Much Ado About Nothing at Red Monkey Theater Group

Written circa 1598, MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING is a comedy set at the end of a war, at a time when people are allowing themselves to believe they have a future. Their emotions are thawing out after a period of national trauma. Soldiers are struggling to re-enter the civilian world; survivors are struggling to re-form the bonds of family and friendship. Like any Shakespeare play, this is a piece that reaches across time to shake us by our collective cultural lapels. It confronts us with a wealth of ideas that couldn't be more current - gender roles, infidelity, generational divides - and hope.

“Much Ado is mostly remembered by audiences for the wit of Beatrice and Benedick, the bickering couple whose brilliant language hides their vulnerabilities,” said RMTG Artistic Director Tal Aviezer. “But above all, this play is about a struggle of love, trust, and forgiveness against pride, fear, and envy. In this struggle, wit is sometimes a delicious poison – a tool we use to speak to each other without listening. And the moments when characters in this play really listen to each other are the moments when hearts - and lives – can be won or lost."

“I think it is, at heart, a play about finding a way forward after an enormous cultural divide,” said Writer-in-Residence Amy Frey. “It’s figuring out how to love and trust again after a country has been ripped apart, and all of the heart-ache, awkwardness, and humor that can go with that.”

The play is directed by Amy Frey and Tal Aviezer, who also play Beatrice and Benedick. The cast also includes Yannik Encarnação, Nick Leshi, Derek Tarson, Margaret Gorrell, Sean Demers, Sean Coffey, and Ariel Francoeur. The stage manager is Grace Terdoslavich and the choreographer is Danielle Aviezer.