Review: MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING, Theatre Royal Drury Lane
Photo credit: Marc Brenner
One of Shakespeare’s more frequently performed comedies, Much Ado about Nothing is a play full of comic misunderstandings due to overhearings or just gossip – the “noting” referred to in the title and the double meaning of which would have been clear to the original audiences. While this affects the central comic romance between Benedick and Beatrice, as well as the secondary relationship of Claudio and Hero, it reaches its nadir in the caricature of Dogberry and the local constabulary. It’s sometimes tricky for directors to make something of the rather ponderous comic scenes with these characters but in this production Jamie Lloyd settles for just cutting them and all the members of the Watch.
We are left with around three-quarters of the play, although with some characters like Margaret given extra lines and greater prominence. It’s a bold decision but not the only one in Jamie Lloyd’s latest attempt to put Shakespeare on the vast stage at Drury Lane. Once more, we are faced with a mostly empty stage apart from some plastic chairs and, later, a table. The stage, however, is covered with pink confetti, and this continues to fall at various points during the performance, sometimes heralded by the sounding of an air horn. We are also reminded of the central theme of the play by a flown-in inflatable heart, adding to the pink overload of a design that relies heavily on that colour.
Despite the loss of the ostensibly comic characters, this is a very funny take on the text, rife with fourth-wall breaking, arch asides and knowing looks to the audience. As Benedick, Tom Hiddleston shows himself not just a consummate Shakespearean but also an actor always ready to make fun of himself and his public image, as in his handling of the line “I am beloved of all ladies.” It is a remarkable tour-de-force and gives Hayley Attwell as Beatrice quite a challenge in matching it. That she does so is in part due to her different approach to the role – equally self-aware of her role as a film star now on stage, but also providing a heartfelt account of the off-on relationship between her and Benedick. She makes much of the difficult line regarding her wishes about Claudio after his rejection, stunning the audience into silence at this key turning point in the play.
With a small cast of ten, this is very much an ensemble piece and with no weak links in the casting. Mara Huf and James Phoon deal confidently with the difficult sub-plot around Claudio and Hero. Tim Steed is a notable Don John, very much missed in the later stages after his banishment, and Mason Alexander Park contributes another remarkable portrayal, this time in the expanded role of Margaret, and contributing a number of songs (perhaps one too many?) to the production.
The set design by Soutra Gilmour achieves a great deal whilst seeming simple and basic; surely the most confetti ever to fall on a stage during a play – our thoughts go out to the cleaners! There is also a remarkable moment when the skilled use of a trap seems like a homage to the past of this stage. Costumes seem less successful however, and it is difficult to understand the intention behind the choices, although the use of large animal heads instead of masks works well.
With pounding music and moving lights, the main visual characteristic of the production, the contribution of movement director Fabian Aloise is also key to the success of the evening; even the Front of House staff are dancing. It’s not an evening that will be enjoyed by all Shakespeare enthusiasts but is likely to be very successful with fans of Hiddleston and Atwell. What is without doubt is the entertainment value of this invigorating, energetic and surprising take on a familiar text.
**** Four stars
Reviewed by: Chris Abbott
Much Ado About Nothing plays at London’s Theatre Royal Drury Lane until 5 April, with tickets available here.
