Much Ado About Nothing

Synopsis

After civil war Messina seems to have returned to peace with few casualties and a courtship holds the promise of reconciling the battle of the sexes in a well matched wedding. But the reconciliation's have been too hurried and soldiers can't return to the civilian world overnight.

Our Review:

14 December 2006

All the best productions of Much Ado – Zeffirelli’s Sicilian extravaganza at the National, Rachel Kavanaugh’s “Dad’s Army” version in Regent’s Park – create a resonating social canvas of soldiers on leave and love in the air, and Marianne Elliott’s beautiful, pungent RSC revival is no exception. Set in 1950s Cuba, before Fidel Castro, the design is no trite “concept” but a liberating, inspirational relocation.

Lez Brotherston’s South American setting has wrought iron balconies, grey distempered walls, peeling ceilings and a samba band setting a hot temperature from the off. It is all a bit like Evita, and indeed Jonny Weir’s impressively unhappy, bearded Don John is a malcontent radical who plays his dirty tricks and disappears, you feel, to become someone not dissimilar to Che Guevara.

His brother, the prince Don Pedro (Patrick Robinson) rules this Messina with a rod of iron, though authority has crumbled a bit along the line, as...

Read more of the review

Latest User Review

163.1.215.44) - 8 January 2007:

I truly cannot think of a better, more entertaining way to spend a wet Saturday afternoon in early January. I shed tears of laughter and joy at Grieg and Millson's fantastic performances and the music, dancing and inspired set all combined to leave me thrilled to have been in the audience. Definitely a winner....

Read more and add your own review

Related Whatsonstage.com Articles

Review Round-up: Critics Make Much of Cuban Ado More»