“The Taming of The Shrew” reviewed by Mark Reinecke

***** Marti Lyons’ stunning and hilarious reinterpretation of The Taming of the Shrew, now playing at the University of Chicago’s Court Theatre, takes Shakespeare’s comedic and contentious rough-cut, sapphire-of-a-play and creates a cloud of dazzling diamond dust. This is a slightly sordid, very witty, and absolutely fascinating production.

Lyons, who adapted and directed this show, must recognize that we do not describe women as shrews these days. If she were to translate the title in common parlance, the play might be called “The Domestication of the Raging Wretch and Her Suitor.” You don’t need to brush up on your Shakespeare beforehand, as this is an abstraction of the Bard for the purposes of slapstick performances. There is a free-swinging, hit-as-hit can in fast, forthrightly camp entertainment throughout.

With a pitch-perfect cast of actors, an updated script, and breathtakingly beautiful staging, Avery Willis Hoffman, the recently appointed Marilyn F. Vitale Artistic Director, invites us to debate “vital questions about the complexity of human relationships and gender dynamics.” Rather than downplay the problematic gender elements, Lyons seems to embrace the misogyny of trying to tame a woman as a form of humor to get at the truth – or what should be the truth. And what this production excels at is leaving the sexist underpinnings of this Shakespeare comedy intact and letting this comedy be a comedy.

The play is about an insensitive, wealthy merchant father, Baptista (a rather regal role by Mark L. Montgomery), who has two daughters: the better-mannered Bianca (Netta Walker) and the more abrasive, older sister Katherina (Melisa Soledad Pereyra). Lucentio (Nate Santana) comes to town – 16th century Padua, Italy – with his servant, Tranio (Ryder Dean McDaniel) and is drawn to Bianca. But there are other suitors: Hortensio (Samuel Taylor) and Gremio (Dexter Zollicoffer), the try-hards who wish to marry for money. Baptista, however, will not allow Bianca to marry without Katherina being married first. Hortensio decides to enlist his friend Petruchio (an eye-catching, leather-clad performance by Jay Whittaker) to court the sister who easily intimidates all of the men around her. Additional roles of Grumio and the Widow are played by Alex Weisman and Monica West respectively.

The battle of wit and will begins. Katharina and Petruchio go at each other until the shrew (Katharina) is tamed with such pleasantries as denying her food and drink, and a variety of other forms of harassment. Petruchio has molded Katharina into an obedient wife, and we see Katharina happy to obey and seeks great satisfaction in doing so. This admittedly sounds like a woman’s worst nightmare. Sexual fulfillment, though, can carry a lot of weight until it doesn’t. Tenderness creeps in at moments, despite the fraught nature of the relationship. Again, the outrageousness of the plot and the conflicts of gender politics are the point.

The cast handled the fast-paced humor and challenging lines with exquisite timing. Jay Whittaker (Petruchio) commands your undivided attention as he pivots beautifully as a posturing, handsome he-man into a more desirable mate. Melisa Soledad Pereyra (Katherina) begins as a self-absorbed, unpleasant girl, and morphs into an articulate, strong woman. Netta Walker’s (Bianca) slow evolution into a more forceful, liberated character seems to come from left field and not sufficiently grounded in the previous scenes with little foreshadowing of her true character. Hers was not a convincing reversal of fortune.

Every member of the cast, though, gives an inspired performance. There is more than enough passion to go around, and for a few brief moments, there is a little less priority given to more clearly articulating complex passages and plot developments to better help the audience comprehend the dialogue and the role reversals.

In addition to Marti Lyons’ adaptation and direction, the production team is stellar. Ultimately, it is an immersive experience when all the elements come together. The exquisite, breathtaking costumes (Kotryna Hilko) with gorgeous fabrics, color and design, transport the audience to and from a time and place and help to develop these characters. Jackie Fox, scenic designer, creates an elegant stage with marble stairs, tiled floors, statuary, an enormous botanical mural and elaborate entrance doors. Maximo Grano De Oro, lighting designer, with Sierra Walker, associate lighting designer; Matthew Chapman sound designer; and Ethan Korvne, composer; set a tone, create a feeling and help bring forth our emotions throughout. The costumes and sets make the Middle Ages seem charming and fun.

The problem remains of what this is about. And whether altering the play would succeed. There are layers to unpack and much is unknowable. There is a steady undercurrent of erotic and homoerotic subplots. And lots of controversy. Is this domestic violence and wife abuse? Does Katharina like to go rough with her hot, leathery man? Or is this a cautionary tale, setting forth a va-va-voom to be avoided? Katharina’s final monologue is beyond ironic and mind altering. Heterosexual relationships were evidently rather complicated in Shakespeare’s time as they remain today. There comes a realization that things haven’t changed that much over the centuries. The tunes may change a bit but the libretto is deep cast in the gender dye.

Fact Sheet / The Taming of the Shrew
By: William Shakespeare
Adapted by: Marti Lyons
Directed by: Marti Lyons

Dates:
Regular Run: November 23 – December 14, 2025

Schedule:
Wed/Thurs/Fri: 7:30 pm
Sat/Sun: 2:00 pm & 7:30 pm

Accessible: ASL Interpretation on Saturday December 6 at 2:00 pm.
Performances: Touch Tour on Sunday, December 7 at 12:30 pm
Open Captioning and Audio Description on Sunday, December 7 at 2:00 pm

Location: Court Theatre, 5535 S. Ellis Avenue

FREE parking in garage next door.

Tickets: $60.00 – $90.00 Regular Run
Student, group, and military discounts available

Box Office: Located at 5535 S. Ellis Avenue, Chicago; (773) 753-4472 or
www.CourtTheatre.org

To see what others are saying, visit www.theatreinchicago.com, go to Review Round-Up and click at “The Taming of The Shrew”.