For those readers who do not happen to be massive Shakespeare geeks, it is worth noting that his high comedy A Midsummer Night's Dream finishes with a brief monologue delivered by the mischievous fairy Puck, which begins, "If we shadows have offended, think but this, and all is mended, that you have but slumbered here while these visions did appear." It is from this quotation that the SummerWorks play Offensive Shadows derives its titled. The play is a sort of sequel to Shakespeare's comedy, set five years after the events of Dream, though the setting, the dialogue, and the references are uniformly modern.

Young married couple Demetrius and Helena meet up with childhood pals Hermia and Lysander for a reunion camping trip to the spot where they all fell in love. Along the way, we discover that the two happy couples may not be quite as happy as one would have imagined, and soon enough, they foursome fall into their old habits of bickering, misplaced lust, and sexual competition. The cast is very energetic and capable, particularly Jessica Greenberg as a no-nonsense Helena and Kimwun Perehinec as a prissy Hermia.

It definitely helps to be familiar with Dream going into this play (there are a few subtle jokes playing off Shakespeare's text meant only for true drama nerds), but Paul Dunn's witty script is engaging and emotionally satisfying enough even for someone whose knowledge of the Bard is limited entirely to that Gwenyth Paltrow movie.