From June 18 through July 7, the Maryland StageCompany, the professional resident theatre company at UMBC,presents William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, directedby Xerxes Mehta. Produced and presented by the Maryland Stage Company, allperformances will be held in The Pearlstone Theater at Center Stage. The production features set andcostumes by Elena Zlotescu, lighting and sound byColin Bills and William-John Tudor, voice and speech coachingby Lynn Watson, dance movement by Ken Skrzesz, and acting by MSC Associate Artist WendySalkind (chair of the Department of Theatre), Helen Hayes Awardnominee Bill Largess, and a dynamic band of professional actors from NewYork, Chicago, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C.

The play is "suffused with laughter, love, music, dance, song, and some of the mostincandescent verse Shakespeare ever wrote," says Artistic Director Xerxes Mehta. "It's ultimately an exorcism of suffering, a healing ritual thatcelebrates the power of the human imagination, of play, of art itself toturn nightmares into dreams, to 'soothe the savage breast' and,finally, to bring joy to our hearts."

Mehta and the Maryland Stage Company havereceived consistent acclaim for such innovative and challengingproductions as Six Degrees of Separation, The Seagull,Tartuffe, The Misanthrope, Marat/Sade, OldTimes, The Duchess of Malfi and The Winter's Tale. Ofthe Company's performance at the Beckett in Berlin 2000 Festival, theBerliner Tagesspiegelsaid: "Anyone who missed these performances and loves theatreshould consider jetting to Baltimore, Maryland, to see these astoundingtheatre artists on home turf".

Showtimes:

• Opening Night Gala, Thursday, June 20, 8 p.m.
• Friday, June 21, 8 p.m.
• Saturday, June 22, 8 p.m.
• Sunday, June 23, 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
• Wednesday, June 26, 8 p.m.
• Thursday, June 27, 8 p.m.
• Friday, June 28, 8 p.m.
• Saturday, June 29, 8 p.m.
• Sunday, June 30, 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
• Tuesday, July 2, 8 p.m.
• Wednesday, July 3, 8 p.m.
• Friday, July 5, 8 p.m.
• Saturday, July 6, 8 p.m.
• Sunday, July 7, 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
• Previews: Tuesday and Wednesday, June 18 & 19, 8 p.m.

Ticket Prices (a service charge may be added):

• Opening Night Gala: $50 (Special performance to benefit the MarylandStage Company. Price includes ticket and post-show champagne reception.)
• Regular Admission: $20
• Previews: $18
• Groups of 10 or more: $18 per ticket
• Senior Citizens: $18
• College Students: $10
• Maryland High School Students: free admission

Reservations can be made by calling the Box Office at (410) 637-3618. Group sales information is available by calling x53529.