Why Much Ado About Nothing, now?
The darkness of the global pandemic has made many of us hungry for feeling something, anything, other than the suffering of the past few years. Emotions feel more intense than ever, and people are looking to open their hearts to love and joy. It feels as though we all have been fighting battles for so long, and, like Don Pedro, we want to “have reveling tonight.”
In what might be the first ever roller derby Shakespeare production, instead of returning from war, the soldiers will be returning from a jam, their armor replaced by kneepads and protective helmets. We traded the hypermasculine world of war for a less deadly, more gender-inclusive contest that has its own high stakes. Derby jams are rough, but after they end, the players come together to celebrate the joy of the sport.
When Benedick finally accepts the love she feels for Beatrice, she proclaims, “Man is a giddy thing.” To feel giddy is to feel dizzy. Benedick recognizes that love has set her spinning, causing her to lose control. Roller derby captures this whirling energy of love, underscoring the ways in which our emotions make us lose control.
Derby requires deep trust in one’s teammates, a trust that threatens the whole team when broken. The actors dug deep to tap into the complicated emotions of faith and betrayal, love and jealousy, and through their explorations, they formed their own team--loyal, dedicated, and caring.
I’m amazed at the willingness of this cast to take risks. They learned not only how to skate, but also to play roller derby. They weren’t afraid to fall on the floor as the characters fell in love. Tackling Shakespeare’s language is hard enough without also learning how to tackle each other in a derby bout! Yet the cast created a new world for these old characters to inhabit, and they even had fun doing it. Their commitment and talent inspire me.
Special thanks to Mr. K. and Spruck, who didn’t shoo me away when I asked for a rink and a disco ball, but instead helped give shape to the vision. Thanks to Paige Perkinson for being my guide throughout my first solo Newton Shakespeare, and also for giving me my introduction in Twelfth Night.
The design team, led by Audrey Kim, rarely said “no” as they MADE A RINK in the Lab Theater, and their creativity and flexibility are the reasons this show happened at all.
Finally, special thanks to Sophie Berger, our stage manager, who held the whole thing together and did not have to write a single incident report.
To the cast and crew, I cannot fully express how working with you has brought me joy: “I were but little happy, if I could say how much.”
Jasmine Lelllock, PhD
