Donkey Show Dances at American Repertory Theatre at Zero Arrow Street, Cambridge, MA

The young are coming in sellout crowds to this highly theatrical show, dancing, no actually boogeying away the night and telling their friends about the experience so they can share in it as well. The Donkey Show opened in late August and has steadily sold out each week-end. In fact, the 10:30 Saturday evening shows are literally filled with young people. Many even come in 70's costumes or drag (more about this later). The Donkey Show is the venue for Saturday Night Live to a Shakespearean beat. Or is it Shakespeare with a disco beat? Someone called it A Mid-Donna Summer's Night Dream. That works, too. The bottom line is that many theatre goers are coming back four and five times to see it. The Donkey Show is just that entertaining and that much fun.

The Donkey Show is a theatrical adaptation of William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. Created in a disco-era (70s) style, it was written by Diane Paulus and Randy Weiner. It first appeared Off-Broadway in 1999. The show subsequently ran for six years. It also was performed throughout the world including venues in England, Scotland, France, Korea, Japan and Spain. 

The show loosely tells the story of A Midsummer Night's Dream through the great 1970's disco anthems. These include "We are Family," the classic "YMCA," the sensitive" I Love the Nightlife," "Car Wash," "Ring My Bell," and the best disco song of them all,"Last Dance." Note: I actually danced with my date to that one! The crowded glittered retro disco named for its proprietor Mr. Oberon, The Oberon, stands in for the enchanted forest of Shakespeare's classic comedy of fairies, mistaken identities, fantasies and talking donkeys. 

Audience members are the forest trees as the lovers run through the crowd, climb over railings and march up stairs in order to escape from their real lives to experience a fantastic night of dream, abandonment and deliverance. Here the fairies are scantily clad male disco dancers. The donkey character has some vague connection to the Mexican adult porn show that may or may not have been a reality. Some characters are in drag: women are dressed as men; men as drag queens. Like in the Bard's original play in the woods, at the Oberon, there is a lot gender bending going on. The disco has a mysterious back room where perhaps drugs and sex happen along with the rock and roll. One can only imagine.

The Oberon houses all of these adventures. The show actually starts a half an hour early when the crowd lines up like they are going to the old Studio 54 or a contemporary club. Actors intermingle with the people in line. The big Bouncer even harassed me as I entered. The DJ plays music for the first half  hour, and the Fairies, the scantily clad male go-go dancers gyrate and pirouette at an amazing pace. Sometimes dancing with audience members, other times they dance wildly alone. The 70's songs blast away. We seem to know the words to all of the songs. It is hard to not start dancing. Then the narrative or actual dramatic action starts. The club itself is a major player in the production. The actors perform next to, around and with the audience. Dreamlike, audience members are part of the show and in the show. Participation while observing intensifies the theatrical experience. We are all family.

The show is so popular that people are having birthday parties there. The Donkey Show has been the venue for several Bachelorette Parties as well. More birthdays and girls' night outs are being scheduled. Is this due to the scholarly Cambridge crowd's love of Shakespeare or the nearly naked male dancers? It doesn't matter. The concept, production and performances are wonderful. Bravo, Artistic Director Diane Paulus! Bravo, A.R.T. The Donkey Show is a night of smile-evoking entertainment that should not be missed. I love the nightlife and love to boogie.