A Midsummer Night's Dream (Mendelssohn) A Midsummer Night's Dream (Mendelssohn) At two separate times, Felix Mendelssohn composed music for William Shakespeare's play, "A Midsummer Night's Dream". First in 1826, near the start of his career, he wrote a concert overture (Op. 21). Later, in 1842, only a few years before his death, he wrote incidental music (Op. 61) for a production of the play, into which he incorporated the existing Overture. The incidental music includes the world-famous "Wedding March". The German title reads Ein Sommernachtstraum. The Overture in E major, Op. 21, was written by Mendelssohn at 17 years and 6 months old (it was
A Midsummer Night's Dream William Jaggard, as part of his so-called False Folio. The play next appeared in print in the First Folio of 1623. The title page of Q1 states that the play was "sundry times publickely acted" prior to 1600. The first performance known with certainty occurred at Court on 1 January 1604. Prior to the Christian St. John's Day, in Ancient Greece, marking Midsummer was an event called Adonia. It was the first festive day (and night) when Adonis was allowed to depart the underworld to spend six months with his paramour, Aphrodite. It was considered a time to celebrate the