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| Director |
Denise Myers
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| Set
Designer |
Brian
J. Marshall |
| Costume
Designer |
Jana Henry
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| Lighting
Designer |
Alina Bayer
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| Dramaturg |
Jeffrey Farber
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Don
Pedro |
Jeffrey
Farber |
Don
John |
Ian
Liberto |
Claudio |
Brandon Haagenson |
Benedick |
Adam Braeckman |
Leonato |
Sean Andrews |
Antonio |
Andrew Martinez |
Balthazar |
Ben Qualey |
Conrade |
Sean
Keller |
Borachio |
Eric
Agostino |
Friar
Francis |
BJ
Warren |
Messenger |
Zach Uttich |
Dogberry |
Michael
Worth |
Verges |
Steve
Quartell |
The
Watch |
Adam
Qualls |
|
Brian Rohde |
|
Danielle Zyrkowski |
Hero |
Jamie Greenberg |
Beatrice |
Jessica May |
Margaret |
Tiffany Topol |
Ursula |
Brynn Freitag |
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| Production
Stage Manager |
Dawn Akelis |
|
Rehearsal Stage Manager |
Jessica Self |
| Assistant
Stage Manager |
Melissa Pleiss |
| Technical
Director |
Jason Hauslein |
| Sound
Designer |
Kyle Van Sandt |
| Properties
Master |
Zach Johnson-Dunlop |
| Hair/Makeup
Designer |
tba |
| Master
Electrician |
Matt Willer |
| Asst.
Master Electrician |
Katy Atwell |
| Costumer |
Jana Henry |
| Costume
Crafts |
Stephanie
Paradiso |
| Wardrobe
Supervisor |
Amanda Koons |
Shop
Foreman |
Nick Adelsberger |
| Paint
Charge |
Megan Stadick |
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| One of Shakespeare’s
most popular and witty comedies of love. Amid disguises, intrigues, rumors,
and lucky accidents two couples become the focus of scheming brothers,
well meaning friends and bumbling officials. The whirling actions of everyone
prove that “man is a giddy thing” and that much ado can indeed
be made of nothing. |
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| From the Director: Denise
Myers |
Much Ado About Nothing
is really about everything.
Theatrically, Shakespeare provides rich and witty language, dance, music,
rituals, slapstick, masquerades and chase scenes. His political, military
and religious characters scheme and whirl themselves into volatile turmoils
and only through simple accident does chaos resolve.
Thematically, he explores our desire to desperately search for love,
along with our terror to accept that love. We declare our sincere wishes
for peace and then either consciously or unconsciously upset any tenuous
tranquility that establishes itself. We cling to the hope that the ability
to forgive is powerful, while knowing that compassion can turn the penitent
to good or reinforce evil.
And this show is a comedy?
Perhaps Shakespeare is suggesting that we should just concede that “man
is a giddy thing” and that we should give up all illusion to life
without shadows lurking to upset our personal search for balance. Ultimately
and hopefully, we are all born under dancing stars and that in the end
we can laugh at and learn from the shallow follies of others as well
as our own.
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| From
the Dramaturg: Jeffrey Farber |
Much Ado About Nothing marks Shakespeare’s
transition into mature comedy; the play ends happily with a
wedding, but the air of Messina reeks with the smell of evil
and deceit.
This is a comedy about forgiveness, the reconciliation between
love and strife. This dichotomy is most clearly represented
in the play by the characters of Don Pedro and Don John. Don
Pedro’s function in the play is to create love; Don John’s
is to destroy it. Interestingly enough, the means for destruction
are the same as the means for creation: illusion. Don Pedro
creates love by trickingly removing the barriers to love, then
Don John intervenes, and with the same tools that his brother
used to create love, he destroys love. So, love has been exulted
by illusion, destroyed by illusion, and now the Friar must step
in and restore love (and in turn order) to this world by the
same means, illusion.
It has been said that love conquers all, but in this play we
see that love has a very difficult battle to fight. Love is
not running through the mountains of Austria singing at the
top of your lungs, love is vital, love is challenging, love
is confusing, and most importantly love is foolish. Claudio
is foolish, but his crime is being human. There is no greater
offense, but surely an audience of human beings should not hold
themselves superior to such a grieved perpetrator.
In Much Ado About Nothing we see many people falling
victim to illusion and made to be fools. In this play Shakespeare
shows us that this victimization is to rank oneself with good,
for in Messina only the villain is never fooled. By being foolish,
we throw caution to the wind and open our hearts to the love
that we seek, and are made the better for it. |
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