.
Puck   I go, I go, look how I go, Swifter than arrow from the Tartar's bow.
EXIT
Obe.    You purple flower, hit by Cupid’s arrow, sink into the pupils of this man’s eyes. When he sees the girl he
should love, make her seem as bright to him as the evening star. Young man, when you wake up, if she’s
nearby, beg her to cure your lovesickness.
Puck   Helena is nearby, boss. The young man whom I mistook for this one is there too, begging her to love him.
Should we watch this ridiculous scene? What fools these mortals are!
Obe.    Step aside. The noise they’re making will wake up Demetrius.
ENTER LYSANDER AND HELENA
Lys.     Why do you think I’m making fun of you when I tell you I love you?
Hel.     You get trickier and trickier. You’ve made the same promises to me and to Hermia—they can’t both be true!
They must both be false. The promises you’re making to me belong to Hermia. 
Lys.     I wasn’t thinking clearly when I made those promises to her.
Hel.     And I don’t believe you’re thinking clearly now, as you break those promises.
Lys.     Demetrius loves her, and he doesn’t love you.
Dem.   (Awakening)  O Helen, goddess, nymph, perfect, divine!  To what, my love, shall I compare your eyes? O, let
me kiss this princess of pure white, this seal of bliss!
Hel.     I see you’re all determined to gang up on me for a few laughs. If you had any manners at all, you wouldn’t
treat me like this. Can’t you just hate me, as I know you do? Do you have to get together to humiliate me
too? You’re competing for Hermia’s love, and now you’re competing to see which one of you can make
fun of me the most.
Lys.     Don’t be cruel, Demetrius. I know you love Hermia, and you know I know it. Right here, right now, I swear
I’m giving up all my claims on her and handing her to you. In exchange, give up your claim to love Helena,
since I love her and will love her until I die.
Hel.     Nobody’s ever gone to so much trouble just to make fun of someone.
Dem.   Lysander, keep your Hermia. If ever I loved her, all that love is gone.
Lys.     Helena, it is not true.
ENTER HERMIA
Her.     Why did you leave me alone so unkindly?
Lys.     Why stay when love tells you to go?
Her.     But what love could make my Lysander leave me?
Lys.     I had to hurry to my love, beautiful Helena, who lights up the night better than all those fiery stars. Why are
you looking for me? Didn’t you figure out that I left you because I hate you?
Her.     You can’t mean what you’re saying. It’s impossible.
Hel.     So, she’s in on this too! Now I see that all three of them have gotten together to play this cruel trick on me.
Hurtful Hermia, you ungrateful girl, have you conspired with these two to provoke me with this horrible
teasing? Have you forgotten all the talks we’ve had together, the vows we made to be like sisters to one
another, all the hours we spent together, wishing that we never had to say goodbye—have you
forgotten? 
Her.     I’m completely dumbfounded by what you’re saying. I’m not insulting you. It sounds more like you’re
insulting me.
Hel.     Come on, confess. Didn’t you send Lysander, as an insult, to follow me around praising my eyes and my
face? Haven’t you made your other love, Demetrius—who kicked me with his foot not long ago—call me a
goddess and a divine, rare, precious, heavenly creature? Why does he talk like that to a girl he can’t
stand? And why does Lysander deny that he loves you, when he loves you so deeply?
Her.     I don’t know what you’re talking about.
Hel.     Oh, fine. All right, go ahead, keep up your little game, pretend to be sympathetic, but then nudge each other
and wink and make faces at me when I turn my back. Keep up your wonderful game. You’re doing such a
good job on this trick. But goodbye. It’s partly my own fault, since I followed you here. Leaving—or dying
—will soon take care of everything.
Lys.     Stay, lovely Helena. Listen to my excuse. My love, my life, my soul, beautiful Helena!
Hel.     That’s a good one.
Her.     Don’t insult her like that, Lysander darling.
Lys.     Helena, I love you. I swear I do. I’ll give my life for you, just to prove this guy wrong when he says I don’t love
you.
Dem.   I say that I love you more than he does.
Her.     Lysander, where are you going with all this?
Lsy.     Get away, you African!
Her.     Why have you gotten so rude? What’s happened to you, my darling?
Lys.     Your darling? Get out, you dark-skinned gypsy! Get out, you horrible poison. Get out!
Her.     Are you joking?
Hel.     Of course he is, and so are you.
Lys.     Demetrius, I’m ready to fight you as promised.
Dem.   I wish we had a signed legal contract. I can see you don’t keep your promises very well. I don’t trust you.
Lys.     What? Do you want me to hit Hermia, hurt her, kill her? Sure, I hate her, but I wouldn’t hurt her.
Her.     Can you hurt me anymore than by saying you hate me? Hate me? Why? What’s happened to you, my love?
Am I not Hermia? Aren’t you Lysander? I’m as beautiful now as I was a little while ago. You still loved me
when we fell asleep, but when you woke up you left me. So you left me—Oh, God help me!—For real?
Lys.     I certainly did, and I never wanted to see you again. So stop hoping and wondering what I mean.
Her.     Oh, no! (to HELENA) You trickster, you snake! You thief! What, did you sneak in at night and steal my love’s
heart from him?
Hel.     Oh, that’s very nice! You ought to be ashamed of yourself! You’re going to make me mad enough to answer
you? Damn you, you faker, you puppet!
Her.     "Puppet"!  Why so?  
Hel.     Please don’t let her hurt me, gentlemen, however much you want to tease me. I never was much good with
insults. I’m not mean and catty like her. I’m a nice shy girl. Please don’t let her hit me. Maybe you think
that because she’s shorter than me I can take her.
Her.     "Shorter"? 
Hel.     Good Hermia, do not be so bitter with me.  Save that, in love unto Demetrius.  I told him of your stealth
unto this wood.  He followed you; for love I followed him.  But he has threatened to strike me, spurn me,
and to kill me too.  Now just let me go quietly back to Athens. I’ll carry my mistakes back with me. I won’t
follow you anymore. Please let me go.
Her.     Well, get out of here then! What’s keeping you?
Hel.     My stupid heart, which I’m leaving behind here.
Her.     What, with Lysander?
Hel.     With Demetrius.
Lys.     Don’t be afraid. She can’t hurt you, Helena.
Dme.   That’s right, Hermia won’t hurt Helena even if you try to help her.
Lys.     (to HERMIA) Get lost, you dwarf, you tiny little weed, you scrap, you acorn!
Dem.   You’re doing too much to defend a woman who wants nothing to do with you. Leave Hermia alone. Don’t
talk about Helena. Don’t take Helena’s side. If you continue treating Hermia so badly, you’ll pay for it.
Lsy.     Hermia’s not holding onto me anymore. Follow me if you’re brave enough, and we’ll fight over Helena.
Dem.   “Follow”? No, I’ll walk right next to you, side by side.
EXIT LYSANDER AND DEMETRIUS
Hel.     I’m not sticking around here anymore. I don’t trust you. You might be a better fighter than I am, but my legs
are longer and I can run away faster.
EXIT
Obe.    This is your entire fault. 
Puck   Believe me, King of Illusions, I made a mistake. Didn’t you tell me that I’d be able to recognize the man by
the Athenian clothes he was wearing? So far I’ve done exactly what I was supposed to do—I put the love
potion on an Athenian’s eyes. And so far I’m pleased with the way things have turned out, since I find all
of this commotion very entertaining.
Obe.    As you can see, these lovers are looking for a place to fight. Hurry up, Robin, and make the night dark and
cloudy. Cover the sky with a low-hanging fog, as dark as hell, and get these overeager rivals so completely
lost in the woods that they can’t run into each other.  Then crush this herb into Lysander's eye; when they
next wake, all this derision shall seem a dream and fruitless vision. I'll go to my queen and beg her Indian
boy; and all things shall be fine.
Puck   My fairy lord, this must be done with haste. Night’s fading quickly, and in the distance the morning star is
shining, warning us that dawn is coming.
Obe.    We still have time to get all of this done before daybreak.
Puck   Up and down, up and down,
            I will lead them up and down;           
            I am fear'd in field and town.
            Goblin, lead them up and down.
                        Here comes one.
ENTER LYSANDER
Lys.     Where are you, Demetrius, you arrogant bastard? Say something.
Puck   I’m over here, you villain, with my sword out and ready to fight. Where are you?
Lys.     I’m coming.
Puck   Let’s go to a flatter area where we can fight more easily.
EXIT LYSANDER, AS FOLLOWING THE VOICE
ENTER DEMETRIUS
Dem.   Lysander, say something! You coward, did you run away from me? Say something! Are you behind some
bush? Where are you hiding?
Puck   Come here, you coward! Come here, you child! I’ll beat you with a stick. It would be shameful to fight you
with a sword, the way I would fight with a real man.
Dem.   Are you there?
Puck   Follow my voice. This isn’t a good place to fight.
EXIT
ENTER LYSANDER
Lys.     He’s walking ahead of me, and he keeps daring me to follow him. When I reach the place he’s calling from,
he disappears. This villain is much quicker than I am. Now here I am in some dark part of the forest where
the ground is uneven. I’ll rest here.  (Lie down).  I hope the pleasant daytime comes soon!  (Sleeps).
ENTER PUCK AND DEMETRIUS
Puck   Ha, ha, ha! Hey, You coward, why aren’t you coming?
Dem.   Wait for me, if you’re not too scared! I know that’s why you’re running away from me, constantly changing
places—you’re afraid to stand still and wait for me. You’re scared to look me in the eye. Where are you
now?
Puck   Come here. I’m over here.
Dem.   No, you’re just taunting me. You’ll pay for this if I ever see you face-to-face in the daylight. Go wherever you
want. I’m exhausted; I need to lie down and sleep on this cold ground. But watch out. I’ll find you at
dawn. (DEMETRIUS lies down and sleeps)
ENTER  HELENA
Hel.     Oh, what a long, tedious, exhausting night! I wish it would end. I wish the comforting light of day would
shine so I can go back to Athens and get away from these people who hate me so much. I hope I’ll be able
to sleep and escape my troubles for a while. People can sometimes forget their difficulties when they’re
asleep.(HELENA lies down and sleeps)
Puck   Only three so far? We’re still waiting for one more. Two of both kinds makes four. Ah, here she comes, angry
and sad.
ENTER HERMIA
Her.     I’ve never been more exhausted or upset. I’m all wet from the dew and scratched up by thorns, and I can’t
crawl any farther. I just can’t go on. My legs can’t hold themselves up. I’ll sleep here until morning. If they
do fight, I hope Lysander is safe! (HERMIA lies down and sleeps)
Puck   On the ground,
            Sleep sound;
            While I apply
            To your eyes, remedy. (Squeezing the juice on Lysander's eyes).
            And when you wake
            You shall take
            True delight
            In the sight
            Of your former lady's eye
            Jack shall have Jill;
            Nothing shall go ill.
EXIT

ACT FOUR
Scene I
ENTER TITANIA, BOTTOM, AND FAIRIRES; AND OBERON BEHIND THEM UNSEEN.
Tita.    Come over here and sit down on this flowery bed while I caress those lovable cheeks. I’ll put roses on your
silky, smooth head and kiss your big, beautiful ears, my gentle darling.  Go to sleep, and I will wrap my
arms around you. Fairies go away. Run off in all directions.
EXIT FAIRIES
                  Oh, how I love you! I’m so crazy about you! (They sleep).
ENTER PUCK
Obe.    Do you see this sweet sight? Now I’m starting to pity Titania for being so infatuated. Gentle Puck, take this
transformed ass’s head off of the head of that Athenian man, so that when he wakes up at the same time
as the rest of them do, they can all go back to Athens. They’ll only remember the events of tonight as a
very unpleasant dream. But first I’ll release the fairy queen from the spell. (Touching her eyes).
Tita.      Oberon, I’ve had such a strange dream! I dreamed I was in love with an ass.
Obe.      There lies your love.
Tita.      How did this happen? Oh, I hate looking at his face now!
Obe.      Be quiet for a while.—Robin, take off his donkey head. 
Puck   When you wake up, see things with your own foolish eyes again.
Obe.    Come, my queen, take hands with me.  Now you and I will, tomorrow midnight, dance in Duke Theseus'
house triumphantly.  And bless it to all fair prosperity.
EXIT (WIND HORN)
ENTER THESEUS, HIPPOLYTA, EGEUS
The.      My hounds are bred out of the Spartan kind;  a cry more tune able was never hollowed to nor cheered with
horn in Crete, nor in Sparta. But wait a minute! What nymphs are these?
Ege.       My lord, that’s my daughter asleep on the ground over there and this, is Lysander here, and this is
Demetrius, and this is Helena, old Nedar’s daughter. I don’t understand why they’re all here together.
The.      No doubt they rose up early to observe the rite of May.  But tell me, Egeus. Isn’t today the day when
Hermia has to tell us her decision about whether she’ll marry Demetrius?
Ege.       It is, my lord.
THEY ALL WAKE UP
The.    Good morning, friends.
Lys.       Forgive us, my lord.
THEY KNEEL.
The.    I pray you all, stand up.  I know you two are rival enemies. How comes this gentle concord in the world, to
sleep by hate and fear no enmity?
Lys.       My lord, I cannot truly say how I came here. But, as I think, I came with Hermia here.  Our intent was to be
gone from Athens, where we can marry without the peril of the Athenian law.
Ege.       Enough, enough, my lord, you have enough.  I beg the law, the law, upon his head. 
Dem.    My lord, fair Helena told me of their stealth.  And I, in fury, followed them here.
            Fair Helena followed me.  But my good lord, I know not by what power, my love to Hermia seems to me now
as the remembrance of a worthless tinket.  The object and the pleasure of my eye, is only Helena. Now I
do wish it, love it, long for it, and will for evermore be true to it.
The.    Fair lovers, you are fortunately met; Egeus,  I will overbear your will;  for in the temple, by and by with us
these couples shall eternally be knit. Come with us to Athens.  We'll hold a feast in great
solemnity.  Come, Hippolyta.
EXIT THESEUS, HIPPOLYTA, EGEUS
Dem.   Are you sure that we are awake?  It seems to me that yet we sleep, we dream.  
EXIT LOVERS
Bot. Tell me when my cue comes, and I’ll say my line. My next cue is “Most handsome Pyramus.” My God,
they’ve all run away and left me sleeping here? What a weird dream I had.—you can’t even describe such
a weird dream. I’ll get Peter Quince to write this dream down as a ballad. I’ll call it “Bottom’s Dream”
because it’s so deep that it has no bottom. And I’ll sing it for the duke in the intermission of a play. Or
maybe, to make it even more lovely, I’ll sing it when the heroine dies.
EXIT
 ACT FIVE
Scene I
ENTER THESEUS, HIPPOLYTA, AND PHILOSTRATE
ENTER LOVERS, LYSANDER, DEMETRIUS, HELENA, AND HERMIA
The.    Here come the lovers, full of joy and mirth.  Come now; what dances shall we have. Say, what abridgments
have we for this evening?  What masque?  What music?
FLOURISH TRUMPET
ENTER QUINCE (FOR THE PROLOGUE)
Qui.     This man is Pyramus, if you would know; This beauteous lady Thisbe is, certain; This man, with lime and
rough-cast, presents Wall – that vile wall which did these lovers sunder; This man, with a lantern, and
bush of thorn, presents Moonshine; This grisly beast which lion hight thy name… (FRIGHTENS
THISBE...THISBE RUNS AWAY SHOUTING) Well run, Thisbe.
Bot. Thus die I, thus, thus, thus…
EXIT ALL
ENTER THESEUS, HIPPOLYTA, LOVERS, EGEUS - LAUGHING
Hip.     That is the silliest thing that I have ever seen.
The.    Sweet friends, the iron tongue of midnight hath told twelve; Lovers, to bed; 'tis almost fairy time.
EXIT
ENTER OBERON, TITANIA/FAIRIES
Tita.    Hand in hand with fairy grace, will we bless this place.
Obe.    So shall all the couples, three, ever true in loving be.  And the blots of Nature's hand shall not in their issue
stand, never mole, hare-lip, nor shall scar upon their children be.
EXIT OBERON, TITANIA/FAIRIES