The Same. A Room in Quince's House.
 Enter QUINCE, SNUG, BOTTOM, FLUTE, SNOUT, and STARVELING.

Quince	Is all our company here?

Bottom	You were best to call them generally, man by man, according 
	to the scrip.

Quince	Here is the scroll of every man's name which is thought 
	fit, through all Athens, to play in our interlude before 
	the duke and the duchess on his wedding day at night.

Bottom	First, good Peter Quince, say what the play treats on; then 
	read the names of the actors; and so grow to a point.

Quince	Marry, our play is 'The most Lamentable Comedy and most 
	Cruel Death of Pyramus and Thisbe'.

Bottom	A very good piece of work, I assure you, and a merry. Now, 
	good Peter Quince, call forth your actors by the scroll. 
	Masters, spread yourselves.

Quince	Answer as I call you. Nick Bottom, the weaver?

Bottom	Ready. Name what part I am for, and proceed.

Quince	You, Nick Bottom, are set down for Pyramus.

Bottom	What is Pyramus? A lover, or a tyrant?

Quince	A lover, that kills himself most gallant for love.

Bottom	That will ask some tears in true performing of it. If I do 
	it, let the audience look to their eyes. I will move 
	storms; I will condole in some measure. To the rest. - Yet 
	my chief humour is for a tyrant. I could play Ercles 
	rarely, or a part to tear a cat in, to make all split.

			The raging rocks
			And shivering shocks
			Shall break the locks
				Of prison gates;
			And Phibbus' car
			Shall shine from far,
			And make and mar
				The foolish Fates.

	This was lofty. Now name the rest of the players. - This is 
	Ercles' vein, a tyrant's vein; a lover is more condoling.

Quince	Francis Flute, the bellows-mender?

Flute	Here, Peter Quince.

Quince	Flute, you must take Thisbe on you.

Flute	What is Thisbe? - a wand'ring knight?

Quince	It is the lady that Pyramus must love.

Flute	Nay, faith, let me not play a woman; I have a beard coming.

Quince	That's all one. You shall play it in a mask, and you may 
	speak as small as you will.

Bottom	An I may hide my face, let me play Thisbe too. I'll speak 
	in a monstrous little voice: 'Thisne, Thisne!' 'Ah, 
	Pyramus, my lover dear; thy Thisbe dear, and lady dear!'

Quince	No, no; you must play Pyramus; and Flute, you Thisbe.

Bottom	Well, proceed.

Quince	Robin Starveling, the tailor?

Starveling	Here, Peter Quince.

Quince	Robin Starveling, you must play Thisbe's mother. Tom Snout, 
	the tinker?

Snout	Here, Peter Quince.

Quince	You, Pyramus' father. Myself, Thisbe's father. Snug, the 
	joiner, you the lion's part. And I hope here is a play 
	fitted.

Snug	Have you the lion's part written? Pray you, if it be, give 
	it me, for I am slow of study.

Quince	You may do it extempore, for it is nothing but roaring.

Bottom	Let me play the lion too. I will roar that I will do any 
	man's heart good to hear me. I will roar that I will make 
	the duke say 'Let him roar again, let him roar again.'

Quince	An you should do it too terribly, you would fright the 
	duchess and the ladies that they would shriek; and that 
	were enough to hang us all.

All	That would hang us, every mother's son.

Bottom	I grant you, friends, if you should fright the ladies out 
	of their wits they would have no more discretion but to 
	hang us; but I will aggravate my voice so that I will roar 
	you as gently as any sucking dove; I will roar you an 
	'twere any nightingale.

Quince	You can play no part but Pyramus; for Pyramus is a sweet-
	faced man; a proper man, as one shall see in a summer's 
	day; a most lovely, gentlemanlike man. Therefore you must 
	needs play Pyramus.

Bottom	Well, I will undertake it. What beard were I best to play 
	it in?

Quince	Why, what you will.

Bottom	I will discharge it in either your straw-colour beard, your 
	orange-tawny beard, your purple-in-grain beard, or your 
	French-crown -colour beard, your perfect yellow.

Quince	Some of your French crowns have no hair at all, and then 
	you will play barefaced. But, masters, here are your parts; 
	and I am to entreat you, request you, and desire you to con 
	them by tomorrow night, and meet me in the palace wood a 
	mile without the town by moonlight. There will we rehearse, 
	for if we meet in the city we shall be dogged with company, 
	and our devices known. In the meantime I will draw a bill 
	of properties such as our play wants. I pray you, fail me 
	not.

Bottom	We will meet; and there we may rehearse most obscenely and 
	courageously. Take pains; be perfect. Adieu.

Quince	At the duke's oak we meet.

Bottom	Enough; hold or cut bow-strings.
											[Exeunt.
