How to Read Much Ado About Nothing (Shakespeare Pre-Play Preparation) (Patreon)

Welcome to Messina, where we are preparing to overhear the merry war between Beatrice and Benedick. 

Much Ado About Nothing gives us the template for romantic comedy, comes quite close to becoming a tragedy, and has much to teach us about the relationships between men and women. 

Video Timestamps:

• 0:00 why read/watch this play?
• 1:30 the puns in the title
• 4:00 what this play means to me
• 7:00 the history of this comedy
• 7:40 Much Ado and the sonnets
• 9:05 prose vs verse in Shakespeare
• 10:09 what is the story of this play?
• 12:20 the characters the play
• 15:18 Beatrice and Benedick
• 17:30 male-male vs male-female
• 19:40 Shakespeare’s societal critique
• 21:45 finding the ideal partner
• 25:31 the formula for comedy
• 29:00 the happily ever after
• 30:45 recommend criticism
• 31:48 productions of the play
• 33:10 focusing questions

🎬Recommended Film Adaptations:

• The 1993 film version with Kenneth Branagh, Emma Thompson, Denzel Washington, and Keanu Reeves is well worth a watch. The chemistry between Branagh and Thompson, who were married at the time, is palpable.
• Joss Whedon's 2012 black-and-white film adaptation is a sparkling, charming, and successful attempt to bring this play into the modern world. 

🎙️Worthy Audio Production:

• David Tennant and Samantha Spiro make a brilliant Beatrice and Benedick in the BBC's 2001 audio production of Much Ado About Nothing.

Stage Adaptation:

• You can watch a brilliant stage production, filmed at the Globe Theatre in 2011, and starring Eve Best and Charles Edwards here.

Deep-Cuts Criticism:

• Northrop Frye's writings on Shakespeare are always illuminating, particularly for those of you with an interest in ritual and mythology. I recommend starting with his chapter on comedy and the mythos of spring in his Anatomy of Criticism.

Scenes to enjoy as you read:

• Act 1, Scene 1, "My dear Lady Disdain" (interpretation)
• Act 2, Scene 3, "When I said I would die a bachelor" (interpretation)
• Act 3, Scene 1, "What fire is in mine ears?" (interpretation)
• Act 2, Scene 3, "Sigh no more, ladies" (interpretation)
• Act 4, Scene 1, "Oh I wish I was a man" (interpretation)

Questions to think about:

1) What does Shakespeare teach us about men and women?

2) How is this play different from the other comedies? Do you prefer it?

Bonus: Please do share with us your favourite passages, lines, ideas, and anything you have taken away from your experience of the play.

Happy reading, everybody!