The Duke of Athens, Theseus, and his future wife, Hippolyta, talk about their forthcoming wedding as their ‘nuptial hour / draws on apace’.

They are interrupted by Egeus. He is angry that his daughter, Hermia, refuses to marry his choice of suitor, Demetrius. He invokes an ancient law that states if Hermia will not do as he says she should be put to death. The Duke agrees and sentences her to death if she does not marry Demetrius. Lysander, the true object of Hermia's affections, tries to comfort her, saying ‘the course of true love never did run smooth’ .

Hermia and Lysander decide to elope in order to escape the sentence set down by Duke Theseus. They tell Helena, Hermia’s best friend, who then tells Demetrius because she is in love with him.

Peter Quince, the carpenter, has organised a group of Mechanicals including Nick Bottom, the weaver, to meet and rehearse a play in the forest. He greets them by asking ‘Is all our company here?’ and they start to get ready to perform at the Duke’s wedding to Hippolyta.

Oberon and Titania meet and argue about a changeling boy that Oberon wants to be his henchman, with Oberon saying ‘Ill met by moonlight, proud Titania’. Titania refuses to give him the child as she promised the boy’s mother she would look after him.

In order to seek his revenge, Oberon decides to play a trick on Titania. He sends his servant, Puck, to find a flower that has magic powers. The juice of it can make whoever has it put in their eyes while asleep fall in love with the first living thing they see when they wake up.

Oberon observes Demetrius and Helena in the woods. Demetrius is annoyed at Helena for following him and is unpleasant to her, saying ‘I am sick when I do look on thee’. Oberon takes pity on Helena. When Puck returns, Oberon asks him to find Demetrius and put some of the love potion on his eyes so that he will love Helena back.

The fairies sing a song to Titania and as soon as she is sleeping, Oberon puts the love juice in her eyes saying ‘wake when some vile thing is near’.

Hermia and Lysander get lost in the forest and decide to rest until the morning. Puck accidently puts the love potion in Lysander’s eyes, thinking he is Demetrius.

Helena is still chasing after Demetrius but accidently finds Lysander, sleeping separately from Hermia. He wakes up and immediately falls in love with Helena telling her ‘Not Hermia but Helena now I love’.

The mechanicals gather in the woods to rehearse their play. They discover many problems in the story which they try to resolve. Whilst they are rehearsing, Puck arrives and magically transforms Bottom’s head into a donkey's head.

The mechanicals run away and leave Bottom alone, asking ‘why do they run away?’ He decides to sing a song to show he’s not frightened. As he sings, Titania wakes up and asks ‘what angel wakes me from my flow’ry bed?’.

Hermia thinks Demetrius has killed Lysander and runs away from him saying ‘see me no more, whether he be dead or no’. Demetrius decides to rest and while he sleeps, Puck puts some love potion in his eyes. Helena enters, running away from Lysander, and wakes up Demetrius who immediately falls in love with her as well, exclaiming ‘O Helen, goddess, nymph, perfect, divine!’

The four lovers get into a huge argument. Hermia think Helena has stolen Lysander away from her, Helena thinks Hermia has asked the boys to mock her and the boys are now fighting over Helena instead of Hermia, with Lysander even reassuring Helena ‘Be not afraid: she shall not harm thee’.

Puck uses magic to overcast the night so the four lovers can’t see each other. He then makes them fall asleep near each other. Finally, he places some of the love potion on Lysander's eyes, saying that ‘all shall be well’.

Titania treats Bottom to food and drink before professing her love to him and they fall asleep in her bower. Oberon tells Puck that Titania gave him the changeling boy. Puck removes the donkey’s head from Bottom and Oberon applies an antidote and wakes Titania up. She is horrified at the thought of loving Bottom, saying ‘O, how mine eyes do loathe his visage now!’ and leaves with Oberon.

Theseus, Hippolyta and Egeus are out hunting. They find the lovers and Theseus says he will ‘overbear’ Egeus’ will and decrees that the two couples shall marry at the same time as him and Hippolyta. Nobody notices Bottom who wakes up when they leave.

The mechanicals are looking for Bottom who has been missing all night. They moan about the fact that had they performed for the Duke they would have been paid a lot of money that they won’t get if Bottom doesn’t come back. Suddenly, Bottom turns up and tells them they have been chosen to perform for the Duke.

Theseus, Hippolyta and the lovers gather after the weddings to watch some entertainment. The mechanicals perform their version of 'Pyramus and Thisbe' to much hilarity, with Thesues saying at the end that it was 'very notably discharged'.

When the lovers have gone to bed, the fairies arrive to bless the marriages of Theseus and Hippolyta and the other lovers, before saying 'trip away. Make no stay. / Meet me all by break of day' and disappearing.

Puck delivers a speech to the audience at the end of the play, telling them that they 'have but slumbered here / While these visions did appear' and bids them goodnight.