Much Ado About Nothing William Shakespeare

The play was very popular in its early decades and continues to be one of Shakespeare's most performed plays.[27] In a poem published in 1640, Leonard Digges wrote: "let but Beatrice / And Benedick be seen, lo in a trice / The Cockpit galleries, boxes, all are full."

After the theatres reopened during the Restoration, Sir William Davenant staged The Law Against Lovers (1662), which inserted Beatrice and Benedick into an adaptation of Measure for Measure.[27] Another adaptation, The Universal Passion, combined Much Ado with a play by Molière (1737).[27] John Rich had revived Shakespeare's text at Lincoln's Inn Fields (1721).[27] David Garrick first played Benedick in 1748 and continued to play him until 1776.[28]

In 1836, Helena Faucit played Beatrice at the very beginning of her career at Covent Garden, opposite Charles Kemble as Benedick in his farewell performances.[29] The great 19th-century stage team Henry Irving and Ellen Terry counted Benedick and Beatrice as their greatest triumph. John Gielgud made Benedick one of his signature roles between 1931 and 1959, playing opposite Diana Wynyard, Peggy Ashcroft, and Margaret Leighton.[27] The longest-running Broadway production is A. J. Antoon's 1972 staging, starring Sam Waterston, Kathleen Widdoes, and Barnard Hughes. Derek Jacobi won a Tony Award for playing Benedick in 1984.[30] Jacobi had also played Benedick in the Royal Shakespeare Company's highly praised 1982 production, with Sinéad Cusack playing Beatrice.[27] Director Terry Hands produced the play on a stage-length mirror against an unchanging backdrop of painted trees. In 2013, Vanessa Redgrave and James Earl Jones (then in their seventies and eighties, respectively) played Beatrice and Benedick onstage at The Old Vic, London.[27]

Actors, theatres, and awards

• c. 1598: In the original production by the Lord Chamberlain's Men, William Kempe played Dogberry and Richard Cowley played Verges.
• 1613: Wedding festivities of Princess Elizabeth and Frederick V of the Palatinate.[27]
• 1748: David Garrick played Benedick for the first time.[27]
• 1836: Helena Faucit and Charles Kemble as Beatrice and Benedick, Covent Garden.[29]
• 1882: Henry Irving and Ellen Terry played Benedick and Beatrice at the Lyceum Theatre.[31]
• 1931: John Gielgud played Benedick for the first time at the Old Vic Theatre, and it stayed in his repertory until 1959.[27]
• 1960: A Tony Award Nomination for "Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play" went to Margaret Leighton for her role played in Much Ado.
• 1965: A National Theatre production directed by Franco Zeffirelli with Maggie Smith, Robert Stephens, Ian McKellen, Lynn Redgrave, Albert Finney, Michael York and Derek Jacobi among others
• 1965: A Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word or Drama Recording nomination went to a recording of a National Theatre production with Maggie Smith and Robert Stephens
• 1973: A Tony Award Nomination for "Best Featured Actor in a Play" went to Barnard Hughes as Dogberry in the New York Shakespeare Festival production.
• 1973: A Tony Award Nomination for "Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play" went to Kathleen Widdoes.
• 1980: Sinéad Cusack and Derek Jacobi in a Royal Shakespeare Company production directed by Terry Hands.[27]
• 1983: The Evening Standard Award for the "Best Actor" went to Derek Jacobi.
• 1985: A Tony Award Nomination for "Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play" was received by Sinéad Cusack.
• 1985: The Tony Award for "Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play" went to Derek Jacobi as Benedick.
• 1987: Tandy Cronyn as Beatrice and Richard Monette as Benedick in a production at the Stratford Festival directed by Peter Moss[32]
• 1989: The Evening Standard Award for "Best Actress" went to Felicity Kendal as Beatrice in Elijah Moshinsky's production at the Strand Theatre.
• 1994: The Laurence Olivier Award for "Best Actor" went to Mark Rylance as Benedick in Matthew Warchus' production at the Queen's Theatre.
• 2006: The Laurence Olivier Award for "Best Actress" was received by Tamsin Greig as Beatrice in the Royal Shakespeare Company's production in the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, directed by Marianne Elliott.
• 2007: Zoë Wanamaker appeared as Beatrice and Simon Russell Beale as Benedick in a National Theatre production directed by Nicholas Hytner.[33]
• 2011: Eve Best appeared as Beatrice and Charles Edwards as Benedick at Shakespeare's Globe, directed by Jeremy Herrin.[34]The official poster for the 2011 production starring David Tennant and Catherine Tate
• 2011: David Tennant as Benedick alongside Catherine Tate as Beatrice in a production of the play at the Wyndham's Theatre, directed by Josie Rourke.[35] An authorized recording of this production is available to download and watch from Digital Theatre.
• 2012: Meera Syal as Beatrice and Paul Bhattacharjee as Benedick in an Indian setting, directed by Iqbal Khan for the Royal Shakespeare Company, part of the World Shakespeare Festival.[27]
• 2013: Vanessa Redgrave as Beatrice and James Earl Jones as Benedick in a production at The Old Vic directed by Mark Rylance.[27]
• 2013: A German-language production (Viel Lärm um Nichts), translated and directed by Marius von Mayenburg at the Schaubühne am Lehniner Platz, Berlin.[27]
• 2017: Beatriz Romilly as Beatrice and Matthew Needham as Benedick in a Mexican setting, at Shakespeare's Globe, directed by Matthew Dunster.
• 2018: Mel Giedroyc as Beatrice and John Hopkins as Benedick in a modern Sicilian setting, at the Rose Theatre, Kingston, directed by Simon Dormandy.[36]
• 2019: Danielle Brooks as Beatrice and Grantham Coleman as Benedick with an all-Black cast set in contemporary Georgia, at The Public Theater, directed by Kenny Leon. This version was broadcast on PBS Great Performances on 22 November 2019.[37]
• 2022: Jennifer Paredes as Hero and Gerrard James as Claudio at Denver Center for the Performing Arts.[38]
• 2023: Maev Beaty as Beatrice and Graham Abbey as Benedick in a production at the Stratford Festival directed by Chris Abraham.[39]