Melbourne Reviews

Like a breath of fresh air on a balmy summer night, The Australian Shakespeare Company have broken with tradition and treated audiences to something delightfully different for their 2024/2025 Shakespeare Under the Stars season.

William Shakespeare’s lesser know comedy, The Merry Wives of Windsor was published in 1602 and is believed to have been written at the request of Queen Elizabeth I. Based around the larger-than-life Sir John Falstaff, a character who first appeared in Henry IV, Her Majesty allegedly asked Shakespeare to write a play about “the fat knight” in love.

What eventuated is a witty satirical comedy featuring many of Shakespeare’s classic narrative devices, slapstick comedy, trickery and of course romance.

The Australian Shakespeare Company’s production has given it their unique spin, transforming King Henry’s Elizabethan-era court into a 1960s technicolour discotheque, complete with go-go boots, key parties and the kind of wallpaper not seen since Austin Powers. It’s a highly affective aesthetic that immediately transports you into an alternate universe.

The energetic ensemble cast, who often double up in roles are hugely entertaining, gleefully treading the boards. Peter Houghton is perfectly cast as Sir John Falstaff, a lascivious knight who’s lust for Mistress Page (Anna Burgess) and Mistress Ford (Elizabeth Brennan) is thwarted by his henchmen. When the two wives realise his is trying to woo them both, they pair up to take their revenge with a series of pranks.

Simultaneously, the younger Anne Page (Maddie Somers) is preparing to be married off to one of the many suitors chosen by her parents. Unfortunately for them, Anne is already in love with the dashing Fenton (Callum O’Malley).

One such hapless contestant for Anne’s affection is Abraham Slender (Alex Cooper) who is  gloriously awkward as he consistently bumbles every attempt to speak with Anne. Cooper has a gift for physical comedy and leans into the zanier aspects of the play, even going so far as to dress as Stars Wars icon, C3P0.

Yes, it’s a weird add, especially when you realise Scott Middleton is inside the R2D2 costume, but somehow, they pull it off. Remembering Shakespearian plays were the pop culture of their day, bringing an element of modern entertainment into the classic artform works.

As Mr Ford (Jackon McGovern) burns with jealousy, believing his wife to be having an affair and Mr Page (Luke Lennox) who trusts his wife implicitly tries to talk him off the ledge, there is a multitude of laugh-out-loud jokes and remarks that prove that this is the Bard at his bawdiest.

It’s the type of story that inspired countless others, including the famous “They don't know that we know they know we know" from Friends in 1999.

What’s more, The Merry Wives of Windsor is a hilarious play of ridiculous pranks, over-the-top characters and cheeky humour. If you’re after an entertaining evening of soap-opera style storytelling but with the weight of Shakespeare’s razor-sharp wit, this is the perfect show to enjoy, relax and escape into.