From Doctor Who to Shakespeare

by Nick Paterno

I am a huge fan of Doctor Who. Needless to say, I'm also a huge fan of David Tennant. Not only is he one of Britain's most revered television actors, but he's also a very talented Shakespeare actor. So when I discovered that he would be starring in a production of Much Ado About Nothing along side Catherine Tate, his brilliant costar from my favorite BBC serial, I knew I had to see it. Unfortunately, it seemed that nearly everyone in the U.K. had the same desire, seats for the production's entire run had been sold out for awhile, the only chance at getting a golden ticket was to enter the lottery on the day of a show. For four days in a row, I waited in crowd of at least a hundred people to win one of only ten tickets available, and on final day of the production, my last chance for this once in a lifetime theater experience, I won! I was finally going to see my two favorite British actors live on stage in London! There was a lot of hype circulating about this show, so I was expecting to be dazzled not only by my beloved actors, but also by the production itself. In the end, I was half disappointed, David and Catherine didn't let me down, but the quality of the show was sub-par.

Everyone who attended this production was here for the stars. If you wanted to see a quality production of Much Ado, you could just easily go to the globe, but no other theater had David Tennant and Catherine Tate. Audience members, including myself, were buzzing with excitement before the show even began, eagerly awaiting the appearance of our favorite actors. Once David Tennant made his entrance onto the stage on a golf cart adorned with union jacks, the audience went wild. Despite the distraction of the audience cheering and laughing at almost anything he said, I could tell that Tennant was seasoned Shakespeare actor. The same could not be said of Tate, though her status as one of Britain’s funniest women brought much excitement to the audience. Both actors were very well suited for their characters, Tennant as Benedick and Tate as Beatrice. It almost seemed as if Shakespeare wrote in many soliloquies for Benedick so that we could see more of David. His performance was astounding, not only does he have an unparalleled understanding of Shakespearean theater and the acting skills to demonstrate this, but he is an amazing physical actor as well. I was laughing out loud when he rolled around the stage covered in paint as he avoided Don Pedro, Leonato, and Claudio, and I nearly died when he appeared in women’s dress at Leonato’s party. Catherine Tate had a hard time competing for laughs, but nevertheless shined when she showed her emotional depth as an actress. The audience could feel her sadness and rage when Beatrice was scolding Benedick for not challenging Claudio after he nearly killed her cousin. Despite both David Tennant and Catherine Tate’s amazing performances, I swear the audience would have loved the show just for them appearing on stage.

To be honest, if it weren’t for the stars, this show would have sucked. The set and lighting was not that great, the other actors were not that good, and the inclusion of random musical numbers was a joke. It seems as if the rest of the production sucked to make David Tennant and Catherine Tate shine in comparison, though they really didn’t need the help. The audience was there to see their favorite television stars live, and what a performance they were given. Those who weren’t lucky enough to get seats waited at the backstage doors to meet the stars. The crowd behind the theater was ridiculous, but I managed to snag a few shots of David! All in all, I sincerely enjoyed this production despite the lackluster design elements. I got to see my favorite people from Doctor Who act in a Shakespeare production, I could not have been more thrilled!