Ed Chavez and Kim Delfina-Gleason Photo by Broken Chain Photography

Much Ado About Nothing is billed as one of the comedies, but not all of it is funny. The secondary plot involving Claudio and Hero takes a pretty cruel turn. Of course, everything turns out OK in the end, and all's well that ends well, you might say–but not really.

Most of the comedy of the play is in the bantering/bickering between the characters of Beatrice and Benedick. They are the archetypal couple who profess to hate each other when everybody knows they actually are crazy in love. Who knows how many romantic comedies Beatrice and Benedick have spawned. Television writers should thank Shakespeare for creating the template.

The other truly comic character is the constable Dogberry, whose speeches are one malapropism after another. Brilliant writing by Shakespeare. ("Malapropisms" should really be called "Dogberries," if you ask me, since Shakespeare came way before Richard Brinsley Sheridan.) Despite Dogberry's complete obtuseness, his deputies are the ones who uncover the plot designed to thwart the marriage of Hero to Claudio. And thus we have a happy ending.

Shakespeare's plays are among the most malleable in terms of setting the time and place. Much Ado is set in Messina, on the island of Sicily, but in this production it's transposed to New Mexico in the 1940s, with no loss of credibility. Don Pedro and his men, including Benedick and Claudio, are soldiers returning from a war–in this case, World War II. The name "Don Pedro" is more New Mexican than Italian, and setting the play here allows director Zoe Burke and the cast members to highlight the cultural diversity in this state: the characters in this show are Hispanic, Native American, and Anglo.

The play is performed outdoors, so not much of a set is needed, especially since we have the Sandia mountains as a backdrop. There are some clever references to local landmarks and to movies filmed here, like Albuquerque with Randolph Scott. Pete Parkin gets set design credit. NM Shakespeare Festival had a perennial problem with sound design up until this year. Each actor used to wear an individual mic, and so often they would cut out for no apparent reason. (It might have had something to do with being just a few blocks away from an air force base.) This year, Shannon Flynn, the technical director and sound designer, gave up on individual microphones and instead placed mics at the edges of the stage. The sound is much better now. Kaylee Lynora Silcocks-Gore has costumed the actors perfectly.

Zoe Burke has done a good job abridging the play. (Perhaps she was assisted by dramaturg Alex Avila.) My only advice would be to trim it a little bit more, just a few minutes per half. Some of the dialogue that used to be funny in Shakespeare's time is almost incomprehensible now, and I find that I give up trying to follow it. For example, the stuff about horns, then a reference to cuckoldry, doesn't mean anything to us anymore. Just cut it.

The play is well cast and well acted. Ed Chavez, one of Albuquerque's best comic actors, is an asset to any show he is in. He does a terrific job here as Benedick. He is ably paired with Kim Delfina-Gleason as Beatrice. Jack Litherland is hilarious as Dogberry; it's a good role, and not too long.

The other characters don't get a chance to be funny. Parker Owen is very good as Claudio, both when he is lovestruck and when he is devastated and angry. Dave Yakubik is a commanding Don Pedro, due to both his demeanor and his height. The other actors provide estimable support.

Of the more than ten comedies that Shakespeare wrote, I wouldn't put Much Ado in the top three. But it has always been popular, and I would encourage everyone to get out and see this production of it. Strangely enough, the day after I saw this performance, I was talking to my sister who lives in Chicago and she has no idea what is going on theatre-wise in Albuquerque. She asked me what I did last night, and I said I saw a Shakespeare play. Unprompted, she said "Was it Much Ado About Nothing?" Kind of eerie.

Much Ado About Nothing runs through July 6, 2025, at the New Mexico Shakespeare Festival The New Mexico Veterans Memorial Park, 1100 Louisiana Blvd SE, Albuquerque NM. It alternates with Othello. Tickets are free of charge. For more information, please visit nmshakes.org.