Were The World Mine

Life’s tough for Timothy. He’s the victim of homophobic bullying at his all-boy high school, he’s isolated by narrow-minded townsfolk and it’s all pretty miserable. But things change when a mysterious drama teacher (Twin Peaks’ Wendy Robie) casts him as Puck in the schools musical version of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Discovering a magical recipe for a love potion hidden in the text, he decides to use it on the man of his dreams. Things get a little crazy and before you know it he’s turning the whole town gay to give the bigots a chance to walk a mile in his shoes see what love’s all about. It’s a nice twist on the typical coming-of-age story with something important to say about the power gained from being yourself in society. It also benefits from strong production values, some great vocals, and one absolutely terrific song. But therein lies the rub: for a musical there are precious few songs in it and it’s hard not to feel shortchanged. Feel-good fun for the summer, but a bit lightweight.