The hit musical, Something Rotten, is making a big splash at the Stratford Festival this season (2024) and with good reason. I was able to catch a performance last week and it was extremely well done.
The Bottom brothers, Nick and Nigel, are contemporaries of William Shakespeare and in competition with him for the next big hit. Desperate to retain the patronage of Lady Clapham, Nick seeks the help of a soothsayer who predicts a hit with a play where actors sing rather than speak their lines – a new phenomenon in entertainment called a musical. The brothers start work on a musical about the Black Death but Shakespeare steals their notes.
Nick sees the soothsayer again who tells him to make a musical called Omelette – so close to Hamlet, but not quite there…
The musical is witty and fast paced with Shakespeare presented as a Renaissance rock star with an appropriate following. The costumes help to take you back to his time period.
All in all, it’s a joy to witness and something uplifting that we could all do with these days. If you can’t get to a production, check out the videos on their website: Something Rotten! | Stratford Festival.
This production is at the main Festival Theatre, 55 Queen Street, Stratford, Ontario
