Director Khalid Ahmed must have left the Karachi Arts Council theatre a happy man on the first night of his play, Beech Bahar Ki Raat Ka Sapna, a “direct translation” (as Khalid puts it) of Shakespeare's comedy, A Midsummer Night's Dream.

A determined man of a few words and who smiles sparingly, the perfectionist in Khalid probably knew it would get a good response. The audience applauded generously and laughed heartily to the buffoonery in the play on the opening night, and the press offered rave previews the following day — plenty of cause for him to smile.

One counts Khalid Ahmed in the league of Napa faculty members who carry a chip on their shoulders; as they claim to be the best in the profession. That said it may not be a wrong perception for he managed to execute the play really well.

Beech Bahar Ki Raat Ka Sapna was a good choice to start the year [Napa Repertory Theatre's (NRT) 13th production in two years]. A love quadruple that is mischievously altered into commotion, the play sent ripples of laughter through the audience thanks to its most favourite character of Nick Bottom (adroitly enacted by Tanveer Abbas, another pro on the faculty). His portrayal of 'Paenda paan farosh' was superb, as he effervescently offered comic relief with his group of buffoons.

“Thank God we broke away from enacting those dry intellectual plays,” whispered a graduating Napa student who has been a regular feature at almost all NRT presentations. She probably meant the serious (some read it as boring) Chekhov plays that were presented last year, but then admittedly these budding Napa actors' skills have been honed to perfection after working in them. They act with ease, understand the nuances of space and time on stage, and say their dialogues fluently with the right pronunciation. Nazrul Hasan, Mehvish Siddique, Mehreen Rafiq, Zainul Abedin, Farhan Ali Shah and Maesam Naqvi are some to name a few.

One of the Bard's most popular plays, A Midsummer Night's Dream was translated into easy Urdu. The characters were dubbed into local versions of the original cast (Francis Flute, Robin Starveling, Tom Snout and Snug) with names like Mohan, Dilbar Tailor Master, Murli, Rangbaz, etc. Though originally set in Athens, one cannot really pinpoint the exact place or country or culture that the characters belong to.

“The translation brings the play closer to us in terms of a change of names, costumes and titles of the actors to be put up at the wedding ceremony of the Wali (Theseus, the Duke of Athens),” said Khalid. The exclusive set designs from a court to a forest to fairyland bolstered with light effects enhanced the performance amicably.

A rather difficult play to handle with a troupe of 22 characters, assistant director Akbar-ul-Islam commendably managed the scenes, big or small, that carried at least three to four actors on stage at a time. “It was all a matter of teamwork,” he said, “and it all ran pretty smoothly.” An impressive music score sung and played as background music was also a welcome addition. “It was the first time that original music was made for a play by Arshad Mahmud and Nafees Ahmed,” Khalid pointed out.

Aiman Tariq, who has proved her mettle as a star Napa student, multi-tasked as she acted Gulnaar, (Titania, Queen of the Elves), sang a solo and designed a befitting wardrobe for the cast. “I imagined the characters universally, the way Khalid Sahib had translated the play,” she said.

Mohsin Ali Shah played Puck, Gulfaam's servant while Mustafa Afridi acted Gulfaam (King Oberon). Mustafa Afridi's rather linear expression reflected the suspiciousness of a paranormal being that generally wants good around and reveals it his own way. Mohsin Ali Shah's animated performance was overwhelming as he mistakenly drops the potion made from the juice of the Love-idleness flower into the wrong lover's eyes, lending a twist to the going-on onstage.

Though Shakespearean plays seem to traditionally rely on comic characters to throw in sense by default, the character of Puck does not fit the bill in that sense. He's witty and capricious; plays tricks on almost everyone, but reveals the message of life at the end. In this Mohsin did a good job. “I wanted a challenging role to conclude my time at doing theatre,” he said. He plans to move on to explore new frontiers, “There couldn't be a better opportunity than this character and this play for me to sign off,” he said conclusively.