Actor Puts Sparks in Shakespeare Comedy

NEW YORK — An actor portraying Oberon, king of the fairies, in an off-Broadway production of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” mixed such a fiery love potion on stage during Shakespeare’s comedy that he set his hair on fire.

Oberon, played by Carl Lumbly, was preparing the potent brew with the aid of a “magic” ring that emitted sparks. As he stood alone on stage Wednesday night at the Public Theater preparing the potion, one of the sparks ignited his hair.

Lumbly, who played Detective Petrie on CBS-TV’s “Cagney and Lacey,” was apparently unaware that his hair was smoldering and continued brewing the passion potion as the audience shouted “hair, hair,” and “fire, fire.”

One woman sitting in the front row of the theater-in-the round for the modern production, set in Brazil, jumped up and rushed on-stage, smothering the fire with a shawl or jacket, said theater spokeswoman Reva Cooper.

The actor paused while the fire was extinguished then continued his lines, without stepping out of character.

In his next line, he praised the potion, prompting giggles from the audience.

During the curtain call at the end of the production, Lumbly took the firefighting woman by the hand and brought her up for a bow.