Hermia loves Lysander, Demetrius loves Hermia, Helena loves Demetrius, Theseus and Hippolyta are almost newlyweds and the already-complex marriage of the immortal queen and king of Fairyland is further complicated when one of them falls for an amateur actor-turned-ass. Intrigued by the theory that Shakespeare wrote this play as a wedding gift, director Joseph Haj (who helmed 2015’s much-beloved Pericles) probes the pitfalls and pay-offs of relationships, be they budding or eternal. Seeking out the grace, beauty and delight embedded in the comedy, this joyful, music-laden production invites us to feel as well as laugh.

Four artists in the Bay Area find their lives unexpectedly intertwined — with each other’s and with the life of a black queer feminist writer from the 1960s — in this story that challenges our definitions of love, family and what it means to create.