It’s 1959 in Messina, Connecticut, Elvis is all over the radio, and Pedro, the captain of the winning football team, and his crew are invited to stay at the home of a family friend for a month of rest. What mischief could they possibly get up to? Plenty.
Claudio (Jadon Caputo) has fallen helplessly in love with Hero (Daisy Brustad), the daughter of his hostess (Hanna Hammac). Pedro (Tori Castrillo) offers to help him win her while his brother, John (Lily Sherrod), does everything he can to break them up. He doesn’t dislike Hero, but he can’t stand Claudio, and he hates his brother. The plan he executes with his friend Borachio (Gabe Moshe) to ruin Hero’s reputation and break Claudio’s heart the night before the wedding leads toward tragedy.
Meanwhile Benedick (Zach Reinhart) and Beatrice (Katherine McCrackin) are at each other’s throats. They used to go out, but it ended badly. Are they so nasty to each other because they’re really still in love? Possibly. Pedro enlists his friends’ help to find out, and they trick Benedick and Beatrice into believing the other is pining away from them and then stand back and watch to see what happens. Will Benedick and Beatrice go on being cruel to one another, or will they trip all over themselves trying to be nice?
Despite so much intrigue, it only takes the town’s bungling Sheriff Dogberry (Nikki Castrillo) and his two deputies (Emma Rendon and Marley Reynolds) to bring the truth to light and save the day. They do, however, have the help of a puppet.
The play is hilariously funny and packed with music, including two solos sung by Margaret (Mistine Julius), Borachio’s tool in setting up the unsuspecting Hero. The cast members range in age from 13 to 17 and include a mix of seasoned actors and first-time players.
SETSCO offers four performances of Much Ado About Nothing April 27-30 at the Pensacola Opera Center, 75 South Tarragona. Tickets are $15 and available at www.setsco.org. The April 27th performance will be a preview, and tickets for that evening are $10.
The Southeastern Teen Shakespeare Company is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing teens in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties with instruction and performance opportunities that lead to their significant growth as artists, as community members, and as human beings.
Event: Much Ado About Nothing
Performances: April 27, 28, 29 at 7:30p.m.; April 30 at 2:30 p.m.
Venue: Pensacola Opera Center, 75 South Tarragona Street
Tickets: $15 all seats
Website: www.setsco.org