REVIEW: Much Ado About Nothing, Connaught Theatre, Worthing

The company is following in the footsteps of Shakespeare, taking the play on tour around the country, having put it on in full at The Globe in London.

They company performed to a near packed house at the Connaught Theatre on Friday and returned for a second night on Saturday.

The nature of touring is such that a cast of just eight takes on all the speaking parts, as well as the roles of the musicians, playing live on stage.

It meant that we saw each actor take on some very different roles, often adding to the laughs, especially when Robert Pickavance discarded his Leonato costume in favour of that of the maid Ursula.

To keep in with the theme of the open-air Globe Theatre, the touring company plays to indoor audiences with the lights kept on.

It enables them to engage with the audience better, as they tend to do at an outdoor performance, bringing a greater depth to the roles.

Simon Webb managed this particularly well as Benedick, with every movement of his face saying as much as his words.

The only downside was that some people seemed to think having the lights up meant they could chat all through and one person even took a phone call!

This highly-professional cast carried on regardless, thank goodness.