Much Ado About Nothing

One of Shakespeare's much-adapted romantic comedies, Much Ado About Nothing follows the ins and outs of romance and social schemes surrounding a rich family and a visiting company of soldiers. Young lovers Claudio and Hero instantly fall in love upon seeing each other after Claudio arrives on her father's estate. In the meantime, his fellow soldier Benedick is in an active competition with Beatrice, Hero's cousin, the two at each other's throats in a war of wits. Don Pedro and Don John, noblemen and military leaders, simultaneously hatch two deceptive plots. Don Pedro conspires with Claudio to make Benedick fall in love with Beatrice, whilst Don John conspires with his closest associates to convince Claudio that Hero is being unfaithful, just so that he can see the young lovers fall out.

This production of Much Ado recontextualises these characters into a more modern setting, wherein the visiting soldiers are in fact a team of rich Yacht Men, arriving to visit friends after a boating competition so gruelling that they refer to it as "war". Satirical and sarcastic, this production offers an image of the events of "Much Ado" which exaggerates the pointless problems of these high-class families. It highlights the ego of the wealthy men in the original material and pokes fun at the trivial problems and fragile emotions of the rich.

You may also like the following events from The Phoenix Theatre:

• This Wednesday, 30th July, 09:30 am, Much Ado About Nothing in Wollongong
• Next month, 22nd August, 09:30 am, Medea by Euripides in Wollongong

Also check out other Contests in Wollongong, Workshops in Wollongong, Comedy events in Wollongong.