There’s something about a midsummer night that feels magical, and Shakespeare captured that enchantment in one of his most beloved comedies. With its four interlocking plots, the play weaves together the stories of young lovers, feuding fairies, and a troupe of amateur actors, and it has remained a favourite on stage and screen for centuries.

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Year written: 1594–1596 (GradeSaver (literature study guide)) ·
Genre: Comedy (Shakespeare’s Globe (London theatre)) ·
Setting: Athens, Greece (Shakespeare’s Globe (London theatre)) ·
Acts: 5 (SparkNotes (study guide))

Quick snapshot

1Confirmed facts
2What’s unclear
  • Exact date of first performance is unknown (GradeSaver (literature study guide))
  • Some textual variations exist between quartos and the First Folio (GradeSaver (literature study guide))
  • Year written: 1594–1596 (GradeSaver (literature study guide))
3Timeline signal
  • 1598: Mentioned by Francis Meres (GradeSaver (literature study guide))
  • 1623: Published in First Folio (Shakespeare’s Globe (London theatre))
4What’s next
  • 1969 film adaptation by Peter Hall (IMDb)
  • 1999 film starring Kevin Kline and Michelle Pfeiffer (IMDb)
  • Countless stage productions worldwide (Shakespeare’s Globe (London theatre)) (IMDb)
The pattern

Four plots, one night: the lovers’ confusion, the fairies’ feud, the mechanicals’ rehearsal, and the royal wedding. Each thread depends on the others for its comic payoff.

Seven key facts about the play, one pattern: almost everything we know for certain comes from the 1623 First Folio and a handful of contemporary references.

Fact Value
Full title A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Author William Shakespeare (Shakespeare’s Globe (London theatre))
Year written 1594–1596 (GradeSaver (literature study guide))
Genre Comedy (Shakespeare’s Globe (London theatre))
Setting Athens, Greece, and a nearby forest (Shakespeare’s Globe (London theatre))
Number of acts 5 (SparkNotes (study guide))
Main characters Hermia, Lysander, Helena, Demetrius, Oberon, Titania, Puck, Bottom (Shakespeare’s Globe (London theatre))

The implication: the play’s authority rests on thin documentary evidence, but its cultural footprint is enormous.

What is the story of A Midsummer Night’s Dream?

The four interlocking plots

  • Theseus, Duke of Athens, prepares to marry Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons.
  • Egeus demands his daughter Hermia marry Demetrius; she refuses because she loves Lysander.
  • Hermia and Lysander flee into the forest; Demetrius pursues them; Helena pursues Demetrius.
  • Oberon and Titania quarrel over a changeling boy, and Oberon orders Puck to use a love potion.

The mechanicals – Bottom, Quince, Flute, and others – rehearse a play to perform at the wedding. Each plot line collides in the forest, where Puck’s mistakes cause chaos: Lysander and Demetrius both fall for Helena, Titania falls in love with Bottom (now wearing an ass’s head), and the lovers nearly