Stage and Screen History

Much Ado About Nothing was one of Shakespeare's plays acted at court to celebrate the marriage of Princess Elizabeth. Much Ado About Nothing was one of Shakespeare's most popular comedy of the time and is still a favorite one of his to perform. It wasn't until David Garrack chose to play the witty Benedick, after his honeymoon, till it was cemented in the Restoration repertory forever. Since then many famous actors and actresses have played Benedick and Beatrice. J.P. Kemble and Dorothea Jordan; Henry Irving and Ellen Terry; and Kenneth Branagh and Samantha Bond are some famous people who have performed these roles.

The earliest recorded televised showing of Much Ado About Nothing was in 1909, but it was a silent film. In 1978, BBC TV produced a version of Much Ado with Michael York as Benedick. The most noticable and veiwed version of Much Ado was in 1993 with Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson as Benedick and Beatrice.

Oxford Reference Online: Much Ado About Nothing

(Michael Dobson , Anthony Davies  "Much Ado About Nothing"  The Oxford Companion to Shakespeare. Ed. Michael Dobson and Stanley Wells. Oxford University Press, 2001. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press.  Central Washington University.  10 March 2011  http://www.oxfordreference.com/views/ENTRY.html?subview=Main&entry=t117.e1982)