Friday, July 1, 2005

Best Free Show in Town
Pleasanton's Shakespeare in the Park
features hometown actress

By Jerri Long, The Pleasanton Weekly

Sometimes you get way more than you paid for, and that certainly is true for the lucky people who take advantage of the Free Shakespeare in the Park production sponsored by Pleasanton Civic Arts Presents on Saturday and Sunday evenings through July 10.

This year's treat is "Much Ado About Nothing," a comedy involving romance, treachery, remorse and laughter. The play begins at 7:30 p.m., but those in the know - who have come to Free Shakespeare in the Park for any of the past five summers - arrive early to stake out a spot for picnics and conversation well ahead of showtime.Bring your own chairs, and don't forget to pack jackets and a blanket because, as the sun goes down, so does the temperature. Sitting outside for three or more hours can become chilly for those unprepared. The lovely setting is Amador Valley Community Park, corner of Santa Rita Road and Black Avenue, adjacent to the Bengtson Aquatic Center.

The background for the play may be a surprise: Instead of the Elizabethan era, Shakespeare's comedy has been moved to Spain of the 1930's. Scenic designer Richard Ortenblad has recreated onstage a charming building he photographed when the company was on tour in Italy last year with "Midsummer Night's Dream."

Stylized poplar trees and a circular staircase provide ample areas for eavesdropping, plotting, and soliloquies. Todd Roehrman designed costumes that could launch a "retro" fashion trend.

The play opens with Don Pedro, the prince, returning from successful battle. He visits Leonato, governor of the town of Messina, accompanied by Count Claudio and Senior Benedick. Claudio falls in love with Leonato's daughter, Hero, while Benedick trades witty insults with Leonato's niece, Beatrice. The first couple plans to marry, and they conspire with their friends to trick the second couple into falling in love. Meanwhile, Don Pedro's brother, Don John, does his best to spoil the happiness of Claudio and Hero.

All of the actors did an outstanding job on their opening night. Julia Brothers and Stephen Klum as Beatrice and Benedick are particularly pleasing. Brian Herndon as the treacherous Don John is the villain you love to hate, and he gets great laughs as he struts about in his uniform. Constable Dogberry, portrayed by Jack Powell, is hilarious with his malapropisms; in the program notes, the actor "would like to thank George W. Bush for providing much of the inspiration for the character of Dogberry."

Pleasanton's own hometown actress, Valerie Weak, does a fine and funny job in her supporting role as Ursula, "waiting-gentlewoman to Hero." Valerie can be spotted in the opening scene as she climbs up on a chair to take down a poster from the gates of the villa. Her funniest scene is when she is ogling a portrait of Benedick while she and Hero are planning to entrap Beatrice in a romance with him.

"The mission of the San Francisco Shakespeare Festival is to make the words and themes of Shakespeare accessible to everyone, regardless of age, ethnicity, financial status, or level of education," states their printed program. If, after seeing "Much Ado About Nothing," you think they are accomplishing their mission, then there's one more thing you should bring along to the play: Folding money to drop into the donation baskets the costumed actors hold as the audience exits the theater site.