A double bill of Shakespeare presents 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' and 'Love's Labour's Lost'. 'A Midsummer Night's Dream', written in 1595/96, portrays events surrounding Theseus, Duke of Athens' marriage to Hippolyta, former queen of the Amazons, following four young Athenian lovers and six amateur actors (the mechanicals) who are controlled by fairies in the forest setting. The play remains one of Shakespeare's most popular and widely performed works. 'Love's Labour's Lost', written in the mid-1590s for Queen Elizabeth I, follows the King of Navarre and three companions attempting to forswear women's company for three years, only to become infatuated with the Princess of France and her ladies. The play ends unconventionally with the Princess's father's death, delaying all weddings for a year, exploring themes of masculine love, desire, rationalization, and reality versus fantasy.