Puck sends the lovers to sleep and Oberon releases Titania from the spell.
SCENE 9: ANOTHER PART OF THE WOODS
PUCK: Ah, hello again. I鈥檝e been trying to keep these Athenians from bumping into each other for ages now, but they still haven鈥檛 tired out enough to fall asleep. I think it鈥檚 time to use a little mischief鈥
LYSANDER: Where are you proud Demetrius? Speak!
PUCK: Listen to this. Ahem鈥 鈥淗ere, Lysander, you villain! Where are you?鈥
LYSANDER: I will be with you straight.
PUCK: 鈥淔ollow me then to plainer ground.鈥
FX: Puck casts spell, Lysander yawns
PUCK: That鈥檚 one Athenian down! Finally鈥 Now, where鈥檚 that Demetrius?
DEMETRIUS: Lysander! Where are you? Coward, have you fled?
PUCK: Ahem鈥 鈥淵ou鈥檙e the coward! Come here and fight me face-to-face!鈥
DEMETRIUS: I would if I could find your place.
PUCK: 鈥淔ollow my voice, I sit and wait.鈥
DEMETRIUS: Argh! He鈥檚 not here鈥 I鈥檝e had enough of this. I鈥檒l sleep tonight, and in the morning I鈥檒l pursue our fight.
PUCK: Haha! That one was too easy. Why didn鈥檛 I start doing this before? Oh look, here comes Helena.
HELENA: O long and tedious night. The morning light can鈥檛 be far away鈥 I鈥檒l lie down a while and wait for break of day.
PUCK: Three are here! But I need one more. Two of both kinds make up four. Ah! Hello Hermia鈥
HERMIA Never have I been so weary, never so in woe. I can travel no further, my legs won鈥檛 let me go. Here will I rest 鈥榯il the morning light, heavens protect Lysander if he鈥檚 forced to fight.
PUCK: Yes! That鈥檚 all four of them鈥 On the ground, sleep sound; I鈥檒l apply to your eye, gentle lover, remedy. When you wake take true delight in your former lady Hermia鈥檚 sight.
BOTTOM:Hee-haw!
PUCK:What was that? Oh, I know, it鈥檚 the weaver I turned into a donkey. Shall we see how he鈥檚 getting on with Titania?
SCENE 10: ANOTHER PART OF THE WOODS
TITANIA: Ah, let me kiss your fair large ears, my gentle joy.
BOTTOM: Where鈥檚 Peaseblossom?
TITANIA: There my love.
BOTTOM: Scratch my head, Peaseblossom.
FX: Fairy scratches Bottom鈥檚 head
BOTTOM: Where鈥檚 Monsieur Cobweb and Madame Mustardseed? Aha, there you are!
TITANIA: What is your will my love? What should I have them do?
BOTTOM: Nothing but to help Miss Peaseblossom scratch. I must to the barber鈥檚 for I think I am marvellous hairy about the face.
TITANIA: O say, sweet love, what you desire to eat?
BOTTOM: I think I have a great desire for a bale of鈥 hay!
TITANIA: As you will my love. I will send a fairy now.
BOTTOM: Very well. But I ask you, let none of your people bother me. I鈥檓 suddenly feeling very sleepy.
FX: Bottom snores
TITANIA: Sleep then and I will wind you in my arms. Fairies, away.
PUCK: Oh my!
OBERON: Ah, Puck. I see you鈥檝e seen the Queen鈥 I do now begin to pity her doting on a donkey. Perhaps this was too cruel?
PUCK: Well, I don鈥檛 know about that鈥
OBERON: Take this ass鈥檚 head off the weaver, so that when he wakes he can return to Athens and think no more of tonight than if it were a dream.
PUCK: Yes my lord.
OBERON: First I must release the fairy queen. Now, be as you would want to be and see as you would want to see. Wake up Titania, my sweet queen.
TITANIA: My Oberon! What visions have I seen! I thought I was enamoured of an ass.
OBERON: There lies your love.
TITANIA: How came these things to pass? O how my eyes do loathe his visage now!
OBERON: Well, it鈥檚 a long story鈥
FX: Bird tweets
PUCK: Erm, fairy king, attend and mark, for I do hear the morning lark.
TITANIA: Come my lord and in our flight tell me how it came this night, that I sleeping here was found, with this mortal on the ground.
PUCK: It seems our twilight revels are coming to an end. It鈥檚 nearly daybreak and time for Theseus鈥檚 wedding. But first I鈥檒l return the weaver to his former state. When you wake, with your own fools eyes peep鈥
FX: Magic flash
BOTTOM: Hee-haw!
7: Lifting the Fog
Puck leads the lovers through the foggy night, using ventriloquism to keep them from bumping into one another. One by one, they enter a clearing and fall asleep. Puck applies the magic flower to Lysander鈥檚 eyes, so that he might fall in love with Hermia again when he wakes.
Titania and her fairies wait on the transformed Bottom until both he and the bewitched queen fall asleep. Oberon witnesses the scene, takes pity on Titania and releases her from the flower鈥檚 spell. She wakes, sees Oberon, instantly loves him again and is reconciled. She recoils at the sight of the sleeping Bottom with his donkey head. Oberon tells Puck to change Bottom back to his former state.
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Download / print the transcript of Episode 7
Activities - KS2
The lovers have been on a long journey before they are finally gathered together by Puck to fall asleep at the end of this episode. The class could discuss each of their narrative arcs and talk about how their relationships have changed over the course of the play.
As an aid to comprehension, each storyline could be summarised in a few sentences on different cards and those cards put together to create a complete storyline. The class could then be asked to make predictions about what happens next. Will the lovers be reconciled? What about Theseus鈥檚 ruling from the beginning of the play? Will Bottom make it back in time to perform Pyramus?
Pupils could be asked to devise comic and tragic endings for the play, building on the discussion about comedy and tragedy from Episode 2.
Activities - KS3
Working in groups of 4 or 5, students could be provided with the first two pages of the transcript of Episode 7, complete with stage directions. After discussing some of the structural features of a play text, each student could then be asked to pick a character and imagine how the rest of Episode 7 might unfold from that character鈥檚 point of view, working collaboratively to draft a new ending for the episode, complete with stage directions.
The group could also be asked to semi-stage or fully perform the resulting scene to the class.
More episodes from A Midsummer Night's Dream
5: Oberon's Revenge. video
Titania falls in love with the transformed Bottom and Oberon discovers Puck鈥檚 mistake.
6: The Lovers' Quarrel. video
Lysander and Demetrius compete for Helena鈥檚 love...and Hermia starts a fight.
8: A Wedding Play. video
The lovers return to Athens for a triple wedding. Bottom and friends perform their play.
