Product Description

Joseph Papp’s 1972 CBS-TV television production of The New York Shakespeare Festival’s Broadway staging of Shakespeare’s rollicking comedy is brassy, bouncy and all-together entertaining. Featuring Sam Waterston and the Tony nominated performances of Kathleen Widdoes and Barnard Hughes, Papp’s turn-of-the-century version has Teddy Roosevelt roughriders and bicycle-riding women suffragettes, but remains faithful to the classic tale: Beatrice and Benedick are still sparring partners fighting their merry war of words; the evil Don Jon continues conspiring to break up the wedding of Hero and Claudio; and it’s once again up to Dogbery to save the day. Critically acclaimed and enormously popular with audiences, "Much Ado About Nothing," originated at the open-air Delacorte Theatre in Central Park, was transferred to Broadway and was perceived as the first successful Shakespeare to play without a major star in Broadway history. The CBS broadcast was seen by twenty million people.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #37220 in VHS
• Released on: 2002-09-24
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Formats: Color, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of tapes: 1
• Running time: 90 minutes

Customer Reviews

Shakespeare Meets the Old West
I first saw this version of Much Ado about Nothing in the '70's, and have remembered it ever since, so I was delighted when the Broadway Theatre Archive made it available again. The setting, the "Rough Riders" era of the turn of the century, somehow suits the material better than any other I've seen, in particular Dogberry and his inept Watchmen, who appear here as Keystone Kops. Sam Waterston and Kathleen Widdoes are both completely believable, and the supporting cast is excellent.

This version is for those who want to savor every moment of the play. As far as I could tell, it includes almost every word of Shakespeare's text, and to that are added quite a few sequences without dialogue, making the entire length of the production closer to three hours than to two. For this play, this is definitely to my taste, but may not be to everyone's.

The DVD includes nothing but the performance and scene selections (by acts only). Since this play was originally filmed for television, the visual and sound quality are not exceptional, although they're not actually bad.

Playful reworking of one of the Bard's best comedies
I saw this version of one of Shakespeare's "war of the sexes" comedies when it was first broadcast on television in 1970. I was immediately won over to the idea that an intelligent director and ensemble could do a lot to make Shakespeare accessible to a new generation by simply setting his plays in a different era. The turn-of-the-century American setting worked perfectly. The women challenge male authority by sneaking a smoke, Dogberry and his entourage are portrayed as Keystone cops. The cast was excellent. Kathleen Widdoes and Sam Waterson were equally convincing in their gender battles, their self-righteous moments, and in their tender love scenes.

What struck me on my recent viewing was just how dark this comedy gets. Claudio is easily convinced of his fiancee's infidelity and publicly humiliates her and repudiates his vows. Although everything, and everyone, is reconciled in the end, we realize that the turf between true heroes and true villains is amply populated with fools, wimps, and cads.

Athough this is more of a filmed stage production than a movie version of the play, it is cleverly filmed and engaging. Personally, I prefer this version to Branaugh's filmed version (which I enjoyed immensely but felt it was less faithful to Shakespeare's text.) Unfortunately, there are no real DVD extras to this landmark production; but the performance is worth the purchase price.

Jaunty introduction to MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING
I was one of the 20 million viewers watching the original production on tv -- and fell in love with the show. The idea of updating the play to turn of the century America was a lot of fun - plus the addition of period music and beautiful costumes.

Thought the leading players - Beatrice Widdowes and Sam Waterston were excellent in their parts -- and Barnard Hughes as Dogberry the Constable was delightful.

The only reason I watched this production in the first place was the idea that a Shakespearean play had been updated to "modern" times...I usually avoided the Bard's plays - not my cup of tea..but this production was a joy from beginning to end.

I also highly recommend the Kenneth Branagh/Emma Thompson version -- a visual feast for the eyes -- and it keeps up the interest.