Review: Much Ado About Nothing (Melbourne Theatre Company)
William Shakespeare’s greatest work
It is my firm belief that Much Ado About Nothing is William Shakespeare’s greatest work. To be fair, I’m still making my way through his entire canon, but I’ve seen several of the big hitters now and Much Ado About Nothing remains my favourite. The play traverses an incredible spectrum of emotion spanning moments of incredibly serious drama to absolutely side-splitting comedy. It was originally written and performed over four hundred years ago but what Shakespeare wrote still remains true: we listen to men over women and it costs us greatly.
Much Ado About Nothing follows two pairs of lovers: Beatrice and Benedick, who are engaged in a war of wits so annoying that their friends decide to trick them into falling in love, and Claudio and Hero, whose engagement falls victim to a war between brothers Don Pedro and Don John. A third plotline follows the plucky neighbourhood watch whose grand ambitions and good intentions are often thwarted by their overwhelming lack of intellect. All three storylines are woven together into a tale of love, deception and pride.
I was very excited to learn that Melbourne Theatre Company decided to stage a new production of Much Ado About Nothing (their first in 30 years), directed by Mark Wilson.
Alison Bell as Beatrice and Fayssal Bazzi as Benedick are absolutely outstanding. Their performances, when they appear together or apart, are magnificent.
Alison Bell is marvellous as Beatrice. She does a wonderful job of capturing Beatrice’s self-assuredness and confidence while still oozing charm and love as well. If only Shakespeare had given her a few more opportunities to shine, as she demonstrated exactly what she is capable of while expressing Beatrice’s fury after the wedding.
Fayssal Bazzi delivers the best performance of Benedick I have ever seen on a stage (and I would include David Tenant in National Theatre’s 2011 production in that as well). He reminds us that Benedick is best not only when he is bold, arrogant and too cocky for his own good but also when he follows Beatrice around like a puppy dog who morphs into even more of an enthusiastic yet pathetic golden retriever after his gulling.
In this iteration, the famous song ‘Sigh No More’, originally performed by the character Balthasar who has been omitted from this production, is instead given to Miela Anich’s Hero. One of Shakespeare’s biggest failings in this show is how little Hero speaks despite the fact that she is the emotional core of the play and the igniting spark of its events. While this version of ‘Sigh No More’ offers little melodically, it is a wonderful and meaningful change that enlivens the themes of the play. While her cousin Beatrice will complain loudly about the folly of men to whoever is in earshot, Hero sings about it to herself on an empty stage, almost like a lament. The contrast between the two cousins is evident despite the fact they share the same struggles as women in a man’s world.
Julie Forsyth delivers a standout performance from amongst the rest of the ensemble, showcasing a wealth of talent and great comedic instincts across the roles of Ursula, Dogberry and Friar Francis.
However, I remain sceptical of any company that proposes to perform Much Ado with less than ten actors. For this production, the full extent of The Sumner Theatre was on display including the wings and the belly of the stage. While I enjoyed this idea conceptually—the audience are reminded of their role watching the play—it meant that the eight actors were presented with the impossible task of filling the space. They could not create the joyous atmosphere of the party scene. So much of the play revolves around overheard conversations and rumours yet the stage felt constantly bare. I did appreciate the Pamela Anderson eyes of the set, a 1984-esque reminder that someone is always watching and listening.
The choice of a smaller cast necessitates doubling of roles which I do not think works with the play’s themes. While I am usually a big fan of gender bending in Shakespeare, I think Much Ado presents a very challenging site for such an approach given that the play is deeply rooted in its exploration and critique of traditional gender roles. The casting of a female actor to play Don John—a self-professed plain villain who seeks to destroy his brother’s life who does not care about the assortment of women getting caught in the crossfire—falls flat.
It also means that several characters remain absent from important scenes. The character of Margaret may not always be present during the wedding scene as she has no lines, but often the audience is able to observe as she comes to the silent realisation of her role in Don John’s deception. Her absence robs the play of the nuance that makes it interesting. Margaret was also missing from the gulling of Beatrice.
Several of these choices mean that Melbourne Theatre Company’s production of Much Ado About Nothing does not sing as joyously as it could. Nevertheless, it is a deeply funny, well-performed and touching production of Shakespeare’s classic.
Rating: Recommend
Play: Much Ado About Nothing
Writer: William Shakespeare
Director: Mark Wilson
Starring: Miela Anich (Hero/Borachio/Ensemble), Fayssal Bazzi (Benedick), Alison Bell (Beatrice), Syd Brisbane (Leonato/Ensemble), Julie Forsyth (Ursula/Dogberry/Ensemble), Remy Heremaia (Claudio/Ensemble), Chanella Macri (Margaret/Bastard/Ensemble) and John Shearman (Prince/Ensemble)
Dates and venue: The Sumner at Southbank Theatre until 20 December 2025