THE TAMING OF THE SHREW – A VERSION TAMED BY COMEDY

By Lara Kennedy | LinkedIn ⭐⭐⭐ | Press Invite

A controversial play for the modern-day, The Taming of the Shrew famously undertakes a heavily gendered examination of obedience and control. Shakespeare in the Squares’ production does no such thing, reaching for romcom over reckoning.

Situated in the lavish Cleveland Square surrounded by white stucco-fronted houses, the setting is perfectly suited for romance. Director Toby Gordon leans into this, exchanging the play’s darker themes for something sunnier and more palatable for this particular play in the park. 

This production flourishes in the first act. The company excels in quick banter and verbal sparring, especially at the crucial moment of Katherina and Petruchio’s first encounter. The physical and musical comedy lands without feeling laboured, and the cast keeps the energy high. But as the second half unfolds, things take a turn towards the absurd. If you’ve found your way to the bar in the interval perhaps you are unbothered, but it is in this second half that the absence of the play’s thematic weight becomes prominent. The laughs grow cheaper, the characters broader, and the romantic arcs flatten into caricature.

Katherina (played by Sasha Wilson) is hardly the shrew the play’s title promises. Her transformation feels oddly unearned, rushed with the softening of Petruchio’s manipulations. Without his darker controlling nature, her change in attitude has little to respond to. Though the blow may be softened for the modern-day audience,  the logic is also. Petruchio’s eccentric costume choices, like the wedding outfit, lose their impact without the surrounding psychological cruelty to contrast them. Gaslighting becomes pantomime, aided by audience interaction that blurs the line between satire and silliness.

Notably, this production omits the Christopher Sly framing device, the play within a play, thus removing a layer of critical meta-commentary that often softens the text’s more uncomfortable implications (like Katherina’s controversial closing monologue). Instead, the production charges forward with comedy, making fools of everyone. The egalitarian foolishness works at times (the ensemble enjoy themselves, as do we) but it does come at the cost of emotional depth and narrative clarity, lowering the stakes. 

A welcome adjustment comes in the casting of Katherina and Bianca’s mother, Baptisa, played by Elizabeth Marsh as their mother rather than their father. Marsh delivers a convincingly controlling and amusing figure, grounding the family dynamics in something more recognisable and real. It’s a small, effective change that adds realism and modernity without becoming didactic or box-checking. 

This is not a radical Taming of the Shrew, nor does it try to be. For a sunny alfresco evening in London, it serves its purpose of providing great entertainment. Summer Shakespeare thrives on atmosphere, and this production leans heavily on its setting to elevate the experience. While the takes on the play’s thornier issues feel more evasive than innovative, the joy of outdoor performance remains intact.

The Taming Of The Shrew is running at Shakespeare In The Square until Saturday 12 July.

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Photo Credit: Steve Gregson