Jeff Whitty's MIDSUMMER! to premiere

Jeff Whitty’s “MIDSUMMER!” is set to make its world premiere at the 2026 Edinburgh Festival Fringe, according to BroadwayWorld and the festival’s official program. The production is a modern verse adaptation of Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” and is being performed by Carnegie Mellon University School of Drama artists. The Edinburgh Festival Fringe runs from Aug. 7 through Aug. 31 this year. The festival said its 2026 program includes 3,649 shows across 258 venues with performers from 71 countries. ### So what exactly is “MIDSUMMER!”? The official Fringe listing describes “MIDSUMMER!” as a new version of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” adapted by Tony Award winner Jeffrey Whitty, whose credits include “Avenue Q.” The listing says the production is a “modern verse translation” presented by CMU Center for New Work and Play On Shakespeare. It also describes the piece as a “bold new vision” of Shakespeare’s comedy. (broadwayworld.com) BroadwayWorld reported on June 4 that the production would premiere in Edinburgh, and a later BroadwayWorld Q&A said the process had been “extraordinarily collaborative,” involving actors, designers, the creative team, and faculty and staff at Carnegie Mellon University’s School of Drama. That Q&A also said most of the student artists had just completed their second year in the program. (edfringe.com) ### Who is staging it in Edinburgh? The Fringe listing names CMU Center for New Work and Play On Shakespeare as the performance company behind the production. The same listing says the cast and creative team are made up of Carnegie Mellon University School of Drama artists. Kim Weild is directing the production, according to the Fringe page, which identifies her as a Drama Desk nominee. (broadwayworld.com) BroadwayWorld’s regional listing for the show calls the Edinburgh run a U.K. premiere and describes it as a co-production between the CMU Center for New Work and Play On Shakespeare. ### What does the festival listing say audiences will see? The Fringe page says the production features 26 characters played by nine actors in a 90-minute running time. (edfringe.com) The listing describes the show as “fresh, fast and fiercely funny” and says it is intended as a contemporary take on the Shakespeare play. The same listing says the production emphasizes “magic, mischief and queer transformative joy.” That language comes from the show description on the festival site, which is the main public booking page for audiences. (edfringe.com) ### How big is the 2026 Edinburgh Fringe around this show? The Edinburgh Festival Fringe said on June 4 that this year’s program includes 3,649 shows across 258 venues and 53,884 performances. (edfringe.com) The festival also said performers are coming from 71 countries. The Fringe’s planning pages say the 2026 festival runs from Aug. 7 to Aug. 31. (edfringe.com) The main festival site says more than 4,000 shows have been revealed overall as audiences browse and book events across genres including theatre, comedy, dance, music and spoken word. ### Where and when can people find “MIDSUMMER!” next? Edfringe.com lists “MIDSUMMER!” on its ticketing page, where audiences can find venue details, dates and booking information for the Edinburgh run. (edfringe.com) The show page says the production is being presented during the Aug. 7-31 Fringe by CMU Center for New Work and Play On Shakespeare. The next public milestone is the start of the 2026 Edinburgh Festival Fringe on Aug. 7, when “MIDSUMMER!” joins the live program in Edinburgh alongside thousands of other shows in the official lineup. (edfringe.com 1) (edfringe.com 2)