Much Ado about Nothing. By William Shakespeare. Full Audiobook
"Much Ado About Nothing" is a play written by William Shakespeare. The play is set in Messina, Italy, and revolves around two romantic pairings that emerge when a group of soldiers arrive in the town. The primary plot of the play turns on the courtship and scandal involving young Hero and her suitor, Claudio, but the witty war of words between Claudio’s friend Benedick and Hero’s cousin Beatrice often takes center stage.
The play begins as Don Pedro’s army returns after a victory. Leonato, a kindly, respectable nobleman, lives in the idyllic Italian town of Messina. Leonato shares his house with his lovely young daughter, Hero, his playful, clever niece, Beatrice, and his elderly brother, Antonio (who is Beatrice's father). When the soldiers arrive at Leonato’s home, Claudio quickly falls in love with Hero. Meanwhile, Benedick and Beatrice resume the war of witty insults that they have carried on with each other in the past. Claudio and Hero pledge their love to one another and decide to be married.
To pass the time in the week before the wedding, the lovers and their friends decide to play a game. They want to get Beatrice and Benedick, who are clearly meant for each other, to stop arguing and fall in love. Their tricks prove successful, and Beatrice and Benedick soon fall secretly in love with each other. But Don John has decided to disrupt everyone’s happiness. He has his companion Borachio make love to Margaret, Hero’s serving woman, at Hero’s window in the darkness of the night, and he brings Don Pedro and Claudio to watch. Believing that he has seen Hero being unfaithful to him, the enraged Claudio humiliates Hero by suddenly accusing her of lechery on the day of their wedding and abandoning her at the altar.
Hero’s stricken family members decide to pretend that she died suddenly of shock and grief and to hide her away while they wait for the truth about her innocence to come to light. In the aftermath of the rejection, Benedick and Beatrice finally confess their love to one another. Fortunately, the night watchmen overhear Borachio bragging about his crime. Dogberry and Verges, the heads of the local police, ultimately arrest both Borachio and Conrad, another of Don John’s followers. Everyone learns that Hero is really innocent, and Claudio, who believes she is dead, grieves for her.
The play ends with a double wedding, as Claudio and Hero are reunited and Benedick and Beatrice agree to marry. The play is a comedy, and it is known for its witty dialogue, clever wordplay, and memorable characters. It explores themes of love, deception, and the power of language. The play has been adapted into numerous films, television shows, and stage productions, and it remains one of Shakespeare’s most popular works..
More: William Shakespeare, comedy, romance
courtship, love, Hero
Claudio, Benedick, Beatrice
Don Pedro, Don John, Leonato
Messina, Dogberry, intrigue
00:00:00 Dramatis Personae
00:01:26 ACT 1. Scene 1
00:22:34 Scene 2
00:24:28 Scene 3
00:29:16 ACT 2. Scene 1
00:55:12 Scene 2
00:58:50 Scene 3
01:16:55 ACT 3. Scene 1
01:24:40 Scene 2
01:33:17 Scene 3
01:45:09 Scene 4
01:51:50 Scene 5
01:56:24 ACT 4. Scene 1
02:19:05 Scene 2
02:25:21 ACT 5. Scene 1
02:48:44 Scene 2
02:55:32 Scene 3
02:57:36 Scene 4
