Much Ado About Nothing: Bard meets Barbie

Packed with Marvel-ous star power, this Barbie-core rendition of the original rom-com leans into its mischievous cast and is nothing short of a goofy millennial masterpiece. The rendition is set somewhere amongst the 1600s, 90s Ibiza, and the Grecian Island of Mamma Mia.  Jamie Lloyd’s Much Ado About Nothing stars Tom Hiddleston and Hayley Atwell as Benedict and Beatrice – the original enemies to lovers that inspired the trope. More like a hen-do than a traditional high-brow Shakespearean performance, this rendition is proof that the Bard remains both relevant and funny.

(Atwell) is energetic and quick-witted, but also perfectly in touch with her emotions.

Packed with pink confetti, cheeky quips, and a huge heart (both metaphorically and physically), it is truly a very funny show. Aggressively uncool, Hiddleston’s Benedict is a joyous fan of dad dancing, bad karaoke, and often milks the audience for dramatic applause not unlike a C-lister doing a Butlins show at February half term. And still, behind the life-sized Loki cut-out that spends a solid 5 minutes being grinded on, the forty-something aged casting of the two leads brings a truthful, hilarious, and slightly sad twist to the classic. Atwell’s Beatrice, the Queen Bee of her friend group who has been scorned by the charming Benedict once before, begins the play sworn off of men. However, Atwell perfectly captures her simultaneous joy and disbelief when she discovers that her love is in fact not unrequited. She is energetic and quick-witted, but also perfectly in touch with her emotions.

Narrowly avoiding tragedy, Lloyd allows Hero time to feel her torment, unlike other renditions of the play

Mason Alexander Park gives a naughty and hilarious performance as the bawdy Margaret, and uses 90s Club Classics to punctuate the Old English, really bringing the merry party, in which the story is set, to life. Whilst Park’s vocal pipes are to be admired greatly, Hiddleston’s aren’t quite of the same level: he playfully stumbles through an acapella rendition of The Backstreet Boys’ I Want It That Way as part of a love confession meant for Beatrice. (As lover of parody, it’s what good Ol’ Willy Shakes would have wanted.)

The camp and goofy undertone of the first half is perfectly embodied by the switch from traditional masquerade attire to giant masked singer-style animal heads, along with the noticeable absence of the bumbling Dogberry’s sub-plot. All this made for an abrupt tonal shift in the second half, as the previously love-struck Claudio turns to his misogynistic and oh-so-hurtful roots. Narrowly avoiding tragedy, Lloyd allows Hero time to feel her torment, unlike other renditions of the play. She pushes Claudio away before falling for him once again, as all is revealed in the end to be much ado about nothing.

I believe it truly captures the joy and frivolity of the play as was written and as was meant to enjoyed

Whilst perhaps Shakespeare loyalists (of the more boring variety) may not enjoy this performance, I believe it truly captures the joy and frivolity of the play as was written and as was meant to enjoyed. If you find yourself near the West End before the 5^th April, I can’t think of much better to do than to check out Covent Garden’s hottest theatre-come-club.

(And if the above still hasn’t convinced you to go, maybe a quick Google Search of Tom’s abs at around the Act 2 mark will.)