That is what people will hear when they go to the University of Louisville Opera Theatre performance of “Beatrice and Benedict” April 1 and April 3.
A Shakespeare fan, Berlioz premiered the opera he based on The Bard’s play “Much Ado about Nothing” in 1862.
The composer took Beatrice and Benedict — the constantly squabbling lovers in the Shakespeare comedy — and placed them in a musical setting, explained Mike Ramach, who co-directs the Opera Theatre production.
The opera, Ramach added, “contains some of Berlioz’s most magical music, but with its rigorous demands for accomplished acting and singing it is rarely performed.”
Even rarer, perhaps, is a performance in English rather than in the original French — a change that is “interesting and fun to do,” Ramach said.
Showtime is at 8 p.m. April 1 and 2 p.m. April 3, with both performances at Bomhard Theater in The Kentucky Center, 501 W. Main St.
Tickets are available by calling 502-584-7777 and online or at the door, as available. Prices are $20 for general admission and $10 for UofL students and affiliates.