One of Shakespeare's best known romantic comedies; fast-paced, full of wit and word-play, intrigue and envy, "Much Ado about Nothing" has, in Beatrice and Benedick, charcters who delight with the thrust and parry of their lines. They are balanced by the brooding malice of Don John and his plot to wreck the happiness of the young lovers, Claudio and Hero, and the comic ineptitude of Dogberry and his companions.The whole action takes place in Sicily, in an atmosphere of sunshine and revelry, and the play was described by Swinburne (the poet) in 1880 thus: "For absolute power of composition, for faultless balance and blameless rectitude of design, there is unquestionably no creation of his hand that will bear comparison with Much Ado about Nothing". The play has been popularised by the film version (directed by Kenneth Branagh) and this Comedy Club production in traditional style, with original music and staged to bring the action close to the audience, made the play very approachable for all.