Cincinnati Shakespeare Company is turning two of Shakespeare’s most overlooked comic characters into the stars of their own story

Audiences do not need to know Much Ado About Nothing before seeing Cincinnati Shakespeare Company’s Dogberry and Verges are Scared. 

The new play, written by Michael Doherty and Will Mobley, uses Shakespeare’s comedy as a jumping-off point while focusing on Dogberry and Verges, the watchmen whose antics help shape the events of Much Ado About Nothing. While fans of Shakespeare will catch plenty of references, the playwrights say the show is designed to work for everyone. 

“They should know that they don’t need to know anything before seeing this play,” Doherty and Mobley say. “Think of Much Ado About Nothing as a jumping-off point for our story.” 

The playwrights say the production imagines what Dogberry and Verges are doing when they are offstage in Shakespeare’s original play. That idea gave them room to revisit familiar moments while also creating new motivations, relationships and emotional depth for the pair. 

“We also give a new depth and humanity to Dogberry and Verges, two characters typically played just for laughs,” Doherty and Mobley say. 

At its heart, the production is built like a classic buddy comedy. Doherty and Mobley say they drew inspiration from comedy duos, including Abbott and Costello, The Honeymooners, and Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels in Dumb and Dumber. Along with the humor, they say the play explores companionship, betrayal and forgiveness. 

What they hope audiences leave with is simple: a lot of laughter and maybe a fresh appreciation for Shakespeare. 

“We want people to take away aching sides from laughing so much, but we also want people to walk away with a new perspective on Much Ado and maybe even a renewed interest in Shakespeare more generally,” Doherty and Mobley say. 

The show will run at the Cincinnati Shakespeare Company’s Otto M. Budig Theater at 1195 Elm St., Over-the-Rhine, from July 10-25. Times and ticket prices vary.