Kiss Me, Kate

Kiss Me, Kate

Another Op’nin’, Another Show! Kiss Me, Kate is not just another show. It is definitely a Broadway musical and a show that has remained an audience favorite since it’s opening in 1948. Kiss Me, Kate is a musical comedy with wit, with style, with humor, with exuberance, which simply aims to entertain. It’s cleverly crafted story, ingenious writing and unforgettable music and lyrics, make for a rich and fascinating musical for all ages. The eternal tug-of-war between the sexes is perfectly captured in Kiss Me, Kate, with a sophisticated humor that charms audiences every time.

The Taming of the Shrew examines the “natural” order amongst the sexes, as understood by the English of the late sixteenth century. It explores the traditional role of the dutiful daughter and dutiful wife. At a time it was written, Queen Elizabeth proved that a woman could reign strongly and effectively. However, worried that Queen Elizabeth might provide a role model for women, and seeking to assure themselves that some aspects of their lives remained unchanged, men moved decisively to affirm their “rightful” place as master of their home domain. By which Petruchio “tames” Katherine in The Taming of the Shrew were so mild by the Elizabeth standards as to be considered comedic to audiences of the day.

Before World War II, it was considered the duty of American women to tend to their homes and children. Particularly in the wake of Great Depression, it was considered morally wrong for women to take jobs that “belonged by right” to men. Everything changed when the U.S. entered WWII. Millions of men were drafted, leaving their jobs empty. By 1945, there were millions of women in the workplace due to the increase production to meet the needs of the military. The example from Kiss Me, Kate was in Act 1, when Baptista won’t allow his youngest daughter Bianca to marry until he finds a suitable husband for his eldest daughter, and hopes that the men of the town will help him. Also in Act 1, despite Baptista’s insistence that she marry, Katherine is adamant that she can’t abide the idea of having a husband. Women