A Midsummer Night's Dream kicks off Bard on the Beach's comeback, to September 24

Fairies, talking trees, and creepy goblins all show up in the production directed by Scott Bellis

Sarah Roa as Puck. Photo-image by Emily Cooper

Bard on the Beach presents A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Sen̓ákw/Vanier Park to September 24; Opening night is June 16

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM is an all-time audience favourite at Bard on the Beach, and the story of lovers and fairies in a forest kicks off this year’s festival, its comeback following the COVID-19 pandemic.

Helmed by veteran Bard director and actor Scott Bellis (who directed Shakespeare’s comic masterpiece in 2014 and The Two Gentlemen of Verona in 2017), the play written in the mid-1590s launched the company back in 1990 and was performed during its 10th and 25th anniversary seasons.

Bellis is using the 1920s as a general palette for the piece, “with additions”. “I was drawn to this era as a reference for its historical similarities to our own current climate: military unrest, civil strife, a global pandemic – a world in trouble; one that reflects our time,” Bellis says in his director’s notes. “It’s a struggling and unsettled place in deep need of renewal, one in which a journey into the dark woods may provide some answers, and a pathway toward a brighter future together.”

Bard on the Beach is collaborating with SFU School for the Contemporary Arts for the 2022 production, with several fairies being played by senior dance students.

“We will also have talking trees, creepy goblins, a few rewrites, and other surprises to bring to this story – one of young people in search of hearts’ desire; of political figures seeking a path forward; of supernatural powers out of balance, and perhaps, most importantly, a group of actors trying to stage a play under trying circumstances,” Bellis says.

Bard artistic director Christopher Gaze says in a release that A Midsummer Night’s Dream—which is the 2022 fest’s only production on the BMO Mainstage, running all season—captures exactly what the organization wants to share with audiences after a long two years away. “It’s a true celebration of hope and joy that will lift the spirits of everyone who sees it,” Gaze says.

Articles

Playful show Secret Ingredients comes to Gateway Theatre, October 14 to 17

Keely Rois O’Brien’s intimate experimental work transforms a personal message into a subversive cake

With its technically demanding production of Heist, the Arts Club aims to wow the audience

Arun Lakra’s play is like a caper movie crossed with a whodunit, and director Andrew Kushnir says pulling it off requires the combined forces of an A team of designers and actors

Hideki Noda's Red Demon opens the Firehall Arts Centre’s 2026–27 season, October 8 to 18

Darkly funny play examines whether coexistence is possible in a society fraught with prejudice and discrimination

Chutzpah! Festival unveils 2026 programming, with actor Ari’el Stachel, comedian Jacob Samuel, dance artist Meghann Michalsky, and more

The 26th annual edition spans theatre, dance, comedy, and music from November 3 to 15

Dragons, drama, and tour-de-force monologues highlight Théâtre la Seizième’s 2026–27 season

The local French-language theatre company will present everything from a live video game to an emotionally intense two-hander based on a Virginia Woolf masterpiece

Western Gold Theatre's Have A Senior Moment Festival opens with Anniversary, September 25 to 27

A staged reading of Carol Shields and Dave Williamson‘s comedy takes a sharp look at life and love in middle-class suburbia

Theatre review: Postcards to my Younger Transexual Self captures the soft ache of reaching for somebody across distance

In playwright-performer Christina Cook’s new show, reality-bending correspondence plays out across a stage loosely divided between the three generations of women

To Love or Not to Love puts a modern spin on a medieval Persian epic, August 27 to 30

Majid Tafreshi’s play intertwines Nezami Ganjavi’s 12th-century poetry with the lives of contemporary theatre actors

At Metro Theatre, puppets navigate the realities of adulthood in Avenue Q, September 18 to October 10

Christopher King directs the Tony Award–winning musical comedy about a college grad finding his way in the world

Where the Blood Mixes, Bordertown Café, Benevolence as Firehall Arts Centre announces 2026–27 season

A new dance work by Kirsten Wicklund and Peter Smida, the world premiere of a musical, and more round out the lineup

Glitch Theatre's new podcast series Arc One debuts August 27

Short works by D/disability-identified artists offer compelling stories, from a literally spirited cabaret to the time-spanning medical office of Anton Chekhov

A History of Motown explores the soulful sounds that shaped popular music, August 19 to 29

Singer Krystle Dos Santos and her band celebrate the record label that brought us legendary performers including Aretha Franklin and Marvin Gaye

The Cultch says visa delays threaten The Horse of Jenin’s Canadian premiere

One-man show by Amsterdam-based Palestinian artist Alaa Shehada had already been postponed from last spring due to processing holdups

With Ionesco’s Cabaret, Rumble Theatre brings the Theatre of the Absurd into the modern age

The show, produced by Theatre Conspiracy in association with Pi Theatre, finds contemporary resonances in Eugène Ionesco’s 20th-century works

Theatre review: Gleefully chaotic Goblins dismantle Oedipus at Bard on the Beach

Wug, Kravga, and Moog deliver a take on Sophocles’ Greek tragedy that, in addition to copious amounts of crude humour, has its share of chillingly effective moments

Theatre review: A Streetcar Named Desire unsettles with mix of charm, fragility, and violence

Ensemble Theatre Company taps into the humid haze of a Tennessee Williams classic where love and self-deception mingle

Theatre review: The Little Mermaid dives into glittering storybook setting at Theatre Under the Stars

Standout performances and design bring infectious energy to Disney’s tale of love and self-discovery

Theatre review: Bard on the Beach’s adaptation of Antigone opens new paths through timeless tragedy

Bold update by Kate Besworth brings mythic figures closer to us while continuing to ask the ancient questions posed by Sophocles

Theatre review: Theatre Under the Stars’ Sister Act soars on joyous sounds and heartfelt story

Fierce company transforms characters by committing to the popular musical’s blend of disco, soul, and gospel

Anita Majumdar’s Why We Work Out is an exercise in understanding, at Indian Summer Festival

Presented by the fest and Boca del Lupo, the multifaceted one-woman show carries long-standing reflections on workout culture and the life-altering effects of a pandemic

Local theatre artists’ project King Arthur’s Night culminates in a buoyant new film that blurs documentary and fantasy

Now streaming on Knowledge.ca, John Bolton–helmed movie stars Niall McNeil, Marcus Youssef, Veda Hille, Nathan Kay, and more, in a mix of artists with and without Down syndrome

Dark, funny, and a little weird, The Apiary brings offbeat buzz to summer theatre scene

With live music and innovative touches, a collective of established Vancouver stage artists brings eco-horror play about disappearing bees to life at the Vines Den

Ensemble Theatre Company’s Peerless riffs on Shakespeare and affirmative action

Part of Ensemble’s summer festival, Jiehae Park’s play references Macbeth as it takes on the power dynamics of U.S. college admissions

Theatre review: Arts Club production of The Play That Goes Wrong goes hilariously right

Great performances and impeccable set design and stage management ensure that the comedy about a hapless theatre company is a chaotic mess in all the right ways

Antigone gives ancient Greek play a modern feel at Bard on the Beach, to September 18

In playwright Kate Besworth and director Ming Hudson’s adaptation, contemporary language highlights the continuing relevance of Sophocles’ 5th century BC tragedy