Indy Shakes presents ‘Shakespeare fanfiction’ with ‘ADO’ 

Written by Lavina Jadhwani, “ADO” reimagines William Shakespeare’s “Much Ado About Nothing” from the perspective of the female main character, Hero. 

Presented by the Indianapolis Shakespeare Company in partnership with the New Harmony Project, “ADO” is onstage at the Phoenix Theatre Feb. 12-March 1. Directed by Dawn Monique Williams, the play features an all-woman cast in a contemporary version of what could have happened between Hero leaving her fiancé at the altar to when she decides to marry him at the end of the original play. 

“I like saying it’s Shakespeare fanfiction,” Williams told the Recorder. “It takes the four female characters from Shakespeare’s play, ‘Much Ado About Nothing,’ and captures their off-stage life.” 

“Much Ado About Nothing” is a comedy that follows two couples — Claudio and Hero, who are deeply in love, and Beatrice and Benedick, two witty bachelors tricked into falling for one another. Despite scandal, chaos, gossip and clever scheming, both couples enjoy a happy ending. 

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Audiences can think of this show as the “missing scenes” from the original show, with the entirety of “ADO” taking place in Hero’s bedroom. Other characters from the original play are mentioned but never seen, with the story instead focusing on Hero’s (Senaite Tekle) journey and the women in her life, including her cousin Beatrice (LaKesha Lorene) and her ladies-in-waiting Margaret (Kelli Malise), and Ursula (Claire Wilcher). 

“I think the biggest, coolest thing about this story and this adaptation of it is that Lavina gave all of these woman characters way more lines than they ever had in the original story,” Claire Wilcher said. “I think Ursula in the original play has maybe five lines. You don’t ever really get to know anything about them. I love that she is reimagined as this fully formed person with thoughts and feelings and a backstory.” 

In writing the play, Williams said Jadhwani was interested in exploring the idea of agency, femininity and womanhood. Hero chooses to marry Claudio despite being falsely accused of infidelity at the altar, and the original play doesn’t address that journey at all, Williams said. 

“ADO” takes Shakespeare’s world and characters and manipulates them for contemporary audiences — including the language and setting. It’s definitely Shakespeare-inspired, but “ADO” invites audiences into a world where previously two-dimensional female characters not only have a voice, but are actively engaging in supportive, loving relationships that don’t center men. 

Rather than rejecting the original storyline, “ADO” is making a counteroffer alongside social commentary relevant to audiences today, Williams said. 

“I choose to leave that Shakespeare was subversive. I have no way of knowing if that’s true or not. I just know that he was writing under strict censorship,” Williams said. “He was writing female roles that he knew would have to be played by young men and boys. I think he was intentionally sort of picking at those systems and critiquing those systems in his own way, and I love that Lavina has continued that gesture with this thing.” 

For Wilcher, this version of Ursula is “fun.” As the elder of the group, her character serves as the surrogate mother to the women in the show and handles all their trials and tribulations with a supportive yet tough-love attitude, Wilcher said. 

“Ursula has lived a lot of life, and she has come to the realization that few things are that deep and that choices are everything,” Wilcher said. “I think that gives her a lot of permission to dole out advice in a really fun, supportive way. She’s kind of a fun girl; she doesn’t want to get married. She’s a queer character. She’s just a lot of heart and warmth wrapped into this kind of comedic package.” 

Although audiences aren’t expected to be familiar with Shakespeare to enjoy “ADO.” For those who know and love the original, Tekle said this play will feel like “a breath of fresh air” in finally knowing what was going through the minds of the female characters. However, even those who have never seen a Shakespeare play can find themselves rooting for Hero, Beatrice, Margaret and Ursula. 

“You’re going on this journey— this beautiful, messy, kind of hilarious journey Hero goes on,” Tekle said. “Whether or not you understand the original story, it’s definitely a roller coaster.” 

Whether or not they’ve been in Hero’s position, Tekle said she believes many women will be able to connect with her character, “just because she’s heartbroken, she’s hilarious, she’s learning what true friendship actually means and what sisterhood actually means.” 

Indy Shakes commissioned the show, which was developed with the New Harmony Project, a national arts organization that fosters new writers and the development of new works. Without the backing of the crown, Williams said the world would not have Shakespeare’s 38 plays in the same way that “ADO” wouldn’t have its world premiere without organizations that create spaces for writers to explore the things they’re interested in. 

Jadhwani passed away in September 2025 before she could see her work actualized on stage, and Williams said the production is, in many ways, “a tribute to her fighting spirit.” 

“Lavina did a very Shakespearean thing in taking a story that people might know from a prior time and radically adapting it in a way that a contemporary audience would immediately understand,” Williams added. 

“ADO” is onstage at the Phoenix Theatre Cultural Centre now through March 1. Tickets ate $17. For more information and a list of showtimes, visit phoenixtheatre.org/buy-tickets. 

Contact Arts & Culture Reporter Chloe McGowan at 317-762-7848. Follow her on X @chloe_mcgowanxx.