Review: MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING, Shakespeare’s Globe

Photo credit: Marc Brenner

Chelsea Walker’s accessible production of one of Shakespeare’s most iconic comedies modernises the topmost layer of the play and leaves the rest to find its audience’s sweet spot through the comedy. It’s a well-paced production with plenty of energy from the cast, and though perhaps lacking any extra textual depth, it’s an enjoyable night out regardless.

The scene is set Saltburn-esque, and the characters find themselves in a be-marbled country manor. There is a sense of post-war joviality, conveyed more by the high-spirited performances than the set or costume, which supports but does not elaborate upon the setting. The characters are distinct and rendered confidently, and the champagne-swigging and silk slips provide a believable context for several of them to fall in love. There’s live music, too, which is well-played and well-placed, providing more ambience than soundtrack.

This production seems to identify Benedick and Beatrice’s relationship as its selling point; one of Shakespeare’s most memorable couplings. Though it neatly adds some meat to a story that otherwise has romantic elements that have not aged well, it anticipates its own ending. Rather than letting the relationship between Benedick and Beatrice (older and more cynical than the young lovers traditionally at the heart of a comedy) sprout unexpectedly from a classic case of misinformation, Walker kindles it from the beginning with a flirty introduction to their dynamic that hints at a romantic history.

Ken Nwosu is a standout, his Benedick oozing charisma and bringing a comedic timing that feels fresh and charming. Adam Long as Don Pedro carries himself with an easy confidence so that he feels like a Prince before the audience is explicitly told so. Assa Kanouté as Hero does a lot with little, embodying a character more victim than heroine with believable vulnerability and innocence. The rude mechanicals garnered further laughs from the audience, and the cast as an ensemble move together like a group of friends thrilled to be spending the next two and a half hours with one another.

The production feels involving and at many points, self-aware: we are here to have fun, fall in love, get scorned, overreact, and mend it all again. It’s not particularly inventive as an adaptation, but it’s solid in its structure, and full of plenty of bright and surprising humour to carry the crowd through the play’s more dated elements.

A fun and feisty adaptation of a summer classic.

**** Four stars

Reviewed by: Oli Burgin

Much Ado About Nothing plays at Shakespeare’s Globe until 24 October, with tickets available here.