I remember heading to Peel Castle in the later 1990s for a number of Shakespeare performances and even one play about Dracula.

I have fond memories of those evenings even if they were always colder than you anticipated and the gulls tended to drown out much of the dialogue.

So when I heard there would be a performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream this year – having only returned to the island in January – I just had to go.

The event on Saturday evening is part of the American Drama Group Europe’s (ADG) Castle Tour 2024 which also included a performance at Rushen Abbey on Sunday.

With the summer we have had I all but resigned myself to an evening trying to follow the play in howling winds and lashing rain.

However, for once the weather held out and we were blessed with sunshine although I anticipated it would not be that cool and brought a jacket. The gulls were not too loud either.

With unfortunate timing, the Fenella footbridge swung open to allow vessels up the Neb just as dozens of theatregoers headed for the castle.

That meant I got there later than I would have liked and it was already pretty full.

I only had a rug while many people brought folding chairs which meant finding a place to sit without a chair obscuring the stage was a challenge. It might have been better if a space at the front was set aside for those sitting on the ground.

You would be hard-pushed to beat Peel Castle as a setting for a Shakespeare play so I was a little surprised to see an actual stage. I felt it limited the scope a little and the production may have benefitted from using the magnificent venue more organically.

The play was a little late in starting but once it began it was a joy from start to finish.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream is one of Shakespeare’s funniest plays and it gives the actors a lot of opportunity to put their own stamp on it.

The story follows the fortunes of a quartet of lover’s who are lured into the forest by fairies who trick them with a magic potion that forces them to fall in love with the first person they see.

Sadly the Queen of Fairies herself takes the potion delivered by Oberon and Puck and when a donkey crosses her path she falls in love with the beast.

Eventually, matters resolve themselves and each lover ends up with right person.

Director Paul Stebbings gave the play much-needed light treatment and the cast thrived on the chaos and bawdy humour.

There were just six actors with each having more than one role but were able to effortless switch between them.

Darryl Hughes as Puck and Clark Alexander as Bottom were both excellent and drove the comedy forward.

Dan Cavendish also flourished as Oberon while Samantha Thornton Rice as Hermia and Martha Caidan as Helena were also excellent, particularly in the scene when they clashed over their lovers. Rachel Middle was also admirable in her role as Titania.

The highlight was the play by the ‘amateur actors’ at the end which was hilarious and the cast acted so well to perform so badly!

Despite moments of song and dance – with an original score – the play was over in an hour and a half. It was a testament to how much I enjoyed it that it went so quickly despite feeling a little uncomfortable on the ground.

Next year the ADG are set to return with Much Ado About Nothing and I plan on being there – with fold up chair.