Much Ado About Nothing

It is the summer of 1971. Don Pedro and his soldiers have just returned from war and love is in the air. Fuelled by their friends' tricks, Beatrice and Benedick rekindle their love-hate relationship in fiery fashion to the great amusement of all around them. But the games turn sour when the jealous Donna Julia convinces Claudio that his newfound love, Hero, is cheating on him. After being publicly shamed, Hero decides to test Claudio by staging her own death. Can a fake funeral force Claudio to come to his senses? Can the bumbling policeman Dogberry bring justice to light and procure a happy ending for both the couples? In this adaptation of Shakespeare's classic comedy of the battle of the sexes, the playground set and the physical activity surrounding it serve as metaphors for the games people play in love; the masked ball, where the confusions that dominate the plot first begin to surface, is transformed into as disco. This is not Shakespeare as you know him. Feminism and anti-war sentiment influence Beatrice's anger towards Benedick, and responses to the debacle of the Vietnam War bubble underneath the surface of the action. Comedy and tragedy, witty dialogue and intense physicality all rub shoulders with one another to produce a high-octane entertainment. Times: 7.45pm - 10.00pm Wednesday 18 June 2008 6.30pm - 8.45pm Thursday 19 June 2008 7.45pm - 10.00pm Friday 20 June 2008