MUCH ADO AND ALL THAT JAZZ
-a dramatized concert in the keys of love...
Jazz on a lute, Shakespeare in a tux - why not?
Timeless love, courtship and bickering are center stage in this musical drama where evergreens from the 20th century and immortal quotes from the 16th century meet and reach for each other in a delicate duet.Dialogues from William Shakespeare's Much ado about nothing, A Midsummer night's dream,
As you like it, Twelfth night and Romeo & Juliet
Music from the repertoire of Ella Fitzgerald &
Louis Armstrong, Chet Baker and Marilyn Monroe,
in arrangements for renaissance lute.
Director: Benoît Malmberg
Performers: Malin Sternbrink and Niklas Atterhall
Duration: 1 hour
Listen to us here
Why this mix?
Music has a unique way of evoking moods and feelings. To use music in theatre is an old trick, and one that Shakespeare himself was especially keen on. Not only instrumental music to enhance the power of a scene - Ross W. Duffin has showed how The King's Men exploited popular tunes in many ways to make the audience engage and connect emotionally.
We are sure that those who held their sweetheart for the first time while the band played Dream a Little Dream of Me at their school prom will get Juliet's thrill on a deeper level as the song precedes the balcony scene in our show.
At the same time Shakespeare's wit will enlarge the scope of the music. The popular tunes of the 40's and 50's might still be considered bland or common. But rubbing shoulders with Shakespeare's immortal texts, they stand out in a new luster and often with an unexpected twist.
And at last, when our revels are ended, we hope that this star-crossed match will make you marvel at the timelessness of the matters dealt with – love, the courtship and the bickering, the euphoria and heartache. And the thousand natural shocks that flesh is heir to.
Else the Puck a liar call!
