Titania and Oberon: Power Struggle or Prank War?

This weekend, I watched both the Rice production and the 1964 film of A Midsummer Night's Dream. The dynamics between Titania and Oberon, particularly in Act X, Scene X, presented differing opinions on the couple. In the Rice stage show, Titania maintains a subtly charming air when she interacts with Oberon; she flirts with him, she pouts at him, she stomps her feet, but does all of that in a charming, familiar manner. She plays on Oberon's sympathies with melodramatic scolding, an attempt to persuade him to end the conflict and set nature right again for the benefit of those in the woods around them. She suggestively offers him a chance to join her and her fairies as they dance if only he concedes. But when he refuses her demands, Titania leaves and the fairies follow their queen. It's clear who has the upper hand when she departs because of the tones she adopts during this scene. In comparison to Titania, Oberon seems bored with the conflict, worn out but unwilling to give up so easily. When he unfolds his scheme to Puck, he displays a similar charisma that Titania exercised on him moments before. Oberon's tone suggests he does not feel particularly malicious towards Titania, but that he just wants to reconcile without giving in so he doesn't look weak in the fairies' sight. As he conspires with Puck, his mischievous nature makes the plot seem like something concocted by two tricksy middle school boys. This tone sheds light on Oberon and Titania's relationship: they are locked in a game, not a war!

However, this fantastical relationship is portrayed quite differently in the 1964 movie. At the beginning of the same scene, Titania dances with the changeling boy-- the center of the conflict. That brief interaction establishes their close relationship, one of a mother and son. Her unwillingness to give him up is justified by this interaction. When they run into Oberon, the tone of the scene changes. No one frolics; they freeze. Titania looks horrified; Oberon looks angry. The music drops ominously. Clearly, the two are locked in a not-so-friendly conflict. In this adaptation, Oberon uses a commanding tone in order to establish his dominance here. Titania plays her role with the knowledge she is defying her husband and king, and yet cares enough for the changeling that she is willing to stand against his wishes. Unlike the almost sheepish Oberon in the Rice production who simply wants the conflict to end (and kind of enjoys the seductive element of the argument), this Oberon refuses to look at his wife or acknowledge her interest in the halfling. She cares about the boy, not a larger game or a power struggle, but to Oberon, her defiance exhibits a struggle for his power. Because of this characterization, his love potion plot is less about resolving the conflict or amusing himself and Puck, but is about regaining control and enacting revenge. Oberon's manipulative behavior because of Titania's genuine interest in the boy paint their relationship as a subservient, traditional marriage rather than a match of intellectual equals playing games to amuse and seduce each other.