Some Ado about MUCH ADO at Baltimore Shakespeare Factory
Even at its best, theater–ephemeral art though it be to experience–is hardly the work of a moment to create or present; and sometimes unexpected hurdles can make a complicated process even more challenging.
Plays may take years to gestate and of course classics last for centuries. But every now and then the best-laid plans of a producer encounter the immovable forces and irresistible objections of Fate, and things gang agley. So it was for director Kaitlyn Fowler and local producing company, Baltimore Shakespeare Factory, whose planned production of Shakespeare’s much-loved Much Ado About Nothing was just getting on its feet in 2020 when, like so many other events and plans of that particular moment, it had to yield to the global pandemic.
But neither Fowler nor BSF were so easily deterred, nor were some members of that original cast. They kept the notion alive throughout, holding off for a more fortuitous moment. And now their patience has been rewarded and the waiting has ended. The much-delayed Much Ado is upon us at.
From June 13th to 29th, at Baltimore’s Church of the Nativity and Holy Comforter (6100 York Rd), Baltimore Shakespeare Factory will present Kaitlyn Fowler’s production of Shakespeare’s rambunctious, witty, 17th-century precursor to that modern favorite, the RomCom.
Maybe best-known for its squabbling pair of reluctant lovers, Beatrice and Benedick–whether that be from the celebrated and visually sumptuous film with Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson, or perhaps from operatic treatments by Hector Bizet or Sir Charles Villiers Standford, or even from modern Hollywood adaptations like Messina High–the play offers more than its fair share of complex romantic geometry, mistakes and mishaps, rapid-fire banter, bumbling oafs and conniving villains, tearful reversals and joyous surprises. All to go along with its classic frenemies-to-lovers plot.
Hear what director Kaitlyn Fowler has to say here, and get a hint ofwhat to expect in this production:
Tickets for the production are available at https://www.baltimoreshakespearefactory.org/much-ado-about-nothing
More information, including the program and cast and other material, are here: Much Ado Program
