Stratford is the home of William Shakespeare (1564-1616), and also the Royal Shakespeare Company which dates back to 1879 but wasn't established as a permanent company until 1959 by Peter Hall. Known to have the best Shakespeare in the world, every major British stage actor has and continues to be ever present in the theater. Everyone from Patrick Stewart to Judy Dench, Ian McKellen, Ian Holm, Toby Stevens, Kenneth Branagh, you name it. The company lives on to produce and tour Shakespeare that caters to everyone. The city of Stratford itself is very beautiful, and has stayed relatively small. Similarly, the Stratford in Canada is in the middle of nowhere, but consistently sells out every performance and attracts millions of people. In the city you can find the home of Shakespeare, Trinity Church where Shakespeare is buried, and also Anne Hathaway's cottage. You can walk down the street and walk into a tavern such as the Old Thatch Tavern which has been around since 1638, or the lately named Ophelia dated back to 1452. The major roads of the city have been in existence since Romans occupied it, dated 72 A.D. My day was spent seeing these sights, drinking a lot of beer, eating a lot of fudge, and seeing the most beautiful piece of work I've ever witnessed on stage. 
A Midsummer Night's Dream has always been a play overdone by High Schools, community
theaters, some universities, and the professional theatres that know it will attract a lot of people. It's a very accessible show because
of it's easier dialogue and it's straight-forward plot. It's a show that has become cliche in a way due to it's obvious fantasy-like quality and it's unforgettable characters, specifically Puck and Helena. In this production, I was transported to a place where deep colors of night dance around the stars, and creatures keen to darkness dance about the earth causing mischief to anyone who might cross their sacred ground. The world is a very different place at night, often feared for it's lack of light and lack of psychological comfort. But it was in this world that I experienced the most beautiful and delightful creatures who captured me with their play and guise. There are so few times where I have been able to lose myself in a production and not care about anything else in the world, and this was perhaps the best of those times. There were times where I couldn't even pay attention to words spoken, because I was focused on the beauty of the world I was in. Everything was perfect in this believable world of make-believe; images that will stay with me forever. Notable actors were Joe Dixon who played Bottom whose acting was so different, so true, so geniusly humorous that I couldn't help but shoot out of my seat for an ovation at the end of the show.
Gregory Doran's portrayal of Theseus forced me into this world of make believe, making me believe anything he did from his magic, to his dancing in the air. This production affirmed for me why Shakespeare is so extremely important still TODAY in this world. It proved that Shakespeare is not something to be left in history, but rather something that is still alive, still present, still breathing into the depths of our mortal souls calling us to come and play in a world of make-believe. I couldn't be more excited and grateful for gift that Shakespeare gives us even today.
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