THE DREAM PROJECT
…is a collaboration between North American artists from Mexico, United States and Canada.
In this project, Shakespeare’s ageless tale, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, is deconstructed and reinvented into a multilingual and multidisciplinary spectacle.
Complete with original music, dance & aerial choreography, Spanish, French and English text and cutting edge design, The Dream Project encompasses the most compelling art forms of North American culture.
Taking a darker look at Shakespeare’s classic, The Dream Project centers around the magical fairy world. The story emerges from the bond between Titania and the child (“Indian boy”) and Oberon’s ruthless desire to steal him. Oberon abuses Puck and the lovers along the way to get what he wants. He observes and takes advantage of the animalistic and cruel side of their love and jealousy. Titania, embodying Mother Nature, protects the child at all costs; creating storms and earthquakes from her anger and grief. The story encompasses themes of climate change, motherhood, and the dark side of love.
The Dream Project is currently available for festivals, tour, and collaboration both live and digitally.
Collaborating over linguistic and cultural barriers provides us with comfort. Instead of fearing our differences, we celebrate them at a time where the world needs this more than ever. The importance of pursuing ‘our dream’ now could not be more relevant.
- KATIE MCHUGH, ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
Our Journey in Three Parts
Phase 1.0
In February 2017 we began the maiden voyage of Yonder Window Theatre Company with The Dream Project, Phase 1.0. Inspired by the text of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, a group of 15 artists from Mexico, the United States and Canada came together to work for 10 days in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. As we worked alongside the local visual artists of MuVarte Gallery, they painted and sculpted our process. In these 10 days, each artist in the space brought their unique set of talents and ideas to the table allowing the company to define the core aesthetic and foundation of The Dream Project, culminating with a cohesive, innovative, multilingual performance piece.
Phase 2.0
GK ARTS CENTER
In March 2018 the company reunited for three weeks in Brooklyn, New York for The Dream Project, Phase 2.0. Our aesthetic is inspired by the physical storytelling of Quebec’s Cirque, and the visual vibrancy of Mexican dance, music, and paintings. Our story for this developmental phase derives from the cultural conversations that began in phase 1.0. The use of vertical space and advanced movement techniques took shape in 2.0 as we developed the piece into a new darker rendering of Shakespeare’s story. As we explored the dark side of Midsummer, we were also digging into the darkness of what’s happening between our three countries. Therefore, we chose to focus 2.0 on Oberon and Titania’s conflict, using it as an allegory for the current cultural climate. Our reconstruction of Midsummer in this second phase included an earthquake caused by Titania’s supernatural force resulting in the death of a beloved character, intertwining a few key lines of text from one of Shakespeare’s bloodiest plays, Macbeth.
The Dream Project 3.0
The third phase of The Dream Project took place in Montreal, Quebec with a full design team and more aerial rigging, making it the grandest version of the show so far. The Dream Project 3.0, Montreal premiered October 9, 2019 in the Universcene warehouse in Hochelaga, Montreal. This version of The Dream Project featured 6 aerial points, innovative light and set design, and fantastical costume design. Elements of the previous two productions remained with a more intense focus on portraying environmental climate change. Titania creates more natural disasters as her anger and maternal distress over losing her child builds. We see again an earthquake brought on by Titania’s heartache resulting in the death of the humans and Oberon. It is not until she is reunited with her stolen child that the world calms and can begin to rebuild again.
Now having produced The Dream Project in all three countries our team stems from, we’ve built a greater company of aerialists, actors, and designers from across North America. The Dream Project 3.0, Montreal solidified The Dream Project as a grand theatre spectacle fit for festivals and stages across the world. This production is also adaptable and open to collaboration with other theatre companies at their home performance venue.