Left to Right: Kai Tawil-Morsink as Claudio, Grace Lila Martin as Hero, Ian Case as Bendedick and Rosemary Jeffery as Beatrice. Photo credit: Lara Eichhorn

I really enjoyed the Grater Victoria Shakespeare Theatre Festival’s production of Much Ado About Nothing. The cast features strong performances from Ian Case as Benedick and Rosemary Jeffery as Beatrice, as well as Kai Tawil-Morsink as Claudio and Grace Lila Martin as Hero. The cast is rounded out with performances by Michelle Morris as Don Pedro, Aidan Guerreiro as the villainous Don John, Ryan Kniel as a very funny Dogberry, Wendy Magahay as a solid Leonata, Andrew Shepherd as Barachio, Sophia Redford as Margaret, Nette Martin as Antonia, Sarah Shepherd playing doubled roles, and Hannah Ockenden playing three roles! Director Willis Taylor mines the comedy from the play to its best effect. The sparring between Beatrice and Benedick is witty and funny, as is the relationship between Claudio and Hero. It never fails to chill me when Beatrice tells Benedick to “Kill Claudio” when Hero has been spurned at the altar by Claudio. But all comes right in the end, as in every Shakespeare comedy, especially when this one ends with a double wedding. The villains are captured, the misunderstandings are cleared up and everything ends happily. Standout performances for me were the aforementioned Case and Jeffery, Magahay as Hero’s mother Leonata, and Michelle Morris as Don Pedro. Aidan Guerreiro as Don John was suitably villainous, and Dogberry a delight, especially in the scene where Barachio is caught, featuring two volunteers from the audience playing members of the watch! As director Taylor writes in the program online, “In the end the losing our masks and gaining a greater knowledge of ourselves can bring hope and healing and deeper understanding of who we are as individuals and together.” I couldn’t agree more. Recommended. Runs until July 6th at Craigdarroch Castle and from July 8th to the 20th at Lampson School in Esquimalt. Tickets are available here: https://vicshakespeare.tickit.ca

I have seen three recent productions of this play, last year at Stratford, featuring Graham Abbey as Benedick and Maev Beaty as Beatrice, and also at the Globe in London in 2022. But I have to say, that this production was right up there with these other ones! Don’t miss it!