A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935) film adaptation of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream

Literary/ Cultural Context Essay

Kaitlyn Culliton (Trinity College Dublin)

Ed. by Ema Vyroubalova, Trinity College Dublin
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.03: English Writing and Culture: Renaissance (Elizabethan and Jacobean periods) , 1485-1625.
Vol. editors: William M. Hamlin (Washington State University), J A Roe (University of York), Virginia Mason Vaughan (Clark University), Ema Vyroubalova (Trinity College Dublin)

Dates

Date of occurrence 1595

Places

England (Location)

Genres and Modes

Comedy

Adapted from William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Directed by Max Reinhardt and William Dieterle. Staring Olivia de Havilland, Mickey Rooney, Dick Powell, James Cagney, and Joe E. Brown. English with English, French, and Portuguese subtitles. Black and White. 143 minutes.

Based on Max Reinhardt’s 1934 Hollywood Bowl production, the film premiered in 1935. It was nominated for four academy awards, winning two: Best Cinematography (by Hal Mohr) and Best Film Editing (by Ralph Dawson).

The Shakespearean text is reduced by almost half, but the film maintains the original plotline without significant departure. As well, the extensive use of couplets is largely p…

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1065 words

Citation: Culliton, Kaitlyn. "A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935) film adaptation of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 08 November 2016 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=19443, accessed 25 April 2024.]

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A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935) film adaptation of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream

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