Review: MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING - An Enchanted Evening Under the Stars

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING by William Shakespeare, produced by The Baron's Men and currently playing at The Curtain Theatre on Lake Austin, is a stellar achievement for the veteran company. Packed with talent, this production brings traditional Shakespeare to life with smiles and laughs aplenty. This gem of a show is placed in the perfect setting, the Curtain Theatre, a scaled down model of Shakespeare's own Globe Theatre. In this setting, lit by firelight and serenaded with harp, recorder, and drum music the audience is transported back in time to Elizabethan England.
As the play begins, Leonato (Charles Smith) a respectable nobleman, lives in the Sicilian town of Messina with his young daughter Hero (Stephanie Donowho), his clever niece Beatrice (Lindsay Palinski), and his brother Antonio (Michael O'Keefe). Leonato prepares to welcome soldiers home from a war. These include Don Pedro (Mike Osborn) who is a prince, and two fellow soldiers Claudio (Ryan Wilson), a well-respected young nobleman, and Benedick (Aaron Niemuth), who often jokes at the expense of his friends. Dona Giavanna (Leanna Holmquist), Don Pedro's illegitimate sister, is part of the crowd as well. Dona Giavanna (traditionally Don John) is embittered. She vows to make trouble wherever she can and when Claudio declares his love for Hero, she gets her chance. Add in Dogberry (Andrew Bond), the town's buffoon law enforcement officer with his watchmen, Verges (Michael O'Keefe in a dual role), Seacole (Logan Smith) and Oatcake (Edward Fotinos) and we have a perfect recipe for Shakespearean comedy at its best.
As one of the Bard's most popular comedies, MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING is at its heart a romantic comedy featuring iconic characters and two contrasting couples. Beatrice and Benedick are the world wise, reluctant pair who swear they will never marry anyone, let alone each other. The young lovers, Hero and Claudio, all innocent eagerness and anticipation, fall in desperate love with each other.
The entire cast delivers a multifaceted performance that is very enjoyable to experience. A few standouts are worthy of note. Palinsky's Beatrice is a treat to watch, her timing is impeccable and her delivery precise. As Dona Giavanna, Holmquist is wonderful as she plays the villainess with obvious relish and evil glee. Andrew Bond's Dogberry is delightful as he inhabits the witty fool with verve. Stephanie Donowho's turn as Hero is refreshing, giving the ingenue a depth of character missed in so many productions. Claudio can be a thankless role that actors often dismiss as the typical juvenile part and is often overshadowed by the more popular role of Benedick. Ryan Wilson as Claudio commands our attention with his earnest enthusiasm and becomes the very heart of the performance. Dawn Allee's costumes are beautiful and rich with color, very pleasing to the eye. The live music is a feast for the ears and sets the mood perfectly with Elizabethan music. Kudos to the musicians, Cindy Schaufenbuel, David Melanson, Sandy Straubhaar and David Shankle. A special highlight of the evening are the scene changes, usually overlooked as crew members schlep furniture on or off stage, they are a missed opportunity to have a little fun with the audience. Erin Priddy and Jennifer Fielding make the most of their stage time giving us a mini story and hilarious physical comedy while being efficient in their task. Well done, ladies.
The performance as a whole is enchanting and would have been perfect, but unfortunately it is Director Monette Mueller's staging that is as puzzling as it is frustrating. Arranging hordes of actors on a thrust stage is never easy, it takes a practiced eye to not block the view of the audience in major scenes. While it's not possible to ensure that every seat at The Curtain provides a perfect view, it is desirable, that the action can be visible to most of the audience. Mueller's blocking may have looked elegant in a proscenium theatre but is ill suited to a three sided thrust stage. Time and again actors flanked the scene on the left and right of the stage at an angle obscuring the action taking place at center. This was especially puzzling because in every other aspect Mueller's direction is abundantly apparent. Thankfully the performances of an outstanding cast made up for any flaw in direction and if you are lucky enough to sit in the center-most seats, you may not even notice.
I highly recommend MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING, go early, take a picnic to enjoy before the show and have a lovely evening.

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING by William Shakespeare
The Baron's Men at The Curtain Theatre
October 2-24 at 8:00PM
Tickets: $10 -$15 thebaronsmen.org