How did real life tragedy spark a new 21st century, social media-embracing adaptation of Shakespeare’s comedy, now with added brackets, Much Ado About Not(h)ing? Creator Kelly Wilson tells us all about it. Book your tickets now!
The interactive, immersive production, at which audiences are encouraged to keep their phones on and follow the action both live and online, runs at the Cockpit Theatre from 20 to 22 June 2019.
In fair London, where we lay our scene, Pedro Don has just returned from a six month deployment in Afghanistan. Ancient grudge has broken to new mutiny between Pedro and his half-sister Joan upon the recent death of their father, from whom Joan has been estranged since she left home. In response to his father’s last request, Pedro attempts to build a relationship with Joan. Meanwhile, Pedro’s godfather, former Mayor of London, Leonato Elliott, tries to support his godson through this time of grief and reconciliation by inviting him and Joan, along with Pedro’s band of brothers from his platoon, Claudio and Benedick, to a welcome home celebration at his home with his daughter Hero, niece Beatrice and sister Ursula, who is waiting to hear from her son, Sean, injured in Afghanistan.
Adapted and directed by Kelly Wilson, Much Ado About Not(h)ing retains Shakespeare’s original text, though some of it has been reshaped into lyrics for original songs created by Alex Loveless and Scott Howland. Situations, language and characters have been altered to create a play reflecting 21st century society.
Joanna Clarke and Oliver Franks lead the cast as Joan Don and Pedro Don, with Gunnar DeYoung as Benedick and Tamsin Lynes as Beatrice. That cast is completed by Nathan Dale, Drew Paterson, Kate Brown, Robyn Caldwell, Leroy McGillan, Keanan Cantrell and Nini Ugulava. Choreography is by Darren Royston.
Kelly Wilson on Much Ado About Not(h)ing
Much Ado About Not(h)ing ©Laura Dorn Photography
How did you come up with the idea for Much Ado About Not(h)ing?
It was actually inspired by tragic events in real life. I made the first connection between social media and Much Ado About Nothing in 2012 while I was a secondary teacher in Tasmania, Australia. In that year, there had been several teenage suicides, including Amanda Todd, a young girl from British Columbia who had suffered years of bullying via social media sites such as Facebook. I was considering which play to direct for a drama class production when I recognised a connection between Hero’s faked death of shame in response to Claudio’s unjust public humiliation and modern teenage girls who seek to escape their unjust shame and humiliation through suicide. The idea of adding the digital layer to the performance came to me as a result of my studies in the MA Text and Performance course at RADA/Birkbeck.
What more do audiences get from following on Facebook?
Audience members who struggle with the complexity of Shakespeare’s language have told me after the performances that following the dramatic action of the play, as it unfolds on Facebook, gives them reassurance that they are indeed understanding the plot of the play. There is also a palpable excitement about being able to keep the mobiles phones ON during a performance, which can be felt from the moment the audience enters the theatre space. The digital performance begins before the stage performance, so plan to arrive around 7:30pm if you want to join in on all aspects of the production.
How challenging is it as an audience member to follow the play in both ways?
It can be very challenging at times. This production is designed to be a microcosm of life in the 21st century, allowing the audience to make choices during the performance, then reflect upon the experience after the performance.
Much Ado About Not(h)ing ©Laura Dorn Photography
When you created the piece for your dissertation, how much of a future life did you envisage for it?
I was really excited about the potential for the concept of the production as I was developing it at RADA and I hoped that it would have a future. It has been so well received by audiences since 2017 that I see the potential for more performances of it in the future. I would love to see what others directors do with my adaptation of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Not(h)ing.
How has it changed since the dissertation?
Since the dissertation, it has developed into a full length production which runs for about 95 minutes with no interval. While the subplot of Dogberry and Verges has been cut from the performance, I have retained the masquerade party scene, along with a few other crucial scenes which have allowed me to explore not only the themes of honour and public shame, but also love and forgiveness.
Why is Shakespeare’s work so ripe for reinterpretation after reinterpretation?
I have founded Adaptivity Theatre Company upon my belief that insights into contemporary issues with which society has been grappling for decades, and even centuries, can be found through the thematic exploration of classical texts, such as Shakespeare, within a contemporary context. I have witnessed the gradual change in social interaction that has occurred with the popularisation of the Smartphone and the 24-hour access to the internet that it provides people through their mobile phones. This infiltration of technology into our daily lives reminds me of line 12 from Shakespeare’s Sonnet 73 which seems to illustrate how 21st century digital society has become ‘consumed with that which it was nourish’d by’. I think Much Ado About Not(h)ing presents to the audience both aspects of digital technology: the aspects of technology that nourish us as well as consumes us.
Much Ado About Not(h)ing ©Laura Dorn Photography
Your next production is Hamlet. What are you bringing to that piece?
While there will not be any social media involved in Hamlet, I will continue my exploration of the themes of forgiveness and vengeance. Hamlet can be used as a microscope to examine modern society’s growing obsession with revenge. I believe the tragedy of Hamlet is produced not by a desire for justice, but a pursuit of vengeance, spurred on by Hamlet’s own father from beyond the grave, a deadly inheritance passed down from one generation to the next. The parallels between the dramatic action of Hamlet and the rise of terrorism and murder rates in the world today will provoke reflection and perhaps present an antidote to our fixation on revenge, which is not only destructive to the individual, but to society as well.
How do you feel about staging the production at The Cockpit?
I am very excited about staging this production at The Cockpit. It is a great theatrical space, especially for this production, which includes digital projection, movement and dance to present visually elements of Shakespeare’s text, as well as music to heighten moments of emotional joy or turmoil by converting selected Shakespearean text into lyrics for original music.
What can audiences expect from a trip to see Much Ado About Not(h)ing?
Expect the unexpected. As Drew Paterson, who plays Leonato Elliott in the production, has so aptly described, “It’s Shakespeare, but not as you imagine Shakespeare to be.”
