Gala Production 2024 - Much Ado About Nothing

Much Ado About Nothing – A Circus Extravaganza

Our production of Much Ado About Nothing takes place in a vibrant circus. Inspired by the play’s themes of performance and deception, we’ve set the story in a world where appearances can be deceiving, and every act is a spectacle.

The soundtrack celebrates Shakespeare’s strong female characters with empowering tracks like Beyoncé’s “Crazy In Love” and Madonna’s “Express Yourself.” We’ve also reimagined Antonio as Antonia, a fiercely protective mother, adding a layer of female empowerment to the story.

One cast favourite is Natasha Bedingfield’s “Unwritten,” symbolising the Watchmen’s aspirations - Dogberry and her team - who, in our version, are circus security with their dreams of being part of the performance. We also swapped messengers for vintage paparazzi, reflecting how gossip fuels the circus-like frenzy.

Our vision of Claudio, the "strong man," reveals his vulnerability, while Don John, reimagined as an illusionist, manipulates the characters with deception. The heart of the story lies with Beatrice and Benedick, whose journey of self-discovery and love unfolds as they shed their masks.

A huge thank you to our sponsors, whose generous support and invaluable collaboration made this incredible production possible. Our heartfelt thanks go to ADMGS (Art Development Matching Grants Scheme) of CSTB (Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau), The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, 3812 Art Enterprises Limited, the Vincent and Lily Woo Foundation, The Jessie & George Ho Charitable Foundation, and our founding sponsor, Swire Properties, for their commitment to our vision. We also appreciate the thoughtful contribution of G2000 as our Gala Production T-Shirt Sponsor.

The S4A Annual Gala

The S4A Annual Gala has become the leader in the Children’s Performance Arts field in Hong Kong. Each year one of Shakespeare’s classic plays is reimagined to align itself with the history, heritage, and culture of Asia, mixed with elements and concepts from the modern days.

​Since 2018, S4A Annual Gala has been funded by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust through their support for the Jockey Club "Destiny In Ourselves" Youth Drama Programme and Jockey Club "All The World's Our Stage" Shakespeare Youth Drama Programme. The Gala has a cast, orchestra, and production team of over 100 young people aged between 8 and 18. It is an opportunity for young people to challenge their aspirations to step out of their comfort zone and embrace the power and magic of theatre both on and off the stage.

They learn performance skills such as classical theatre training, physical theatre techniques, vocal and singing training, dance, stage combat, martial arts, puppetry, character, and cultural study. The chosen students undertake intensive training over August and the performance is usually in September. The audition applications are cut off at 300 and only 60 places are available.

The student technical production team of the Gala are from the S4A Powerhouse Project, who embark on a week-long theatre internship as the final part of their 2-month training. Additional students who are part of the production team are Alumni of the performers who work directly beside the Artistic Director as Junior Assistant Directors.