This early Shakespearean comedy might be rich in verse but it is a tricky play to pull off for its strained Elizabethan-era wordplay, convoluted subplots and too inevitable downfall of four men who swear off women – only to crack on the arrival of a female convoy.
Emily Burns’ whimsical production does not aim to eke out contemporary messages on masculinity but amps up the silliness, turning it into a modern-day romcom whose joke comes at the expense of Ferdinand (Abiola Owokoniran) and his trio of tech bros, including Bridgerton’s Luke Thompson as the sceptical Berowne.
