A young woman flees Athens with her lover, only to be pursued by her would-be husband and by her best friend. Unwittingly, all four find themselves in an enchanted forest where fairies and sprites soon take an interest in human affairs, dispensing magical love potions and casting mischievous spells. In this dazzling comedy, confusion ends in harmony, as love is transformed, misplaced, and ultimately restored.

Author Biography

Stanley Wells is the General Editor of the Penguin Shakespeare. He is Emeritus Professor of the University of Birmingham and Chairman of the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. Helen Hackett is a Reader in English Literature at University College London. Her publications include Writers and Their Work: 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' (1997), and Women and Romance Fiction in the English Renaissance (2000). Stanley Wells is the General Editor of the Penguin Shakespeare. He is Emeritus Professor of the University of Birmingham and Chairman of the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. Helen Hackett is a Reader in English Literature at University College London. Her publications include Writers and Their Work: 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' (1997), and Women and Romance Fiction in the English Renaissance (2000).