Beatrice and Benedick are forever sniping at one another!
Claudio is in love with Hero.
Don Pedro and his bastard brother Don John arrive
Don John and Borachio plot ways of dishonouring Hero
to prevent her marriage to Claudio
Leonato throws a masked ball
Don John gives Claudio the 'bad news' about Hero
Margaret and Hero discuss how much Benedick is in love
with Beatrice...
But who should be hiding behind the screen - Beatrice
of course!
Claudio, in love with Hero, sings, after which he and
Leonato talk of Beatrice's love of Benedick
And who should be hiding in the garden - but Benedick
of course!
After hearing this, Benedick spruces himself up with
civet, and gets a ribbing from Don Pedro
Dogberry gives the night watch their instructions for
the night
Meanwhile, Borachio and Conrade are rambling on drunkenly
about the plot to dishonour Hero, and about how Borachio's faked affair
with Hero was overheard by Claudio.
The watch hears Borachio and Conrade and arrests them.
Dogberry and Verges rush off to tell Leonato of their
news, but with the wedding coming up, he's too busy to listen
Then, it's onto the Sexton for the prisoners
It's the day of the wedding, and Claudio, convinced by
Borachio's deception refuses to marry Hero on the grounds of her unfaithfulness
Hearing of this unfaithfulness, Leonato disowns his daughter
With the full fury of both Claudio and her father, Hero
falls down in a faint, appearing to all the world to have died of shame
Now, Benedick is a good friend of Claudio, but if he
wants Beatrice's love, Beatrice orders him to kill Claudio in reparation
for her friend, Hero's, death.
Benedick challenges Claudio to a duel.
Conrade and Borachio come before Don Pedro for forgiveness
and to explain the plot
Suitable remorseful for his mistaken accusations towards
Hero, Leonato asks Claudio if he will marry Hero's cousin - to which
he agrees, even though Leonato makes the condition that Claudio shall
not see her until they are wed.
Of course, it turns out that it's Hero after all, and
she wasn't really dead, so the wedding between Hero and Claudio goes
ahead after all.
Beatrice and Benedick read the letters of love they've
apparently written.
And we get not one, but two happy endings!
All photographs © 2002 Simon J Harris