by William Shakespeare
Directed by Sharon Maine
Formerly A Gemco in the Park production
will now be held at the
The Gem, 19 Kilvington Drive, Emerald VIC 3782
due to unforseen circumstances
March 2023
Friday 3, Saturday 4, Sunday 5.
Saturday 11, Sunday 12,
Friday 17, Saturday 18, Sunday 19
Starting at 7.30pm
All Sundays will be Matinee starting at 3pm
All those folk currently with tickets with other locations and times will be notified of the change
Characters and their actors
Beatrice - Nina Harris
Benedick - Hayden Splitt
Hero - Ruth Gilmour
Claudio - Amit Desai
Don Pedro - Ashe Davenport
Don John and Sexton - Maxine Neville
Leonato - Carol McCoy
Borachio - Thilan Ahangama
Margaret and Sexton - Elise D’Amico
Dogberry - Kate McManus
Conrade and Friar Francis - Joel Beling
Conrade, Margaret and Friar Francis - Lucy Butler
Verges - Lily Calder
Antonia - Joy McLeary
Balthasar and George Seacoal (Second Watchman) - Georgia Stergiadis
Ursula - Cat Tregillis
Messenger and Hugo Oatcake (First Watchman) - Evanna Murphy-Donovan
Backstage and more
Stage Manager: Janet Francis
Costume: Evie Housham, Teri Williams, Helen Piccolo
Play Summary
Evie Housham
William Shakespeare probably wrote ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ in the middle of his career in 1598 or 1599. It is one of Shakespeare’s most widely performed plays, and certainly one of his most popular. The themes of love, mistaken identity, sexual jealousy, honour, betrayal and friendship all play out against the background of the Sicilian countryside.
The war is over. Everyone is out for fun; drinking, dancing, flirting and singing are the order of the day as Don Pedro and his entourage come to the estate of Leonato, Governor of Messina. We meet Beatrice, a clever, quick witted woman, who is engaged in an endless battle of wits with the noble Benedick. We also meet the young and inexperienced Hero and Claudio. Hero is Leonato’s daughter. Claudio and Benedick are courtiers in the service of Don Pedro, Prince of Aragon, a powerful nobleman.
Don Pedro has a half-brother, the illegitimate Don John. In Don John’s service are the drunken Borachio and the clever Conrade. Don John has recently rebelled against his half-brother, but has been defeated and forgiven. Everyone thinks Don John has been put back in his place, but Don John has different ideas. If he can’t openly rebel then he will cause trouble by other, less obvious means. He and his men set out to disturb the happiness of Don Pedro and his entourage.
The play examines the character arcs of Benedick and Beatrice, as they move from apparently detesting one another and disdaining love, to finally admitting their feelings for one another with the help of their friends. Both are tricked into admitting their feelings by the end of the play. The play also deals with Hero and Claudio as they fall in love, only to be nearly thwarted by the villainous Don John.
We also meet the Watch, Messina’s police force, headed up by the self-important but comically idiotic Dogberry. He is assisted by Verges, and they head up a fine (well, sort of …) body of constables who save the day, in spite of themselves.