The leads in Much Ado About Nothing have splendid rapport

10 April 2012

There's much ado in London theatre at the moment but it must be about something.

Why else would this Elizabethan rom-com boast two openings in the same week? Next Wednesday sees the West End big guns of Catherine Tate and David Tennant but beating them to some of the most delightful exchanges in Shakespeare is this splendidly spirited production from the ever-improving Globe.

There's actually much to dislike in Much Ado: a sappy pair of young sweethearts, extended bouts of wretchedly unfunny "comedy", as well as some particularly nasty quick-draw misogyny. Set against these demerits, however, are the towering delights of Beatrice and Benedick, Shakespeare's loveliest lovers and parts so rich that big-name actors can't resist them. Who can forget the sight of Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson frolicking in sun-drenched Tuscany in the 1993 film? Tamsin Greig had great fun with the play for the RSC, as did Simon Russell Beale and Zoë Wanamaker at the National.

One of the many joys of Beatrice and Benedick is that they are characters with a history and can be portrayed, to rich and poignant effect, as people of a certain age. They've loved - each other - and lost once already, leaving them to take refuge behind sparkling wits. Eve Best, well known on television for Nurse Jackie and returning to our stage after a too-long absence, and Charles Edwards are a felicitous pairing, revelling in this "merry war" of words.

The trouble is that the lady and gentleman do protest too much about their mutual dislike, leading friends to indulge in some well-meaning deception to force them to declare themselves.

Best and Edwards tuck into their big set-pieces with relish, with Best's smiling Beatrice building up a cherishable rapport with the groundlings and Edwards spinning Benedick from tentatively pompous to almost sincere in a heartbeat. Director Jeremy Herrin, acclaimed for his fine work with new writing at the Royal Court, brings a useful sharpness and freshness to proceedings.

Occasionally the comedy is a little too broad, but it really matters to us that this relationship works out.

Mike Britton's sunny set, with oranges growing overhead and flowers popping up at the sides, reflects both the Messina setting and the mood of this central pairing. Elsewhere, Ony Uhiara and Philip Cumbus do nothing to enliven the dreariness of Hero and Claudio, and every line uttered by Paul Hunter's Benny Hill-esque Dogberry becomes a torture. It's Much Ado about Beatrice and Benedick; Tate and Tennant have worthy rivals.

In rep until Oct 1. Information: 020 7401 9919, shakespearesglobe.com

Much Ado About Nothing
Shakespeare's Globe Theatre
New Globe Walk, SE1 9DT

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