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Much Ado About Nothing (National Theatre) @ The Olivier

The National’s decision to put on a new Much Ado about Nothing as their main house show over the Christmas period seems to be a slightly odd one, coming so soon after Marianne Elliott’s hugely successful production for the RSC which is still garnering award nominations. Clearly, however, Nicholas Hytner felt there was still something …

Before the Bardathon

As we enter the final week of my year-long project, I’m going to be posting a few retrospective entries in addition to the final couple of reviews. First up, I thought for interest I’d mention my PREVIOUS Shakespeare theatre-going. I haven’t been attending the theatre as long as many people think. Being a Northerner born-and-bred, …

Days of Significance (RSC) @ The Swan Theatre

Welcome to 2007! We’re in the final stretch of the Complete Works now, down to the last twelve productions, plus a few repeat viewings. Still a little way to go before I break out the champagne though….. Yesterday’s production was the fourth of the main response plays, a major new commission by Roy Williams called …

Much Ado About Nothing (RSC) @ The Novello Theatre

The RSC’s London Season this year sees the three biggest hits of the first half of the festival- ‘Much Ado About Nothing’, ‘Antony and Cleopatra’ and ‘The Tempest’ coming to the West End. Being the RSC hack I am, and also more seriously out of a desire to see a) how the plays have developed …

Much Ado About Nothing (Bristol Old Vic) @ The Swan Theatre

Not the phenomenal and sold-out RSC ‘Much Ado’ with Tamsin Greig and Joseph Millson- this was another of the youth productions, this time by the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. Again only an hour and a quarter long, and omitting characters such as Antonio and Ursula, this was a very quick-paced ‘Much Ado’ that tackled …

Much Ado About Nothing (RSC) @ The Swan Theatre

MAY 16TH 2006 (backdated) ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ isn’t a play I know particularly well- I’d only seen one student production of it which was fairly good, but certainly hadn’t blown me away. So, I wasn’t expecting great things from the RSC’s new production of it, and I didn’t know any of director Marianne Elliott’s …