Valley Shakespeare Festival to stage 'Much Ado About Nothing' in Shelton

Shows slated at veterans' park

It’s late 1945 and World War II has just ended.  Europe is awash with soldiers from all over the world making their ways back home.   

A small town in Italy is excitedly preparing to welcome their returning heroes.  Now that they are no longer preoccupied with fighting, the soldiers’ minds turn toward…love!

But does that mean all their battles are over?

Find out the answer by attending Valley Shakespeare Festival’s free summer performances of William Shakespeare’s poignant comedy, Much Ado About Nothing.   

Join audiences from across the Valley at 8 p.m. July 10, 11, and 12 in Shelton’s Veterans’ Memorial Park for a unique theater experience under the stars.

Join Colin Ryan (Broadway: Waiting for Godot, No Man’s Land) as Benedick; Megan Emery Gaffney (Yale Rep Hangar Theatre, Long Wharf Theatre) as Beatrice; Jess Breda (VSF: Luciana in The Comedy of Errors, Shakespeare in the Bar-Macbeth) as Hero; and Travis Czap (VSF: Shakespeare in the Bar-Macbeth) as Claudio and the rest of the cast as they navigate the crazy road to love and romance in Shakespeare’s  surprising comedy.

Come early, bring the family, spread out your blanket and enjoy a picnic  then at 8 p.m., sit back, hold on tight, and watch Beatrice, Benedick, Hero and Claudio as they ride the roller-coaster of love while fighting the perennial battle of the sexes.  “That’s amore!”

For a sneak preview of the play and a special opportunity to meet and mingle with the cast, Valley Shakespeare Festival will hold a “Meet and Greet” from 5-9 p.m. July 2 at the Twisted Vine Restaurant, 285 Main St., Derby. 

Admission is $15 per person by June 30, $20 at the door. Price includes an appetizer buffet from 5:30-7:30 p.m. followed by live entertainment by the cast.   

Tickets and more information are available by visiting www.vsfestival.org or by calling 203-513-9446.

“Much Ado About Nothing” is presented with support generously provided by the Valley Community Foundation.

This post is taken from a press release from Valley Shakespeare Festival, a non-profit free theater company fiscally sponsored by Fractured Atlas serving the communities of the lower Naugatuck Valley.