It’s 1944, and the Nazi occupying forces have just been chased from Paris. This is the promising setting chosen by Oxford Triptych Theatre for its production of Much Ado about Nothing (director/designer Simon Tavener). Leonato (Mike Taylor) is first seen bustling about his tables — he’s a Parisian café proprietor bearing a definite resemblance to René in TV’s ’Allo ’Allo! — as fine, upstanding Don Pedro approaches, accompanied by his friend Benedick (Will Hatcher), and his half-brother Don John (Jaffar Khan). Appropriately, the conniving Don John wears a shiny overcoat that could well have been acquired from a grateful contact in the Gestapo.

Benedick starts some spirited sniping at Beatrice (Victoria Coleman). But then things go downhill. On opening night, several cast members had not grasped Shakespeare’s speech patterns, or the sense of repartee so vital to this great comedy — and talking of comedy, I have never been to a Much Ado where there has been so little laughter from the audience. Even the female Dogberry (Moya Hughes, doing a splendid impersonation of that classic player of charladies, Irene Handl) couldn’t single-handedly lift the mood. Indeed, the darkest scene worked best — the screaming and shouting that accompanied the denunciation of Hero (Hannah Lee) at the altar was in the best tradition of disastrous soap opera weddings. It was left to the hugely experienced Colin Burnie, brought in at short notice to play Don Pedro, to set a standard that, sadly, was not matched elsewhere.

There is a second sadness to report. this was the last show to take place in the OFS Studio before it closes for redevelopment. It will be greatly missed by the many theatre companies, both amateur and professional, that have used it over the years: they now lose a suitable city centre venue. Let’s hope Oxford University increasingly puts out the welcome mat — several colleges have built excellent small theatres in recent years.

Until Saturday. Tickets from the New Theatre box office, www.NewTheatreOxford.org.uk, or 0844 847 1588.