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FEB 21, 2020
Much Ado About Shakespeare As the Ides of March draws nearer, students, director of Much Ado About Nothing challenge stigmas of Shakespearian literature EMILY CARLISLE STORY
VERONICA TEETER PHOTOS
“A
ll the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players.” The actors at Civic Theatre are living by this quote from William Shakespeare’s “As You Like It” as they prepare to perform one of the most beloved Shakespearean works, “Much Ado About Nothing”, which plays February 7 through tomorrow. “Much Ado About Nothing” is a classic love story, set after a war in Sicily. However, according to the director of the show, Emily Rogge Tzucker, one of the fun yet challenging parts of producing one of the Bard’s plays is deciding where to set it. “You often have to figure out a setting for the play. You don’t always have to put it in Renaissance costumes and someplace in Italy,” Tzucker said. “You’ve got to think about a place and a time that highlights the story and makes sense, so the setting doesn’t distract from the actual work.” Julia Ammons, actress in the production and senior, said Tzucker placed the show in the furthest place from Sicily in the 16th century. “Picture what you normally think would be in a Shakespeare production; like monologues and HAPPY TO HELP: Stephanie Johnson (LEFT) and senior Julia Ammons (RIGHT), actresses in the Civic Theatre’s “Much Ado About Nothing,” stand at the ready in their maid costumes during the opening scene. Ammons said she believes it is important to keep Shakespeare alive even if it takes effort to read his works.
