Review of Sh!t-faced Shakespeare®: Much Ado About Nothing, Fringe 2024

Birdy picked up her umbrolly and braved the elements to head along to the Edinburgh International Conference Centre (fancy) for some, ermmm… culture – and comedy!

Let me be honest; it’s not the Edinburgh Fringe without some Sh!t-faced Shakespeare®! It’s like some sort of tradition, or old charter, or something. So, I’m a bit of a veteran of this show already.

It was, however, my first time at the EICC, and I was very impressed at the venue. Sh!t-faced Shakespeare® is on the very top floor, so I got to go up some fancy escalators and admire all the spaciousness of the place.

The auditorium is a great setting for this show, and I was impressed as I took my seat in the front row. Let the frivolity and frolics begin!

The format

If you hadn’t heard of Sh!t-faced Shakespeare® before, here’s the blurb for you:

The five-star, multi sell-out Fringe phenomenon is back with its hilarious combination of an entirely serious adaptation of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing and an absolutely sh!t-faced actor! It wouldn’t be the Fringe without it. With a genuinely inebriated cast member each night, no two shows are ever the same in this raucous, riotous rampage through one of Shakespeare’s most beloved plays. Featuring a rotating cast of the finest classically trained actors, partial nudity, foul language, acts of a sexual nature, and actual Shakespeare. Remember to #EnjoyShakespeareResponsibly.

It is meant to be an entirely serious adaptation of a Shakespeare play, although usually results do vary.

The rules are always explained to the audience at the start, we get to see how much the drunk has had to drink, and certain props are given out to give the audience a bit of control. For instance, if the drunk isn’t drunk enough, and you’re in possession of a horn, you can sound it to signal it’s time for another drink!

NOTE: It’s also explained that the show works on a rotating basis, with each of the actors taking turns to be the drunk – just so you’re aware it’s not the same person each and every night! There’s also various safety measures in place to ensure no-one comes to any harm during the show.

There’s also the sick bucket, which is explained as being the most important audience role. Luckily in all the years I’ve been to see various renditions of Sh!t-faced Shakespeare®, never have I seen anyone need to use it.

The vibe

I’d say regardless of the show, Sh!t-faced Shakespeare® has a very consistent vibe, and that’s just that everyone’s there to have fun. It’s always a funny moment when the show begins, the actors start doing their thing, and you almost instantly notice who the drunk is.

Aside from that, things can get a little… unpredictable, let’s say, and this particular evening was probably the best example of that, because the entire plot to Much Ado About Nothing just went entirely off the rails.

The show itself

Tonight it was professionally-trained Shakespearean actor Adam Goodbody‘s turn to be the drunk, playing the character of Claudio. Adam had drank several IPA beers and about a quarter smallish bottle of Absolut Vodka. He was very clearly utterly smashed.

This meant that during the show, Claudio went extremely off-piste, with the compere at one point asking him to: “Just give us some Shakespeare – any Shakespeare at all!”

This also meant that Claudio decided that he actually wanted his friend Benedick, and to marry Hero, because he was bisexual in 16th century Messina. Although the rest of the cast made some valiant efforts to get the show back on track, he was obsessed with the idea of a threesome.

At one point, the compere pointed out that we weren’t even halfway through the show with only 20 minutes left, which may or may not have been around the time Claudio decided he did want to marry Hero after all and had no issue with her ‘doing stuff’ before eventually being carried off stage.

In the end, we finished with the two couples gearing up for a foursome, and the compere – who’d been doing this since 2010 – saying he’d never seen anyone manage to f*** it up so badly.

Overall

There was running, shouting, pant-dropping, sex-doll flaunting, kissing and, of course, drinking – so I feel like the audience definitely got their money’s worth! Definitely more Sh!t-faced than Shakespeare tonight, but that’s okay – it was a hilarious mess of a show.

Would I go and see it again? Of course I bloody would.