“It is likely that this will be one of the funniest plays staged this year so if you are finally over your FOGO and want to leave a theatre smiling for hours afterwards, hit up this particular take on Shakespeare. I believe he would have approved.”
– Kate Stratford 4 /5 meet cutes
Once, characters in South Park posited that no matter what story line you could come up with, “The Simpsons already did it”. Let’s posit rather, Shakespeare already did it and then borrowed from himself and we keep borrowing from him. After all, if it worked well with an audience once, why not do it again? And again. And again. Thus, Much Ado About Nothing continues a trope established with Taming of the Shrew and since, has been put to good financial and comedic use by Hollywood. The Battling Lovers rom-com.
In this vein, Attractive, Not Model Attractive, has brought Much Ado to the stage at Flight Path Theatre – in an abbreviated form, just as the title is. Cutting the “about nothing” is an interesting choice, for “nothing” in Elizabethan times was a reference to women’s genitals (men had “something”, women had “nothing”). But this is excellent editing with thoughtful cuts of dialogue and characters to create a classic Shakespearean comedy for a young, 21st century audience. The editing of the mechanicals’ scenes in particular was deftly done, with both Jack Elliot Mitchell as Verges and Lib Campbell as Dogberry entertainingly filling in as the necessary plot devices.
Madeleine Withington’s directorial vision replaces the original sailors ashore with an ageing boy band (The Lordes) returning from tour to Messina – a night club. The boys in the band even lip sync a ballad from Shakespeare’s original play (Sigh no more – it is a song about men cheating). The choreography is every boy band from the 1990s. If you don’t get the tone of the production from this opening number, you soon will from the antics of all involved as they embrace the comedy of this play.
It is a joyous, ebullient production and the cast’s commitment to the fun is contagious. None more committed (or should they be committed?) than the Beatrice (Hal Jones) and the Benedick (Steve Corner). Their physicality and passion fill every space in the theatre and their presence demands your attention. Jones’ Beatrice has more of the feral Kate about them and it would be interesting to see them tackle that role. Corner’s Benedick is a well-executed journey of redemption – underneath the Prince’s fool is a considerate, thoughtful man with a firm moral code. A code challenged and met when other members of the band publicly humiliate a woman.
There can be no spoiler alerts with a 400 year old play. Claudio (Idam Sondhi) does a love-at-first-sight for Hero (Sarah Greenwood) and possibly her inheritance. It is mentioned by both he and Don Pedro (Tristan Black) several times that Hero is going to inherit a substantial fortune and this gold-digging aspect of Claudio’s character is the set up for his later punishment. Don Pedro is likely one of Shakespeare’s most enigmatic characters. Why is he so melancholy? Why does he perform the wing-man scenario and woo Hero for Claudio? What is with his proposal to Beatrice? What is his purpose in a comedy about romantic misunderstandings? He also somewhat rather officiously negotiates the marriage deal with Hero’s mother, Leonata – a most accomplished Suzann James whose presence and command of the language brings a much-needed leavening effect to all the levity. Nuptials arranged, it just remains for Don John, the villain of the piece to interfere for no other reason really, than he can and he does not like Claudio. Alexander Spinks’s Don John embodies all that a Shakespearean villain should be. Not obvious but enough seething under the surface for the audience to know that their presence indicates villainy afoot. Anyway, the villains always soliloquise their intent just to keep an inattentive audience up-to-date with the plot development.
The company have embraced the comedy so whole heartedly that the moment of Hero’s humiliation is not treated perhaps with as much horror as it should be. That Claudio chooses to degrade her so publicly is a testament to his defective character and not any supposed vice of hers. Comedy, after all, is tragedy with timing (to misquote Twain) and Shakespeare was well aware that the best comedy comes from contrast. Else why place a knock-knock joke scene after the murder of the king in Macbeth? Why lace Much Ado with so much violent language? Claudio may look like the romantic hero but it is Benedict who behaves as one. Attractive, Not Model Attractive have clearly understood the rambunctious nature of Much Ado but they have not trusted Shakespeare 100% to go with the necessary internal tragedy. Perhaps in just wanting to have fun, they missed the memo that you cannot spell joy without the “oy”.
It is likely that this will be one of the funniest plays staged this year so if you are finally over your FOGO and want to leave a theatre smiling for hours afterwards, hit up this particular take on Shakespeare. I believe he would have approved.
Kate Stratford, Theatre Now
