Eric Snyder is Petruchio and Adrienne Marquand is Katherine in Long Beach Shakespeare Company's production of The Taming of the Shrew
Culture Writer
Feminists might not like the Taming of the Shrew.
And by “feminists,” I don’t mean over-the-top, Andrea Dworkin “all sex is rape” feminists. I mean anyone, man or woman, who believes women deserve equal rights. Actually, it might be more accurate to say that anyone other than extreme misogynists are going to have at least some problems with Shakespeare’s most controversial play. Indeed, George Bernard Shaw described it as “one vile insult to womanhood and manhood from the first word to the last!”
The Taming of the Shrew is the story of Katherine, the ill-tempered “shrew.” Her father arranges for her to be wed to Petruchio, a man she has just met whose motives seem, especially at first, to be merely to acquire her dowry. Katherine and Petruchio verbally— and even physically— spar, but Petruchio begins the process of “taming” (some may say “breaking” ) her. His methods would be frowned upon by the Geneva Convention: sleep deprivation and starvation are his primary means. By the play’s end, Katherine has been completely transformed; she even delivers an infamous speech on the duty of women to submit to their husbands.
I have not had so ambivalent a reaction to a plotline since seeing Russ Meyer’s Beyond the Valley of the Dolls. Is this serious or farce? Good or bad? Funny or embarrassing? As it turns out, it’s all that… and more!
Nearly all scholars agree that Shakespeare did indeed write all or most of the works attributed to him, but of the entire canon, The Taming of the Shrew is perhaps the most doubted work. One may wonder whether this doubt is the result of wishful thinking (Who wants the Bard to be an unabashed sexist?!), but there are at least several serious, academic theories that question Shakespeare’s authorship of this well-known version of the play. Most of these theories claim that the play’s current version differs from some earlier, lost version (which is presumably less offensive).
While the jury may be out on Shakespeare’s role in crafting Shrew, there can be no doubt that watching it is a guilty pleasure. Where else can one watch two beautiful women wrestle in their underthings, pulling hair and spanking each other?! Granted, there are other places one could see this, but you wouldn’t want to take your mother there!
Like some disparaging epithets, this play has been co-opted and embraced by those one would least expect: many feminists (and also many Shakespearean scholars) interpret the play as an ironic or farcical critique of male dominance. Some suggest that Katherine has only duped Petruchio and that she is actually the one who controls him. Long Beach Shakespeare Company’s (LBSC) artistic director Helen Borgers boldly and brilliantly chooses a middle way: “I don’t think it’s the anti-feminist play that [many] frequently rail against. It’s about compromise and discovering that one wants to do that in order to have a happy relationship. Rather than being anti-feminist, I think it is pro-equality. Katherine and Petruchio have each shown each other at their best and worst… [they] know themselves and each other and have found common ground.”
Borgers also dispenses with the traditional “induction” in the original play; this induction presents the play within another play— a device which some find confusing and/or unnecessary. Borgers adds, “I left it out because I like to have the romance live on its own, as a story that is unfolding before our audience’s eyes. We try to include our audience as much as possible, speaking to them directly, building a fire among them, letting them in on all the ‘inside’ action.”
The play’s controversial theme presents a peculiar challenge for the lead characters, Katherine and Petruchio, played expertly by Adrienne Marquand and Eric Snyder. Marquand’s Katherine is a fork-tongued spitfire who seamlessly transforms through sarcasm, irony, and finally blissful acceptance of her “taming.” Snyder’s brash Petruchio commands nearly every scene, but is (perhaps) subtly controlled by her at crucial moments. The entire supporting cast does a great job of injecting exuberance into their comedic roles to help keep the entire performance feeling playful rather than disturbing.
The LBSC’s venue is an intimate setting, seating about 50, and the cast takes full advantage of this proximity.
Regardless of your own views on gender equality, the Long Beach Shakespeare Comany’s latest production deserves a look. Go with a co-ed group and stop in at a local pub afterwards (E.J. Malloy’s is just a couple storefronts away)… you will have a lot to talk about, and you may need some spirits to temper your tongues!
The Taming of the Shrew will play at the LBSC through Sept. 9. The venue is located at 4250 Atlantic Ave. All performances are at 8pm except Sunday matinees at 2pm. Tickets are $20 general admission, $10 for students. For tickets and more information, call (562) 997-1494 or visit lbshakespeare.org .
