Much ado about Dr Who stars' time as the Bard's spiky lovers
David Tennant and Catherine Tate have won over critics and the audience by reigniting Shakespeare with their "Doctor Who chemistry".
The pair won whoops of approval on the first night as they brought their shared magic from the television programme to the stage.
Daily Telegraph critic Charles Spencer described the production as "populist Shakespeare with both intelligence and heart". He says: "The chemistry Tennant and Tate established in Dr Who survives in their performances as the disputatious lovers."
The production, updated to Gibraltar in the Eighties, has "a freshness and wit about it that is often irresistible", says Spencer.
Tennant, 40, a Shakespeare veteran, is widely praised for his portrayal of the wisecracking Benedick, played in his native Scottish accent, in a production also admired for its strong supporting cast. But in her professional Shakespeare debut, Tate, 43, proves more divisive as Beatrice.
Michael Billington of The Guardian said that reuniting the Dr Who stars "pays off superbly" and he hails Tate's "excellent account of Beatrice as the kind of larky, high-spirited woman who uses her wisecracking gifts as a defence against emotional engagement".
But Spencer had reservations about Tate, saying: "She's very funny in her stroppy sarcasm but never quite captures the poignant pain of a woman who hides deep hurt behind her wit."
Audience members were more universal in their praise.
Actress Persia Lawson, 25, from Wimbledon, said: "David Tennant was fabulous, with brilliant comic timing, but there was a great ensemble. Catherine Tate was great and they had really good chemistry together."
Calvin Crawley, 17, an A-level student from Jersey, said: "Catherine and David were both in their element and played fantastic parts but the rest of the cast was great."
Tracy Crowther, 51, a student enterprise officer from Canterbury, said: "Catherine Tate was really good as well. I wouldn't have known she hadn't done Shakespeare before."
