We got proof last August that the Actors’ Gang could put on a great version of The Tempest in Media Park in Culver City.  Of course, their version was dubbed The Tempest: Star Wars Edition and featured Obi Wan Kenobi as Prospero, Princess Leia as Miranda, and C3P0 as Ariel.  Naturally, Caliban – who is described as a "mooncalf," a "hag-seed," and a "strange fish" – was "played" by Jabba the Hutt.  

Now starting on June 29th and running through the end of July, the troupe will be taking on another Shakespeare classic in a more serious vein – at least as serious as a play can be that features mystical beings, fairies, spells, lovers bewitched by magic, and a guy running around with the head of an ass. That’s right, it’s The Actors’ Gang production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, directed by none other than Tim Robbins (the troupe’s Foundation Artistic Director).

Says Robbins, “This is one of my favorite Shakespeare plays – there are so many layers of truth, untruth, dream, reality, magic and deception. A marital dispute puts the universe in disorder and the confusion that emerges is dangerous and full of outrageous behavior and wildly funny.”  This workshop production is said to be presented “with minimal costumes, props and scenery, relying on the creative imagination of its players to realize Shakespeare’s magical world.”

Tickets are $35. Thursdays are Pay-What-You-Can.  The Actors’ Gang is located at the Ivy Substation at 9070 Venice Blvd.

Here are some reminders of the Actors' Gang's family-friendly look at The Tempest: Star Wars Edition, last August: