Is What It Is Theatre's Much Ado About Nothing at Pueblo Grande Museum
(out of 
)Mark S.P. Turvin
(home office) (602) 912-0117
I can be reached for comment via e-mail at: mspt@goldfishpublishers.com
Reviewed 4/7/00
(out of )There's something to be said about a non-contract company that struggles valiantly to mount a live production, a difficult endeavor, with little hope of recompense. When a group of classically untrained actors expends so much energy working on a text of the English language's greatest dramatist, it is usually destined either to fly on sheer willpower, or collapse under the weight of the effort. The David-like Is What It Is Theatre has taken on the Goliath challenge of mounting one of the Bard's darker comedies, Much Ado About Nothing, and does both at once. While the untrained vocal offerings and interpretations threaten to topple this behemoth undertaking, the company still manages some great performances and lively moments to balance the weaknesses. This is one situation where that unknown element of an overwhelming love of theatre counters any general deficiencies of cast and crew.
Director Angee Lewandowski offers the story of the near-tragic machinations of Don John to undercut his legitimate brother, Prince Don Pedro. While the many intrigues fly, the hilarious courtship of the typical Shakespearean unlikely couple, the witty-to-a-fault Benedick and Beatrice, makes this one of the slyest of the Swan of Avon's comedies.
Ms. Lewandowski has frenetically paced this production, assuming that a faster offering might mask the other varied weaknesses. To a certain extent, this has worked. By propelling the production forward so quickly, the slurred offerings of such actors as George Preston's Governor Leonato, and the odd trillings of Kristin Larish's Beatrice, are quick in passing. She has also included just the right amount of song and dance, as choreographed by Ben Howe and Ellen Rath, and used the unfriendly performance space to allow for as much action as possible. There is, though, just the slightest hint that some directorial choices and performances have been borrowed from Kenneth Branagh's 1993 film offering, an unfortunate possibility.
In this production, for some reason, the men have fared better than the women in performance. Three of the four lead males, Tim Butterfield as determined bachelor Benedick, Kevin Fadley as the hearty Prince Don Pedro, and Thomas Leveen as the scheming bastard brother, Don John, are completely on top of their characters. Messrs. Butterfield and Fadley are as witty and charming as their characters call for, while Mr. Leveen is just dark enough to keep the drama balancing the lighthearted. Not up to their level is the fourth of the regiment, Michael Pauley as young lover Claudio, who seems too dour for his role, and has the annoying tendency to look downward while performing.
Balancing this are the weaker performances of the women, lead by the odd choices by Ms. Larish's Beatrice. While no other performer has donned an accent, she has chosen some odd British-wannabe that is distracting. It also seems that she and Ms. Lewandowski have held firmly to the description of Beatrice that she allows mirth to cover her bile, and to that extent, Ms. Larish is constantly laughing and flitting around the stage like an epileptic butterfly. This causes her sudden turn to dour in the latter parts of the script to play untrue. Even weaker is Lisa Arnseth as lovely Hero, who is so uninvolved in her character, her performance rings modernly hollow.
The strongest of the supporting cast are Michael Peck, Joe Gaynor and Chris McGuire, who stay true to their characters. While very funny, Jason Carney's constable, Dogberry, is so obviously lifted from Michael Keaton's performance in the film, it's nearly criminal.
The technical elements are even more effective than the space would seem to allow, and Ms. Lewandowski's costume design, while justified in her notes as being timeless, still pushes the envelope with its period dressing gowns and Doc Marten's.
Despite the many problems that plague this production, all of which can be explained by a mixture of eagerness and lack of experience, this is still an enjoyable evening of theatre. What this company does with a group of dedicated neophytes, their overwhelming passion for performance, and a budget probably one one-thousandth the size of ATC's for their Shakespeare production is impressive.
Production Details:
Much Ado About Nothing by William
Shakespeare
Is What It Is Theatre
Pueblo Grande Museum, Phoenix
(480) 994-9495
April 7th - 15th, 2000
