Living... with her uncle, Leonato, in sixteenth century Italy. While battles might be raging in the rest of the world, the island of Messina is an idyllic oasis for Don Pedro and his soldiers. Peaceful, that is, until Beatrice's cousin Hero is accused of adultery. Show Profession… none, at the moment. As a well-bred lady from a good family, Beatrice doesn't have to worry about material concerns like food and clothing. Her only job, really, is to get married to a good (or at least wealthy) man. Right now though, Beatrice is cheerfully employed in tormenting Benedick, one of Don Pedro's close friends. Interests… making smart remarks and keeping Benedick on his toes. For quite some while now, Beatrice and Benedick have been engaged in a "merry war" of wits, and Beatrice is determined not to lose. When his name comes up, Beatrice is quick to Benedick as "the prince's jester: a very dull fool." Relationship Status… single, and thank God. Beatrice has no stomach for romance and, if given her choice, would happily stay single for the rest of her days. After all, why would Beatrice ever want "to make an account of her life to a clod of wayward marl?" Unbeknownst to her, however, plots are about to pair up Beatrice and Benedick. Challenge… clearing Hero's good name. While Beatrice might take a light-hearted view towards the world, when Hero's fiancé accuses her of adultery, Beatrice is dead serious in defending her cousin. And if Benedick – the stupid fool who's supposedly in love with her – won't help her, then Beatrice will have to save Hero herself. Personality… intelligent and independent. A clever, well-spoken woman, Beatrice is never shy about sharing what she thinks; when Claudio accuses Hero, she's one of the first to defend her cousin. Still, when it comes to romance, Beatrice might benefit by being a little less witty and a little more vulnerable.
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Beatrice
Beatrice is Leonato’s orphaned niece. She appears to be somewhat taller than Hero, as well as older. She has a ready with which she clearly enjoys displaying, and is much given to mockery. Her favorite target is Benedick, with whom she has something of a history, to the extent that she exercises her talent for mocking him on the poor unsuspecting messenger and takes the first opportunity to needle him once he arrives. She has no care for a husband, and therefore little patience with the suggestion that her ready tongue will prevent her from gaining one. She has little care for social convention, and is quite capable of trading witticisms with the Prince as an equal. She is shocked to hear herself described as prideful by Hero and Ursula. She is shocked and enraged at the accusations thrown at her cousin, putting her in a vulnerable enough state that she will cry, almost admit to loving Benedick, and asking him to kill Claudio for her. When Benedick publically asks her if she loves him following the reconciliation of Claudio and Hero, Beatrice quickly returns to her habit of replying with witticisms, though it is quickly proved that she has recently written a not-very-adequate sonnet confessing to her love. Benedick is finally able to stop her flow of words by kissing her, as they agree to marry, though they insist this is not out of love.
(Click the character infographic to download.) Beatrice is supposed to be billed as a best supporting actress, but she tends to steal the show. Her white-hot wit, combined with her vulnerability, arguably make her the play’s most fleshed out (and endearingly awesome) character. Beatrice’s relentless hilarity could easily typecast her in the role of a jester in the play, but her barbs are laced with insightful commentary and often inspired by penetrating understanding. She sees the absurdity of the world and instead of being melancholy; she chooses to laugh at it... which is a sure sign of wisdom. She would be a fool, except that when things get really grave (during Hero’s first wedding day) and demand seriousness, she’s the first to deliver the passion that the events demand; she asks Benedick to kill Claudio. No, seriously: BENEDICKWith no sauce that can be devised to it. I protest I love thee.BEATRICEWhy then, God forgive me!BENEDICKWhat offence, sweet Beatrice?BEATRICEYou have stayed me in a happy hour. I was about to protest I loved you.BENEDICKAnd do it with all thy heart.BEATRICEI love you with so much of my heart that none is left to protest.BENEDICKCome, bid me do anything for thee.BEATRICE Kill Claudio. (4.1.293-303) Beatrice’s transformation from jester to righteously angry woman isn’t shocking; we know she feels deeply, is smart, and able enough to transfer her feelings into their appropriate outlets... whether that's good humor or anger. Arguably, Beatrice ultimately falls short of Shakespeare’s greatest comedic heroine, Rosalind of As You Like It. Like Rosalind, Beatrice is self-aware enough to realize she’s fallen victim to love—those cupid's arrows hurt. But unlike Rosalind, she can’t bring herself to use her wit to mock her own situation. Rather than be a character flaw, this "failing" only endears Beatrice to us more. Through snippets of her conversation (like when she tells Don Pedro her mother cried when giving birth to her) we realize that Beatrice is actually a soulful, but tough, character: BEATRICE Good Lord for alliance! Thus goes everyone to the world but I, and I am sunburnt. I may sit in a corner and cry "Heigh-ho for a husband!" (2.1.311-313) She’s been hurt before, and she’s afraid to be vulnerable; if she were to be made vulnerable, she wouldn’t quite know how to deal with it. Beatrice’s pride, though she’s consciously fighting it, gets in the way of admitting her folly in love, and she uses her wit as a defense. Once Bitten, Twice ProudAs the play and her character develop, we realize what we might be considering pride is really Beatrice’s fear of being vulnerable to love. She’s been burned before, so unlike Rosalind of As You Like It, Beatrice isn’t willing to give herself over entirely to love. While Rosalind essentially loses her friendship to Celia while she’s enamored with Orlando, Beatrice sticks to her guns and puts loyalty to her cousin above everything else. She’s even willing to walk away from Benedick when he won’t commit to righting Hero’s reputation. Beatrice’s test of Benedick’s love is how seriously he takes her loyalty to Hero. Ultimately, Benedick comes through (or at least tries to) but Beatrice is still a bit guarded. When asked to publicly declare her love, she’s hesitant, and uses her wit to almost walk away from Benedick in the end. Only when her love is revealed through a stolen love letter she wrote is she willing to admit her affection for Benedick. After her love is declared, she teases Benedick... so we can be sure that Beatrice’s partner is as worthy of her as anyone, and that the couple will have a loving relationship that will stay interesting over time. Beatrice, more than any character in this play displays the realistic characteristics of a brilliant woman in love. She’s afraid to be vulnerable, she’s scornful of being a wimpy, lovesick fool, and all of these characteristics combine make her hesitant to dive into a romance headfirst. In this way, unlike Hero, who gives over her love like an obedient girl, Beatrice is a wise and warm woman. She is defended by her wit only up to a point, but when the time comes for love, she’s self-aware and realistic enough to realize that she just has to take the risk and hope for the best. Hey, love is terrifying.
In order to continue enjoying our site, we ask that you confirm your identity as a human. Thank you very much for your cooperation. Beatrice is a fictional character in William Shakespeare's play Much Ado About Nothing. In the play, she is the niece of Leonato and the cousin of Hero. Atypically for romantic heroines of the sixteenth century, she is feisty and sharp-witted; these characteristics have led some scholars to label Beatrice a protofeminist character. During the play, she is tricked into falling in love with Benedick, a soldier with whom she has a "merry war",[1] after rumours are spread that they are in love with each other.
A stipple engraving of Beatrice by Alessandro Zaffonato (1795) Created byWilliam ShakespearePortrayed byEllen TerryTamsin Greig Emma Thompson Amy AckerIn-universe informationRelativesHero (cousin) Leonato (uncle) Beatrice has been portrayed by many actors including Frances Abington, Ellen Terry, Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Tamsin Greig, Emma Thompson, Catherine Tate, and Amy Acker. Shakespeare likely would have first encountered the name Beatrice in Dante's Divine Comedy in which the character of Beatrice represents divine knowledge. Mary Augusta Scott first suggested in 1901 that Beatrice is modelled on Baldassare Castiglione's Emilia Pia from The Book of the Courtier.[2] Walter N. King described Beatrice as representing the Petrarchan archetype of "the disdainful woman of courtly love", suggesting that she was perhaps inspired by Petrarch.[3] Some critics suggest the Beatrice/Benedick plot has its origins in Ariosto's Orlando Furioso.[4][5] Some critics see Rosalind and Berowne (Love's Labour's Lost) and Katherina and Petruchio (Taming of the Shrew) as Shakespeare's precursors to the witty pairing of Beatrice and Benedick.[6] NameThe name Beatrice is the Italian form of Beatrix which likely comes from the Latin viator meaning voyager or traveller.[7][8] Beatrice also means "she who blesses" or "blesser" in Latin.[9] This meaning is especially relevant given that the name Benedick means "blessed".[10] Beatrice lives with her uncle Leonato and his daughter, Hero, in Messina, Italy. At the outset of the play, Leonato welcomes a group of soldiers to his home including Benedick, with whom Beatrice has a "merry war".[1] Beatrice and Benedick resume fighting with each other and both declare their disinterest in marriage and the opposite sex. The prince, Don Pedro, enlists everyone to trick Beatrice and Benedick into falling in love. Hero and her gentlewoman Ursula gull Beatrice by discussing Benedick's infatuation with her knowing that Beatrice will overhear. Their trickery is successful and Beatrice vows to requite Benedick's love. Hero, who is engaged to a young soldier, Claudio, is left at the altar and accused of being unfaithful. Beatrice is unquestioning about Hero's innocence and plays along in the friar's plan to fake Hero's death to prove her innocence. After the wedding, Benedick tells Beatrice that he loves her. After some hesitation, Beatrice reveals that she feels the same way. Benedick tells Beatrice that he will do anything for her and she asks that he "Kill Claudio".[11] Benedick denies her request and she rages at him about the injustices perpetrated against her cousin. Benedick eventually agrees, albeit reluctantly, to kill Claudio. Later, Benedick tells Beatrice he has challenged Claudio to a duel, though she finds this insufficient. Hero is proven innocent and ends up marrying Claudio before Benedick needs to act on his promise. After some pretending, Beatrice and Benedick are compelled to admit to their true feelings when love letters they have written are revealed by Hero and Claudio. With their love revealed, Beatrice and Benedick marry, concluding the play. Feminist critics argue that Beatrice's wit and female power only serve to enable and maintain male power. In this interpretation, Beatrice's marriage at the end of the play represents her ultimately losing her power in order to become a wife.[12] These critics see Beatrice and Benedick's marriage at the play's conclusion as representing a curing of social abnormality.[13] On the other-hand, critics such as Barbara Everett and John Crick have described Beatrice as a protofeminist.[14] Cedric Watts noted that during the twentieth century, more and more performances favoured a feminist Beatrice with an increased combativeness.[15] Regardless of whether Beatrice can be considered a contemporary feminist, she certainly disrupted conventional sixteenth-century gender norms.[16] Some argue that Beatrice appropriates phallic language and thereby places herself among male society.[17] Her speech is more typical of male characters of the period.[18] "Kill Claudio"In act 4, scene 1, Beatrice famously asks Benedick to "Kill Claudio".[11] The last portion of act 4, scene 1 is often referred to as the "Kill Claudio" Sequence and has been the subject of much discussion among both actors and scholars.[19] Some critics have argued that Beatrice's "Kill Claudio" line exposes the violence that underpins chivalric ideals.[20] William Babula argues that by demanding that Benedick kill Claudio, Beatrice refuses to be categorized and avoids the simplicity of a label such as "shrew".[21] Some scholars condemn "Kill Claudio" as being overly harsh in light of the fact that Claudio was tricked into defaming Hero.[22] Later in the scene, Beatrice repeats the phrase "that I were a man!".[23][24][25] Phillip Collington claims that "Beatrice wishes she were a man because she wants Benedick to punish those who merely pretend to be men".[26] Love and deceptionOne of the reoccurring questions asked by generations of performers and directors is whether Beatrice and Benedick actually have feelings for each other or are merely tricked into an illusion of love. Scholars such as Richard Henze see the deception of Beatrice and Benedick, that by which they are led to believe the other is in love with them, serves as an end to their individual self-deceptions that they are not in love with each other.[27] Scholars following in Scott's footsteps believing Beatrice to be inspired by Emilia Pia, have interpreted Beatrice's concealment of her love for Benedict as a form of sprezzatura.[2] C. T. Prouty argues that Beatrice and Benedick are a pair of true lovers and are thereby the antithesis of Claudio and Hero's "mariage de convenance".[28] Comparison to other Shakespeare heroinesG. Wilson Knight claims that Beatrice is unlike Rosaline (Love's Labour's Lost) and Rosalind (As You Like It) because she does not take a disguise but instead shows her intellect and claims space in male-dominated society.[29] Beatrice has also been compared to Katherina from The Taming of the Shrew due to their shared shrewishness.[10] Katherina and Petruchio as well as Rosaline and Berowne are seen by some to be Shakespeare's precursors to Beatrice and Benedick.[6] In 1961, Zhu Xijuan played Beatrice with Shanghai xiju (Shanghai drama) at the Shanghai Theatre Academy. Zhu's performance was heavily influenced by the Stanislavski system of acting.[30] In Terrence Knapp's 1979 production of Karasawagi, the Japanese title of Much Ado About Nothing, the characters were all given Japanese names. Beatrice was called Tori. Because of the change of setting from Messina under Spanish rule to Meji-era Japan, Beatrice's line "Kill Claudio"[11] made contextual sense due to the Japanese kinship system and principle of bushido (honour).[31] In 1986, Much Ado About Nothing was adapted into Huangmei opera. The role of Beatrice was played by Ma Lan. There were some difficulties in adapting the character of Beatrice to the Huangmei opera format because Beatrice's audacity in deciding to remain single is incompatible with the traditional Huangmei setting of feudal China. To account for Beatrice's behaviour, Much Ado About Nothing was set in China without specifying the time period.[32] EuropeIn 1983, the Belgian Veel Leven om Niets starred Magda Cnudde as Beatrice. According to one review, the bustle of the farcical tone of the majority of the play drowned out the tension and emotion of the church scene featuring Beatrice's line "Kill Claudio."[11][33] Christiane von Poelnitz played Beatrice in Viel Lärm um Nichts (German for Much Ado About Nothing) at the Burgtheater in Vienna in 2006.[34] Von Poelnitz's Beatrice was criticized for being unable to keep up with the men in the production. A critic described the show as a "männerverliebtes Männerspiel" (a men's game of men in love).[35] In 2013, Eva Meckbach played Beatrice in the Schaubühne production of Viel Lärm um Nichts.[36] In this production, directed by Marius von Mayenburg, both Beatrice and Benedick sang a lot.[37] UKEllen Terry (right) as Beatrice c. 1870 In the 1700s, a woman known as Frances Abington played Beatrice opposite David Garrick's Benedick.[38][39] Engravings from the nineteenth century of Anna Cora Ritchie in the role of Beatrice survive, but there is no additional information about Ritchie's performance.[40] In the late nineteenth century, Ellen Terry performed the role of Beatrice opposite Henry Irving's Benedick at the Lyceum.[41][42] In 1903, Olive Kennett portrayed Beatrice.[43] Two years later, Beatrice was played by H. B. Tree.[44] Maggie Smith played Beatrice at the Old Vic in 1965.[45] This production was broadcast for television in 1967.[46] Felicity Kendal was awarded the Evening Standard Award for "Best Actress" in 1987 for her performance as Beatrice in Elijah Moshinsky's production at the Strand Theatre.[47] At the Royal Shakespeare Company, Beatrice has been played by Googie Withers (1958),[48] Judi Dench (1976),[49] Maggie Steed (1988),[50] Harriet Walter (2002),[51] Tamsin Greig (2006)[52] Greig was awarded the Laurence Olivier Award for "Best Actress" and was the first woman to win the Critic's Circle Theatre Award for 'Best Shakespearean Performance'.[53][54] In 2007, Zoë Wanamaker played Beatrice in a production at the National Theatre directed by Nicholas Hytner.[55] In 2011, Eve Best played Beatrice at Shakespeare's Globe in a production directed by Jeremy Herrin. The same year, Beatrice was played by Catherine Tate opposite David Tennant's Benedick as directed by Josie Rourke.[56] As part of the Royal Shakespeare Company's World Shakespeare Festival in 2012, Meera Syal played Beatrice in a production directed by Iqbal Khan and set in India.[57][58] In 2013, Vanessa Redgrave played Beatrice at the Old Vic under the direction of Mark Rylance.[59] In 2017, Beatriz Romilly played Beatrice at Shakespeare's Globe. This production was set in Mexico.[60] Mel Giedroyc played Beatrice in 2018 at the Rose Theatre, Kingston.[61][62] North AmericaCanadaAt the Stratford Festival in Stratford, Ontario, Beatrice has been played by Jane Casson (1971),[63] Martha Henry (1977),[64] Maggie Smith (1980),[65] Tana Hicken (1983),[66] Tandy Cronyn (1987),[67] Goldie Semple (1991),[68] Martha Henry (1998),[69] and Deborah Hay (2012).[70] Camilla Scott played Beatrice at the York Shakespeare Festival in 2004 in Ontario. The production was set during the Spanish Civil War.[71] Kate Eastwood Norris played Beatrice in a 2005 production of Much Ado About Nothing set immediately after World War II. Norris's Beatrice was described as performing "verbal jujitsu".[72] In 2019, Rose Napoli played Beatrice in Liza Balkan's production with Shakespeare in High Park in Toronto. This production was set in the late 1990s and transformed Beatrice into an up-and-coming stand-up comic. The show began with a ten-minute set of Beatrice's comedy co-written by Balkan and Napoli.[73] Margaret Leighton (right) as Beatrice on Broadway in 1959 United StatesMargaret Leighton played Beatrice on Broadway in 1959. In 1960, Leighton was nominated for a Tony for "Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play" for her performance.[74][75] In 1973, Kathleen Widdoes was nominated for a "Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play" Tony for her portrayal of Beatrice.[76] In 1985, Sinéad Cusack was nominated for the same award for her Beatrice.[75] In 1980, Barbara Dirickson played Beatrice with the American Conservatory Theatre.[77] In 1988, Blythe Danner played Beatrice at the Delacorte Theatre as part of the New York Shakespeare Festival. While eavesdropping and being tricked into thinking that Benedick is in love with her, Beatrice hides behind a bush which is subsequently watered by Hero.[50] Tracy Michelle Arnold as Beatrice in 2007 at the American Players Theater In 2007, Tracy Michelle Arnold played Beatrice at the American Players Theater in Wisconsin.[78] Lily Rabe played Beatrice in 2014 at Shakespeare in the Park under the direction of Jack O'Brien.[79] In 2019, Danielle Brooks played Beatrice in a production of Much Ado About Nothing featuring an all-black cast at Shakespeare in the Park in New York City. The production, directed by Kenny Leon, was later broadcast on television as part of PBS's “Great Performances” series.[80] RussiaIn 1936, Tsetsiliya Mansurova played Beatrice at the Vakhtangov Theatre.[81][82] This production continued, with Mansurova playing Beatrice, for at least 5 years.[83] FilmIn the 1964 German language adaptation, Viel Lärm um Nichts, Beatrice was played by Christel Bodenstein.[84] Emma Thompson played Beatrice in Kenneth Brannagh's 1993 adaptation of the play.[85] Alison Findley referred to Beatrice as "a conduit for the film's emotional energy".[86] In Joss Whedon's 2012 film adaptation of Much Ado About Nothing, Beatrice was played by American actress Amy Acker.[87] Television and Web SeriesThe earliest known UK broadcast television performance of Much Ado About Nothing featured Maggie Smith as Beatrice. The production was adapted from the performance at the Old Vic and was directed for television by Franco Zeffirelli.[46] In 2005, Sarah Parish played a modernized Beatrice as part of the ShakespeaRe-Told series of televised Shakespeare adaptations. In ShakespeaRe-Told, Beatrice is a news anchor at the fictitious local news show Wessex Tonight.[88][89] Harriett Maire played Beatrice in the web series "Nothing Much To Do". "Nothing Much To Do" is a modern adaptation of Much Ado About Nothing told through vlogs.[90][91][92]
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