Review: Sultry Tango and Sly Humor Make MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING a Fun Shakespearian Frolic

After the massive undertaking of Death of Kings, Naked Shakes presents lighter fare with Much Ado About Nothing, a play that's based, essentially, on the idea that gossip is a bitch. Naked Shakes's student actors implement this sprightly work befittingly with clever, agile performances that emphasize the sly humor of the piece. With sultry tango, occasional jovial singing, and slapstick stalking throughout the playing space--and accompanied with an impressive original score by John Enrico Douglas--Much Ado About Nothing is a natural, entertaining Shakespearian experience.

We may be suffering a drought, but there's an impending deluge of Shakespeare on the horizon for Santa Barbara stages this fall. Between Naked Shakes, LitMoon, and Ensemble, audiences can experience The Bard's work in a range of styles. Naked Shakes's production is in the UCSB black box theatre, and exists free of the constraints of particular time and place, leaving the audience's focus free to bask in the onstage revelry. The challenge of perpetuating humor through Shakespeare's work is generally the language barrier; jokes and glib dialog get buried in the language for those who aren't well versed in the lexicon of Shakespearian speech. However, director Irwin Appel's production of Much Ado is legitimately funny. The festive, Mediterranean-esque ambiance conveys a robust feeling in the play's universe. Much of this atmosphere is created by the genius of composer and pianist John Enrico Douglas, who's original score brings flirty swank to scenes of carousing and comical dourness to moments of plotting and brooding. Douglas functions as musician and character--in a charming recurring bit that gives a self-aware tip of the hat to the communal creation on stage, characters frequently admonish Douglas to change up the music to fit their mood more specifically.

The highlight of the show is Zachary Macias as Benedick. Macias delivers the comedic suave of a confident character cognizant of his own buffoonery. This take allows him to be fully present in an array of comedic styles, from vaudevillian slapstick to refined wit. Macias and the cast use the entire playing space, including rafters, railing, and runners. Don't get comfortable as a passive viewer, because the safe-hold of the fourth wall may crumble in on you as the cast scrambles about the scaffolding and isles. Allowing the audience to exist amidst the action aides in maintaining the illusion of a palatial courtyard within the black box theatre. The actors are playful with the material, but don't overlook moments of trauma, making Much Ado About Nothing a production that proves Shakespeare's work can be amusing to the modern sensibility without abandoning essential thematic issues and styles of the Elizabethan era: courtship, honor, betrayal, and the delight of fast-paced jesting.

Naked Shakes's Much Ado About Nothing is a breezy experience of Shakespeare's brand of levity. Maddie Martin as Beatrice is sassy and bold, making her a good match for Benedick. There's a lack of chemistry between the two actors, but the nature of the play and the strong personalities involved in the romance makes the lack of sexual tension negligible. It's jolly storytelling more than blazing passion, and Appel, Macias, and Naked Shakes get the job done with an evening of true Shakespearian merriment.

NAKED SHAKES PRESENTS:
Much Ado About Nothing

Directed by Irwin Appel
Friday, Sept. 30 at 8:00
Saturday and Sunday, October 1 and 2 at 2:00 and 8:00
@ the UCSB Studio Theater

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