Rose Theatre, Kingston – until 6 May
Reviewed by Claire Roderick
4****
Messina becomes a glitzy spa hotel in modern Sicily in Simon Dormandy’s new production of Much Ado About Nothing. The arrival of mafia boss Don Pedro and his men puts strutting hotel manager Leonato (David Rintoul – wonderfully OTT in pastels and a glorious toupee) in a spin, but the news that Don Pedro’s second in command, Claudio, has fallen for his daughter Hero (Kate Lamb) soon has him rubbing his hands in glee at the prospect of his daughter marrying such a powerful man. The wicked plotting of Don Pedro’s brother Don John, brought to the hotel as a captive, puts the prospects of a happy ending for the couple in jeopardy.
Hero and Claudio’s shallow romance always takes second fiddle to the battle of wits and tongues between Beatrice and Benedick, and this production has hit the jackpot casting Mel Giedroyc and John Hopkins in those roles. Whenever they are on stage, you know something special will happen. Giedroyc’s Beatrice comes across as an angrier version of herself at first, but as the prospect of being loved develops, her performance becomes ever more nuanced. Hopkins is as brilliant as ever, playing the bachelor buffoon and bringing a sense of wonder and vulnerable emotion as he discovers his true feelings for Beatrice. Both are extraordinary physical comedy performers, bringing the sense of the ridiculous to their most tender scenes together. If Sue ever retires, Mel may just have found her new comedy partner.
The physical and visual comedy comes thick and fast, making the quieter scenes involving the mafia bosses more sinister and dark, with Peter Guinness at his most menacing, and the watchmen/Dogberry sequences are actually funny rather than groan inducing. Stewart Wright’s Scouse Dogberry is a hoot, and the Don Pedro/Don Pesto running gag never fails to raise a laugh. Calam Lynch makes a mark on his theatrical debut as Claudio – playing him as an eager street thug with an undercurrent of violence constantly threatening to explode. In the final scene when he and Benedick usually reconcile merrily, this production leaves you doubting whether Hero will be able to curb his anger and worrying about Beatrice and Benedick waking up one morning to find a horse’s head on their pillow.
This is a fantastically vibrant production of Much Ado About Nothing – fresh, fiery and full of fun – grab a ticket while you can.