Dallas: Fireside Folk Tales presents A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare. Act one, scene two.
Quince: Is all our company here?
Bottom: You were best to call them generally, man by man, according to the script.
Quince: Here is the scroll of every man's name, which is thought fit through all Athens to play in our interlude before the Duke and duchess on his wedding day at night.
Bottom: First, good Peter Quince, say what the play treats on. Then read the names of the actors and so grow to a point.
Quince: Mary, our play is the most lamentable comedy and most cross. Cruel death of Pyramus and Thisbe.
Bottom: A very good piece of work, I assure you, and a merry. Now, good Peter Quince, call forth your actors by the scroll. Masters, spread yourselves.
Quince: Answer as I call you. Nickbottom, the weaver.
Bottom: Ready. Name what part I am for and proceed.
Quince: You, Nick Bottom, are set down for Pyramus.
Bottom: What is Pyramus? A lover or a tyrant?
Quince: A lover that kills himself most gallantly.
Bottom: For love, 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. I will condole in some measure to the rest. Yet my chief humour is for a tyrant. I could play Ercles rarely or apart to tear a cat in to. To make all split the raging rocks and shivering shocks shall break the locks of prison gates. And Phoebus car shall shine from far and make and mar the foolish fates. This was lofty. Now name the rest of the players. This is Hercules Vein, A tyrant's vein. A lover is more condoling.
Quince: Uh, Francis Flute, the bellows mender.
Bottom: Here, Peter Quince.
Quince: Flute, you must take Thisbe on you.
Bottom: What is Thisbe, wandering knight?
Quince: It is the lady that Pyramus must love.
Bottom: Nay, faith, let me not play a woman.
Quince: I have a beard coming, that's all. 1. You shall play it in a mask, and you may speak as small as you will.
Bottom: And, ooh, I may hide my face. Let me play Thisbe too. I'll speak in a monstrous little voice. This my lover dear. Thy Thisbe dear, and nady dear.
Quince: You must play Pyramus. And Flute, you Thisbe.
Bottom: We'll proceed.
Quince: Robin Starveling, the tailor.
Bottom: Here, Peter Quince.
Quince: Robin Starveling, you must play Thisbe's mother. Tom Snout, the tinker.
Bottom: Here, Peter Quince.
Quince: You, Pyramus father. Myself, Thisbe's father. Snug, the joiner. You, the lion's part. And I hope here is a play fitted.
Bottom: Have you the lines part written? Pray you, if it be, give it to me, for I am slow of study.
Quince: You may do it extempore, for it is nothing but roaring.
Bottom: Ooh, let me play the lion too. I will roar 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.
Quince: If you should do it too terribly, you would fright the Duchess and the ladies, that they would shriek and that were enough to hang us all, that.
Bottom: Kind of every mother's son, I grant you, friends, if you should fright the ladies out of their wits, they would have no more discretion but to hang us. But I will aggravate my voice so that I will roar you as gently as any sucking dove. I will roar you and twere any nightingale.
Quince: You can play no part but Pyramus, for Pyramus is a sweet faced man, a proper man, as one shall see in a summer's day, A most lovely gentlemanlike man. Therefore you must needs play Pyramus.
Bottom: Well, I will undertake it. What beard were I best to play it in? Why, what you will, I will discharge it in either your straw coloured beard, your orange tawny beard, your purple and grain beard, or your French crown color beard, your perfect yellow.
Quince: Some of your French crowns have no hair at all. And then you will play barefaced. But masters, here are your parts. And I am to entreat you, request you and desire you to con them by tomorrow night and meet me in the palace wood, a mile without the town, by moonlight. There we will rehearse. For if we meet in the city, we shall be dogged with company and our devices known. In the meantime, I will draw a bill of properties such as our play wants. I pray you fail me not.
Bottom: We will meet, and there we may rehearse most obscenely and courageously. Take pains, be perfect, adieu.
Quince: At the Duke's Oak we meet enough.
Bottom: Hold or cut bow strings.
Dallas: This episode of A Midsummer Night's Dream featured the vocal talents of Ivy Kasparek as Quince, Josh Rubino as Bottom, CB Droj as Flute, Anusha Battersby as Starveling, Rozrae Powers as Snout and Dante Majors as Sn. A Midsummer Night's Dream was produced and directed by Dallas Hawthorne with the assistance of Roz Ray Powers. Cole Burkhart was the sound designer. Allie Hilton composed the music. Adam Raymonda composed the theme song. This show would not have been possible without the support of friends, family and many, many, many of the of our respected peers in the audio drama sphere. If you want to provide your support to the cast and crew of the show, please consider donating to our Ko Fi page, which you can find linked in the Show Notes. If you wish to donate directly to a cast or crew member of your choosing, you can find out how to do that in the Show Notes as well. Transcriptions of each episode, including the edits made during production, can also be found linked in the Show Notes. Generally, anything you might need to know should be down in the Show Notes. Thank you for listening.