BOTTOM        The ousel cock so black of hue With orange-tawny bill, The throstle with his note so true, The wren with little quill. TITANIA         [Wakes.] What angel wakes me from my flowery bed? BOTTOM        The finch, the sparrow and the lark, The plainsong cuckoo gray, Whose note full many a man doth mark, And dares not answer nay. For indeed, who would set his wit to […]

BOTTOM        Why do they run away? This is a knavery of them to make me afeard Enter SNOUT. SNOUT            O Bottom, thou art changed. What do I see on thee? BOTTOM        What do you see? You see an ass-head of your own, do you? [Exit Snout.] Enter QUINCE. QUINCE          Bless thee Bottom, bless thee! Thou […]

Enter BOTTOM with an ass’s head, PUCK following. BOTTOM        If I were, fair Thisbe, I were only thine. QUINCE          O monstrous! O strange! We are haunted. Pray, masters; fly, masters. Help! [Exeunt all except PUCK and BOTTOM.] PUCK  I’ll follow you; I’ll lead you about a round, Through bog, through bush, through brake, through brier. Sometime a horse I’ll be, sometime a hound, A […]

FLUTE Most radiant Pyramus, most lily-white of hue, Of colour like the red rose on triumphant brier, Most brisky juvenal, and eke most lovely jew, As true as truest horse that yet would never tire, I’ll meet thee, Pyramus, at Ninny’s tomb. QUINCE          Ninus’ tomb, man. Why, you must not speak that yet. That you answer to Pyramus. You speak all your part […]

QUINCE          Speak, Pyramus. Thisbe, stand forth. BOTTOM        Thisbe, the flowers of odious savours sweet. QUINCE          Odours, odours. BOTTOM        … odours savours sweet. So hath thy breath, my dearest Thisbe dear. But hark, a voice. Stay thou but here a while, And by and by I will to thee appear.  (Exit.) PUCK  [aside] A stranger Pyramus than ere played here. [Exit.] FLUTE Must I speak now? QUINCE          Ay, […]

QUINCE          If that may be, then all is well. Come, sit down every mother’s son, and rehearse your parts. Pyramus, you begin. When you have spoken your speech, enter into that brake; and so every one according to his cue. PUCK  [aside] What hempen homespuns have we swaggering here, So near the cradle of the Fairy Queen? What, a play toward? I’ll […]

QUINCE          Ay, or else one must come in with a bush of thorns and a lantern, and say he comes to disfigure or to present the person of Moonshine. Then there is another thing: we must have a wall in the great chamber; for Pyramus and Thisbe, says the story, did talk through the chink […]

QUINCE          Well, it shall be so. But there is two hard things: that is, to bring the moonlight into a chamber; for you know Pyramus and Thisbe meet by moonlight. SNOUT            Doth the moon shine that night we play our play? BOTTOM        A calendar, a calendar: look in the almanac. Find out moonshine, find out […]

SNOUT            Will not the ladies be afeared of the Lion? STARVELING I fear it, I promise you. BOTTOM        Masters, you ought to consider with yourself: to bring in (God shield us) a lion among ladies is a most dreadful thing; for there is not a more fearful wild-fowl than your lion living, and we ought […]

STARVELING I believe we must leave the killing out, when all is done. BOTTOM        Not a whit. I have a device to make all well. Write me a prologue, and let the prologue seem to say we will do no harm with our swords, and that Pyramus is not killed indeed; and for the more […]