HERO DOGBERRY by Monica Cross

[Full-length Verse Comedy]
Updated draft posted: Feb 5, 2024
Hero and Beatrice have been masquerading as the constable of the night watch, Dogberry, and his deputy, Verges, while all the able bodied men of Messina have been away in the Princes' civil war. When the men come home from battle, Hero plans to put her disguise away forever in favor of making a vow of "til death do us part....
[Full-length Verse Comedy]
Updated draft posted: Feb 5, 2024
Hero and Beatrice have been masquerading as the constable of the night watch, Dogberry, and his deputy, Verges, while all the able bodied men of Messina have been away in the Princes' civil war. When the men come home from battle, Hero plans to put her disguise away forever in favor of making a vow of "til death do us part." But when she is accused of adultery at the altar, she puts on her disguise once more to discover the truth.
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HERO DOGBERRY

Recommended by

  • Kate Danley:
    24 Feb. 2024
    “ What a delight! If you are a Much Ado fan, this play gives you the scenes you've always wanted, the backstory you've always wondered about, answers to the questions you've had, and most importantly, more time with your favorite characters. This would be wonderful to play in rep with a production of Much Ado. ”
  • Michael C. O'Day:
    21 Feb. 2024
    “ Interlocking seamlessly with its source play, this companion piece to/feminist interrogation of MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING is that rarest of things - Shakespearean criticism that's rooted in genuine love of the Bard and appreciation for how his plays actually work. Cross gets everything right - the niceties of when characters speak verse and when they speak prose, the sly improvisations around the metrical pulse, the implacable logic behind the malaproprisms - and her tale of Hero getting herself out of the plight the Bard put her in is a gorgeous, heartfelt complement to the original. ”
  • Aly Kantor:
    19 Feb. 2024
    “ I LOVE this! Cross has borrowed all of the most charming tools in the Bard's dramatic toolbox to craft a clever revision of a beloved play, in which the previously passive Hero (who is "dead" for the majority of the source material) wrenches some power back and reclaims her own story! The verse feels timeless and offers a sense of heightened theatricality without ever impeding understanding... and it's laugh-out-loud hysterical! Characters who do wrong are held accountable, and I love the way the secret identities lead to such an honest, pitch-perfect, cathartic conclusion to a messy situation! Fantastic! ”
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Character Information

I believe in and support the use of identity conscious casting in an expansive and intersectional way throughout my work. I promote racial, ethnic, gender, ability, and size diversity in this casting choices used to produce this play.

  • Hero
    18,
    Any Race/Ethnicity
    ,
    woman
    A young woman pretending to be an old man, in love with Claudio.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female, Non-binary
  • Claudio
    18,
    Any Race/Ethnicity
    ,
    Man
    A Count, in love with Hero, friend of Don Pedro and Benedick.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Male, Non-binary
  • Margaret
    26,
    Any Race/Ethnicity
    ,
    woman
    Waiting woman to Hero, in love with Borachio.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s, 30s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female, Non-binary
  • Borachio
    32,
    Any Race/Ethnicity
    ,
    Man
    Henchman to Don John, In love with Margaret.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s, 30s, 40s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Male, Non-binary
  • Beatrice
    27,
    Any Race/Ethnicity
    ,
    woman
    Hero’s cousin, a young woman also pretending to be an old man, out of love with Benedick.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s, 30s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female, Non-binary
  • Benedick
    28,
    Any Race/Ethnicity
    ,
    Man
    A Lord, former lover of Beatrice, friend to Don Pedro and Claudio.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s, 30s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Male, Non-binary
  • Gemma
    50,
    Any race/ethicity
    ,
    woman
    A seamstress, who also pretends to be a man.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      40s, 50s, 60s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female, Non-binary
  • Don Pedro
    30,
    Any Race/Ethnicity
    ,
    Man
    Prince of Aragon
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      30s, 40s, 50s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Male, Non-binary

Development History

  • Reading
    ,
    Meadowlark Shakespeare Players
    ,
    2024