Much Ado About Nothing at the Royal Shakespeare Company
AnxiousTheatregoer- May 7
- 6 min read
Two versions of Much Ado About Nothing in less than 6 months is a rare delight for me personally. After being pleasantly surprised by Jamie Lloyd’s version of the play, the way it was altered and abridged made me keen to see a version of the full original folio. Fortunately, there was the RSC’s 25/26 season to the rescue, with a version of the play set in the world of modern-day footballers. An interesting take, to be sure, but with an all-star cast and creative team, I was more than willing to take the trip to Stratford-upon-Avon to support this ‘FC Messina’.
*SPOILERS AHEAD*
My Review:
Much Ado About Nothing is often seen as ‘the love story of Benedick and Beatrice’, an interpretation that goes as far back as the time of King Charles I (who had their names written beside the play’s title in his personal copy of the Folio). Indeed, the majority of productions put on in recent years highlight their Benedick and Beatrice as their primary leads, and in many a script edit, it is their story that is brought to the foreground. We have most recently seen this in Jamie Lloyd’s version of the play, where many characters were cut in favour of a more ‘accessible’ version that very much centred and advertised the presence of Tom Hiddleston and Hayley Atwell as the beloved romcom duo. However, a proper reading of the original text makes it quite clear that Benedick and Beatrice are not the main characters of the play. They are important and beloved, but their true purpose is to provide a counter-balance to the romance between Hero and Claudio; two characters often neglected despite their prominent roles in the play.
The RSC’s production of Much Ado About Nothing seeks to set this right and provides a masterclass in how to modernise Shakespeare while remaining true to the author’s original intent. The choice to set this production in the modern-day football world seems odd at first glance, until you delve deeper into the parallels between the cultural sentiments of Shakespeare’s day and the effects of the patriarchy and misogyny in the elite football world. While its main focus is on the scrutiny faced by the women, who have to uphold an expectation of purity and fidelity to the men they’re with, this production also cleverly highlights the less obvious harm men face as a result of this patriarchal structure. It had not escaped my notice that despite the use of deepfake revenge porn to replicate Hero’s slander, it is the men who are ouwardly objectified in this play, even having their nudity used for comic relief.
As expected, a few minor edits to the original folio were made to facilitate the change in setting. I was disappointed to see that, despite the fact I booked tickets to the advertised captioned performance because I anticipated such changes, this accessibility feature ended up not being provided. The performance was still a ‘chilled/relaxed’ performance, but inquiring with staff about how to access the provided handheld captioning - which was advertised around the theatre to be part of this production - proved fruitless. The staff members I spoke to appeared confused by the request, and instead claimed the captioning would be provided on screens around the theatre (information that contrasted with the signs around the theatre, and which quickly proved false once the performance started and no captioning was present). All this confusion and back-and-forth made inquiring further with other staff very daunting and off-putting, and I ended up viewing this performance without captions, reasoning that I was familiar with the play itself, and I should be able to hear even the quietest actors from my seat in the second row. In hindsight, I deeply regret this, as the changes to the folio that were clearly articulated were exceptionally clever, and I feel I missed out on some excellent jokes in the first scene.
I will say that the content warnings for this production were handled exceptionally well. Prior to the show you receive multiple emails from the RSC listing warnings for nudity and simulations of sexual acts, aspects which they stress are unusual for productions of Much Ado About Nothing. Upon arrival to the theatre, these same content warnings are clearly listed around the theatre on pillars near the entrances; the same place where the information about the ‘relaxed/chilled’ and captioned performances is listed. This shows that the RSC is capable of understanding the access needs of its patrons, but struggles in educating its staff on how to adequately provide such access needs.
As for the show itself, I have nothing but praise. The minor changes to the script to account for the change in setting remain identical in tone to Shakespeare’s original; though the first time you hear lines like “as I was vaping a musty room” or “Siri, Facetime Leonato” is a slightly jarring (albeit highly entertaining) experience. The choice to change Leonato’s brother Antonio to Leonato’s wife Antonia suits this world of footballers and football wives, providing Hero with another female ally and providing Antonia herself with a powerful moment in act 2 where she herself can challenge Claudio to a duel, something that would have been unheard of in Shakespeare’s day.
Speaking of Hero and her allies, this is where this production outshines any other I’ve seen. This production of Much Ado gives Hero a voice where past productions have often denied her one. Literally, in fact, as a significant part of Hero’s memorial is the playing of an original song, sung by Hero, projected on the screens as Claudio watches. Not only does this serve as a clear depiction of ‘the idea of her life’, it allows the character a certain agency I’ve not seen in her before.
Hero’s slander is also elevated in this production. Borachio’s role as photographer is combined with the other characters’ football fame and social media presence to not only record and distort his interaction with Margaret, but to have the altered media be spread far and wide. What Borachio creates and publishes is revenge porn, plain and simple, and by using Margaret’s body but Hero’s likeness, this also directly comments on the recent prevalence of deepfake revenge porn in particular. The screens around the stage, upon which recordings and in-word social media commentary is occasionaly displayed throughout the show, even comment as such once Hero’s death becomes public. (And as a side-note, this is one of the few productions I’ve seen that actually uses such social media presence for its intended purpose rather than just a gimmick for gimmick’s sake).
All this makes the moment where Hero is accused all the more visceral and hard-hitting. The situation no longer is a silly case of miscommunication that can easily be resolved; it has evolved into a situation that is all too real for women in this day and age. The ‘evidence’ that has been presented raises the stakes from a ‘he said, she said’, and the backlash that comes from this will likely haunt Hero for the rest of her days. This is all perfected by Eleanor Worthington-Cox’s performance as Hero, her rage and despair in this moment of false accusation palpable and cutting through to your very soul. Gina Bramhill’s Margaret also gives a stunning performance, making you feel nothing but pain and pity for the woman who was, at the start of the play, a co-conspirator. The harm done here to Hero and Margaret alike by Borachio’s actions, painted in such a realistic and relevant light for our modern age, really makes clear how such slanderous claims would have affected the women likewise in Shakespeare’s day and age.
The rest of the production is equally stunning. Freema Agyeman plays a wonderfully sharp and witty Beatrice, and Nick Blood’s Benedick is, in many ways, what I wish Tom Hiddleston’s Benedick could (and should) have been. Their dynamic serves as a perfect counter-balance to Hero and Claudio, remaining entertaining and engaging without pulling focus. Michael Longhurst has done an exceptional job directing this production, and I can do nothing but recommend this version of Much Ado About Nothing to anyone who will listen. Modernising Shakespeare may be par for the course these days - it is rare to see a ‘classic’ Shakespeare outside of the Globe theatre - but none have done it quite so well as this production; even if you do leave the theatre with nothing but football chants in your head. “Ohhh, FC Messina” indeed.
Content Warnings:
The show has content warnings clearly displayed around the foyer and throughout the theatre, which were as follows:
Loud Music
Vaping
Smoking
Flashing Lights
Haze
Strong Language
Scenes of a Sexual Nature - including staged intimacy and nudity, and simulations of sexual acts between a woman and two men
There is also a QR code which takes you to a page which provides further content advisory information.
Thank you for taking the time to read and I hope this review has proved interesting and helpful for you :)
- AnxiousTheatregoer
