What would A Midsummer Night’s Dream look like if presented in a way that made it accessible for all storytellers? If it were updated for today’s social media-saturated world? If it were told by people of all different abilities? | ✍️ BridgetteRedman
“That kind of kick-started a longer-standing friendship with their team,” said Katie Yohe, A.B.L.E. founder and executive artistic director. “We are an itinerant company, we don’t have our own space, so anything we do, from rehearsals to workshops to performances, is all dependent on community partners who are willing to share their space with us. What is beautiful about the collaboration with Chicago Shakes is that they really want to collaborate on the process.
“I came up with the idea of having the virtual ensemble act as a fairy text group chat commenting on the worlds of the play and interacting with it,” MacLean said. “So much of our life and our worlds are now mediated through our phones and through screens. It seems like a fun take on it to take these mischievous fairies who are causing quite a bit of trouble within the world of the play, and move them at least partially into this online sphere, and see what can come out of that.
Both Yohe and MacLean expect the virtual ensembles to continue even as the pandemic is officially over. It offers access to people who have transportation challenges, sensory issues, immune system compromises, or live outside of Chicago. It has become one more way that they can offer accessible opportunities. They’re taking what they learned during the pandemic and the infrastructure set up for them by VFX designer Brock Alter to integrate the virtual portion of the show into the live portion.
In the Saturday performance, the actor playing Peter Quince, Matthew Marren, has written elements where he steps into the play-within-a-play. “Above all else, we want people to take away that this is a high-caliber performance,” MacLean said. “It is not just some kind of pity show for people with disabilities. This is a rigorous rehearsal process and the people participating in it are people with disabilities. What I love about A.B.L.E. performances is that they don’t prescribe a way to have or be disabled. These actors are full people and they bring that to their performance and disability is a part of that.
Before each performance, 20 members of the audience can participate in a 45-minute workshop that simulates an A.B.L.E. rehearsal. Run by longtime members who have Down syndrome—including three who were in a production ofdone in 2012—the workshop leads participants through the games and activities that ensemble members do to bring their ideas to the stage. It also leads audience members on a touch tour of key costume pieces and props and lets them try out A.B.L.E.
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