This piece acts as underscore to the point in the play where the 2 love-crossed men are thrashing around in Puck’s magically induced fog, each trying to engage the other in combat. Puck himself comments on the action in several sung choruses (including ’Lord, what fools these mortals be, chasing shadows, led astray so easily’). There is a relentless bass and drum ostinato throughout; over which the woodwinds pursue each other with interweaving phrases. The choreographic possibilities are manifold!