Fairfax High's Modern Take On 'Much Ado About Nothing': Cappies Review

Written by Sophia Demers
Annandale High School

Despite the stories of William Shakespeare being over 400 years old, Fairfax High School's recent production of "Much Ado About Nothing" proved that these famous tales can still be hilariously relevant today, especially with a modern twist.

Fairfax’s production of "Much Ado About Nothing," originally written around 1599 by William Shakespeare, tells the tale of young love and deception through a modern lens. This production, set at the Messina Resort in Santorini, Greece, follows Benedick and Beatrice (who swear they will never marry) as they are deceived into believing the other is in love with them. While this occurs, Don Jane (originally Don John, the town gossip) plots to separate Hero and Claudio by faking a scandal, resulting in Hero's family staging her death to retain their honor. As Hero and Claudio break apart and Beatrice and Bendedick grow closer, all is revealed and the story ends with a classically Shakespearian "double wedding," where everyone lives happily ever after.

Issac Frenza as Benedick, Tristan Farmer as Don Pedro, and Nate Wheeler Smith as Claudio truly lit up the stage. The dynamic trio’s energy only rose throughout the show, and the chemistry between their characters brought a unique life to the show that kept audiences roaring with laughter through clever quips and goofy interactions with audience members. Frenza's strong body language paired with Smith's descriptive facial expressions brought a refreshing humor to the show and allowed audiences to be pulled into the story with the characters from lighthearted chats to a guilt-stricken eulogy.

Additionally, Kat Pascual as Beatrice added life to the enthralling show, their confident vocals and strong movement capturing the audience's attention to see what the witty Beatrice would do next. Their intelligent comedic timing added humor to ordinarily mundane scenes, and their quick changes in tone brilliantly portrayed each motivation Beatrice had, never once allowing audiences to predict their next move.

Each character in Fairfax's production brought a unique addition to the show and never once lost energy, even through a fully choreographed dance number to the iconic “Voulez-Vous” from "Mamma Mia!," the inspiration for this production. Ursula and Margaret (Izzy Benevides and Naomi Bautsita, respectively) stood out from the crowd with incredible energy and hilarious reactions, though each actor in this production of "Much Ado About Nothing" added brilliant depth to the story. Each actor's strong diction and clever additions of modern phrases made the story easy to follow, and, even when a few lines were lost in the din, made each character understandable without the use of microphones.

Fairfax's production was brought to life through the use of a thrust stage setting, where the audience was seated on stage with the actors. This, combined with the 15-foot set (led by Griffin Reinsel and Maya Gijon) that featured multiple staircases and an onstage pool used to soak actors, made the story feel even more believable. Additionally, the use of over 250 individual costumes (completely student-led by Gaby Adumua) included multiple intricate costumes for each actor, as well as dressing Run Crew as the staff of the Messina Resort in khaki shorts and blue polos to make set transitions more cohesive. The costuming, in addition to many other tech aspects, made this show feel more like a real vacation than a stage performance.

Fairfax High School's modern twist on "Much Ado About Nothing" by William Shakespeare brilliantly refreshed a classic tale, one that teaches us many lessons. This show shows us just how important it is to forgive, but most importantly, how important it is to acknowledge when we are wrong.