Thursday, February 03, 2000

Wilmington -- Praised by critics for "blowing the cobwebs out of Elizabethan drama," Shenandoah Shakespeare Express will perform Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing at 8 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 19, in UNCW's Kenan Auditorium. The production is part of the UNCW Arts in Action Performing Arts Series, presented by the university's Activities and Leadership Center.

Sparkling with witty dialogue, Much Ado About Nothing is one of Shakespeare's most enjoyable romantic comedies. As the villain Don John devises schemes to shatter the wedding of young lovers Claudio and Hero, friends Beatrice and Benedick conspire to trick them into admitting their much-denied love for one another.

For this tour, the Express, based in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley, features 11 actors and a simple idea: Shakespeare's plays work best when performed under the conditions for which they were originally designed - on a simple stage, surrounded by the audience members who share the same light as the actors, each of whom play several roles. The troupe aims to strip away 400 years of accumulated theatrical clutter from Shakespeare's productions and, in doing so, restore the original vitality of his plays.

Reviews in The Boston Globe said that the Shenandoah Shakespeare Express was "simply fresh, fine theater. Its combination of intelligence, spirit and sheer kinetic energy is profoundly exciting. This is pure Shakespeare, richly alive." The Chicago Sun-Times said, "Like MTV's 'Unplugged' concerts, which stress vocals and lyrics over high-tech sonic effects, Shenandoah Shakespeare Express emphasizes the playwright's language and the actor's versatility."

Tickets are $4 for UNCW students and children 12 and younger; $6, UNCW faculty/staff; and $12 for all others and can be purchased at the University Union, Information Desk or Kenan Auditorium box office, or by calling 910/962-3500 or 1-800-732-3643 outside the Wilmington area .