There are times when Oxford excels and this magical evening was one of them.

Amid the magnificent setting of Oxford Castle Courtyard, one of Shakespeare's most accessible and life-affirming comedies was played out with flair and gusto by the consistently reliable Tomahawk Theatre Company.

Paul Nicholls' and Helen Taylor's direction was fast and furious, and quickly won over the eclectic audience of all ages. Holding, among others, young children and language school students in thrall for over two hours is a tribute to the directors' skill and deep dramatic understanding. They used every hook imaginable to keep us riveted to our outdoor seats.

The combination of assured and distinctive characterisation, outstanding musical direction – and guitar playing - from Francisco Vera, fancy footwork (Phoebe Knight) and slick slapstick ensured the play zipped along delightfully, raising laughs aplenty.

The wide pillars of generation were confidently established by the natural authority of Leonato (Richard Readshaw) and the mellifluous verse speaking of Don Pedro (Alex Nicholls) who delivered Shakespearean language with a perfect ear for contemporaneity.

While Beatrice (feisty Kate Collier) out-fizzed her cousin Hero (Kay Benson), Ivo Gruev's wonderfully winsome performance as Benedict made his handsome friend Claudio (Billy Morton) seem positively lumpen – but wasn't that the point? While Gruev could contort himself into any shape – like one of those balloon extravaganzas at the Cowley Road Carnival, Morton's denunciation of Hero was a block download, based on a logical conclusion drawn unwittingly from false evidence.

This astonishing pliancy had the audience roaring and rooting one moment at Gruev's slapstick, but in tears at his pity for poor, wronged Hero. Beatrice's compassion for her cousin was our way in past the prickly verbal pyrotechnics, while Margaret's (excellent Alexandra Ackland Snow) bewilderment and realisation that she had been used to discredit Hero added further subtlety to the dark shades.

Chris Walter's Dogberry was a joy. It almost - but not quite - exceeded his own in being called an ass. Dogberry's appearance with his side kick Verges (Mac Macfadden) to the Blues Brothers theme – especially with the roped k-naves in tow – was terrific.

Frazz Jarvis' sympathetic, humane Friar Francis was beautifully observed, and I liked Lucy Rayfield's spirited and humorous Ursula.

There was so much to enjoy in Ben Downing's set design: especially the use of trees, pot plants and the wind up gramophone. Rachel James' attractive art work made for great eavesdropping, while Dogberry's flirtatious sexiness might never have been revealed, if he hadn't bashfully raised a trouser leg.

Good to see too that the Ballroom Emporium – much admired from navigating the Plain roundabout – can furnish such elegant costumes, as sourced by Sue North.

The crowd of autograph hunters clustered around after the show said it all – catch it while you can.

There is something quintessential to the English summer when it comes to outdoor Shakespearean production; risking weather, chills and other less elemental interferences, (at one point a drone overflew our proceedings!) gallant companies of troubadours and audiences share a quirky array of gardens, rooftops, quadrangles, and in this case the Oxford Castle Courtyard, as settings for the Bard's offerings.

Much Ado About Nothing is one of Old Bill's best-loved comedies, and the friendly and enthusiastic Oxford-based Tomahawk Theatre Company inject their very own energy and sparkle to their performance. It is worth observing here that the seemingly mundane title has more than a hint of the double entendre about it - in the title 'nothing' = 'noting' - in its author's time-referenced gossip, rumour and snooping! Altogether more racy themes…

We are whisked away to Messina, Sicily and a band of soldiers returning from a successful campaign, brave and full of life; strutting peacocks. Benedick and his good friend Claudio are in the service of the Prince, Don Pedro (Alex Nicholls) whose patronage and favour is keenly sought by his men.

When they are welcomed back at the estate of Leonato (the genial host, Richard Readshaw), Claudio (Billy Morton nicely giving us a proud but rather callow suitor) falls for his host's daughter Hero (demurely delivered by Kay Benson). Fearful that the course of his true love may not run smooth he seeks counsel from Don Pedro who in turn offers to intercede and woo Hero, as if he were Claudio, at a masked ball. Cue intrigue and dissembling, as the villainous Don John (Felix Sherlaw Johnson giving us a villain to hate, but needing a bit more malevolence and projection perhaps), bastard sibling of Don Pedro, sees his opportunity to hatch a series of cruel interventions designed to foil the best plans of all and undermine the pending wedding.

In parallel, Benedick, (the excellent and hilarious Ivo Gruev) the wise-cracking man about town with narcissistic tendencies, encounters the feisty and razor sharp wit of Leonato's niece, Beatrice (a sparky Katie Collier). These characters seem irreconcilable souls, but their 'friends' decide to plant the seeds of mutual love and affection by deceiving each that the other's apparent actions and words merely conceal deep and heartfelt emotions. As with all farce, concealment, overheard conversations and misdirection lead to various misadventures and mirth.

When Don John (boo hiss!) sets up his own dastardly deception to dupe Claudio and Don Pedro into believing they have witnessed Hero's infidelity on the eve of her nuptials, the ensuing jilting and shaming of Hero at the altar unleashes an altogether darker strand of behaviours and moral indignation from the menfolk. Not everyone is taken in by the hue and cry, but further concealment and devious strategies are needed to risk all in pursuit of a happy ending.

It would be remiss not to mention the hilarious clowning escapades from master of the watch, Dogberry (Chris Walters), and his sidekick, Verges (Mac Macfadden), for their arrest and interrogation of the feckless Borachio (Carlos Caban convincingly conniving mercenary henchman of Don John) and drinking buddy, Conrad (Frazz Jarvis).

The play is well served by its musical accompaniments from talented musical director Francisco Vera.

Much Ado is very well nuanced and satirises the posturing of men with a certain bearing and status. Honour, shame and politics are at the heart of this timeless tale; pricking pomposity, pride and hubris where it can, whilst also cautioning that society might place rather too much reliance on hearsay and not wanting the facts to get in the way of a bit of scandal and righteous indignation. Such overreactions better serve to highlight the hypocrisy and unjust demeaning of Hero and her reputation and life.

May the weather gods shine and warm the evenings so you might note this production for yourself.