M: Week 13 (Much Ado About Nothing)

One of my favorite Shakespearean plays is "Much Ado About Nothing," and one of my favorite movies is also Much Ado About Nothing (starring Kenneth Branagh, Emma Thompson, Denzel Washington, Kate Beckinsale, the doctor from House MD, and lots of other familiar/famous faces). The play in itself is really fun with great characters and a perfectly messed up plotline that gets resolved rather perfectly.  The movie version took all of that and translated it perfectly to the screen (no surprise since Kenneth Branagh was involved). There's really very little that could be done to make what's already been perfected even better... Still, I'm really excited to share two upcoming projects related to "Much Ado About Nothing" that I've recently learned about!

JOSS WHEDON?!?!
Apparently Joss Whedon and friends have created a modern day interpretation of "Much Ado About Nothing," shot in black and white and filmed over 12 days. There will be many familiar faces, such as Agent Coulson from The Avengers, and actors from Firefly, Angel, and Buffy. I'm so glad to hear that it takes its own interpretation and doesn't try to remake something that's already been perfected. And truthfully, if there's anyone who is pretty reliable about taking something that has a devoted fan base (okay, so maybe "Much Ado" may have a devoted fan base of one -- me) and redoing it to different level of greatness, well I think Joss Whedon can do it. For more details:
http://www.examiner.com/article/joss-whedon-s-much-ado-about-nothing-to-visit-wondercon

A MUSICAL?!?!
Seriously, there's something going on here. I love me some musicals and I love me some "Much Ado," so whoever decided the two must be combined was obviously doing it for me.  Maybe there's something in the water/air, but here's yet another famous-name-attached project related to "Much Ado" -- a musical scored by Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong!  Hopefully this project takes off and makes it onto a larger production platform (currently only set to be performed at the Yale Repertory Theater in 2014) so I can see it.  But I find it fascinating that this is happening at all. For more details: http://www.zmemusic.com/rock/billie-joe-armstrong-shakespeare-15032013/

Maybe my personal love for "Much Ado" isn't so unique and there is quite a huge fan-base, who knows.  But regardless, I'm excited and hope I get a chance to watch both and add them to my "Much Ado" collection.  If not, I've still got the play and the Kenneth Branagh movie version.