Much Ado About Nothing

The British aptitude for getting blind drunk is seemingly fading. Gen Z are famously known for saying no to alcohol more than any other generation, and sales of 0% beer are sky rocketing. However, deep in the basement of the Leicester Square Theatre, punters still pay to see Shakespeare performed absolutely sh**faced.

Sh**faced Shakespeare was founded in 2010, a time where Skins, a popular TV show about teenagers’ drug- and alcohol-fuelled lives was still on air, and other booze-laden programmes including Bojack Horseman and Madmen were permeating popular culture. The production’s premise is simple: classical Shakespeare shows, performed by a cast where one member is completely inebriated. Watching their most recent play, “Much Ado About Nothing”, in 2023, the concept felt almost as outdated as Sir William himself.

The show begins with our host, Beth Louise Priestly, revealing the amount of alcohol our drunk cast member has consumed four hours before showtime. In this case, a bottle of vinho verde washed down with a bottle of prosecco. “Is this enough?” the host asks the audience, to which the whole room denies. Don’t fret though: two of the audience members are instructed to interject when they feel the actor needs even more booze during the performance by banging a drum and tambourine. The whole thing is reminiscent of cruel sports initiations at university, watching on sadly as a fellow fresher is forced to drink cheap wine out of a shoe.

Much Ado about Nothing is classic comedy set in Messina which tells the tale of Hero and her cousin Beatrice navigating dysfunctional relationships with nobleman Don Pedro’s soldiers: Benedick, Don John and Claudio. Flora Sowery as Beatrice was the victim in Wednesday night’s performance, and within seconds of the actual play starting, she was stumbling around the stage. The script was clearly a loose guide as throughout the show our drunken actor mounted the soldiers cod pieces, flashed the audience, and repeatedly called Benedick a c***. Although the company ensures the cast members do actually get drunk, it feels too extreme to be believable.

The rest of the cast are charming and do a good job navigating the actual script and their pissed colleague at the same time, seamlessly responding to off script quips to good comedic effect. Chris Lane made a perfectly conniving Don John and John Mitten as Benedick was quick to run with Flora’s assertion that he had been recently diagnosed with chlamydia, scratching his cod piece to the glee of the audience. It was clear the group are all friends and genuinely enjoy the format. This joy permeated around the room, most of the crowd cheering and howling with laughter throughout.

Despite the assurance that proper safeguarding is in place, I do wonder if Sh**faced Shakespeare will be able to retain its status in a time where Brits are reevaluating their relationship with alcohol more than ever. It’s undeniably fun, and the majority of the audience clearly had a blast. But I personally found the discomfort of watching someone binge drink on stage too difficult to ignore. When it comes to getting pissed on stage, to be or not to be: that is the question.

Photo credit: Rah Petherbridge Photography