WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
April 26, 1564 – April 23, 1616.
Five hundred years after his death, William Shakespeare remains the most renowned playwright of all-time. His works have been translated into every major living language and are annually performed more than any other writer.
Beyond his play’s persistent rotation in theaters worldwide, Shakespeare’s work has extensively influenced the works of all manner or artists and thinkers in the centuries since. From them inspiration has been drawn by the likes of Charles Dickens, William Faulkner, Giuseppe Verdi and even Sigmund Freud.
The English language of Shakespeare’s day was far less standardized than it is today. Many expressions and words, such as “with bated breath”, devised in his works are now commonly entrenched in everyday speech. Samuel Johnson, in his ground-breaking 1755 Dictionary of the English Language, quoted Shakespeare more than any other author.
“He was not of an age, but for all time.” – Ben Jonson
MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING
Dated to 1598-1599
Much Ado About Nothing is one of Shakespeare’s most renowned comedies, following the dueling romances of Hero and Claudio and Beatrice and Benedict.
The story is originally set in Messina, a port on the island of Sicily. Our production transports the story to the town of Kettering in England, taking place in 1944, with the visiting dons and counts transformed into officers in the United States Army Air Force.
The title draws upon the period phonetics of the word “nothing”, which, as pronounced at the time, sounded similar to “noting” – meaning gossip, rumors and overhearing.
