So, I learned something new last night about Shakespeare! Did you know that it was because of him that the Wedding March (you know… “Here comes the bride,/ Big, fat and wide…”) came into existence? Who would’ve thunk?
As it turns out, A Midsummer Night’s Dream was Felix Mendelssohn’s favorite play (name sound familiar, Music 101ers?), and he started writing music for it at age 17. His opus, which was integrated into Midsummer Night productions, included the world-famous Wedding March as well as one of my favorite parts: a braying donkey sound made by violins in tribute to Nick Bottom. (I’m ignoring any anti-violin wisecracks springing from that comment!—It was fun to play, though I will admit that violas* would have given it a more authentic sound.) ;]
The donkey sound comes up at 3:12 and 8:30, if you just want to listen to that. This recording doesn’t have the Wedding March in it, but the ballet clip that I’ll post does.
When the camera changes perspectives, I like to think of it in terms of different approaches we take to Shakespeare’s texts: for example, the focus on one instrument would be our focus on one character, while the focus on all the orchestra at once is like stepping back to view a play as a magnificent symphony of words and ideas. I thought of the director as a symbol of how we try to see Shakespeare’s personal beliefs, and the outcomes he sought to accomplish with his writings.
*You may replace “violas” here with any other instrument—except violins. :]
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