Fairies in Opera, Part 2 - Ill Met by Moonlight
odfellow, a mythological mischief-maker -- who, as a more earthly hobgoblin, is permitted to do supernatural dirty work. Because Oberon does not clearly describe which man Puck should approach, Puck makes a very natural mistake and confuses Lysander and Demetrius; it was also never Oberon's command that Bottom be changed into an ass nor that Bottom be his tool for revenge; Puck takes this upon himself in payment for the actors' audacity to tread so close to the fairy queen's bower. But Oberon doesn't play fair: he uses the period while Tytania is enraptured with Bottom to steal the changeling child from her court.
If we are inclined to find Oberon just a touch wanting in ethics, we need to observe that Tytania, for her part, is apparently accustomed to having her minions Cobweb, Peaseblossom, Mustardseed, and Moth wait upon her with absolute attention. When Bottom, in the form of an ass, attempts to make pleasant conversation with the fairies, Tytania twice interrupts impatiently as poor Moth tries to speak. So her demand that the changeling (a non-singing role) be her page as well might indeed be a wee bit excessive; one might imagine Oberon giving the poor lad a longer leash at least. Actually, the matter of the changeling is not quite resolved during the opera: Tytania is so glad when she awakens to find she had only dreamt of loving an ass, that she and Oberon make up their quarrel without her apparently even noticing or caring that he now has possession of the boy. The opera ends as the fairies bless the sleeping human couples, but what further argument they may have amongst themselves must remain a mystery.
Next week, we'll look at two other operas that treat the Oberon and Titania tale.
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