Rating: 
Summary: A comedy at last
Review: As far as I know (which is admittedly not very far) this performance by the American (!) Conservatory Theater is the only Shakespearean comedy which is actually played as a comedy. All other stages play Shakespeare's comedies as if they were tragedies, or make them exceedingly boring as if to demonstrate that Shakespeare is much too serious to be taken lightly as entertainment. Well, it was meant as entertainment and not to scare away students and audiences.
I have never ever watched a play as fast as this one. I am fascinated by the sheer speed of successive scenes, and of the actore themselves. Ridiculous disguises, burlesque, grotesque and naughty elements all add to the fun. Literary historians claim that comedies in Shakespeare's time always included some element of acrobatics, and slapstick was a must.
Of course, all the boring parts have been cut out, thus reducing the play to only 90 minutes, but they are filled with action.
What is most interesting, and what I call intelligent acting, is that they they changed the original chauvinist message just by Katherina's facial play, her intonation and the wink of an eye - so mind the 85th minute! They didn't change one word of the original text and still the moral has become the opposite, even though Petruchio is played by a real he-man. He turns out to be the loser of the contest between the sexes.
If the director sticks to the old message, and all the others do, the whole play and especially "the last scene is altogether disgusting to modern sensibility. No man with any decency of feeling can sit it out in the company of a woman without being extremely ashamed of the lord-of-creation moral implied in the wager and the speech put into the woman's own mouth." That's what George Bernhard Shaw had to say about The Taming Of The Shrew. I think only mcp's could enjoy the original version today.
Rating:
Summary: A high energy commedia dell'arte production of "Shrew"
Review: I always liked the Zeferrelli film version of "The Taming of Shrew" with Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton for reasons largely having little to do with the text of Shakespeare's play. That film is very much a visual treat, as you would expect from Zeferrelli, but I find I have a much better appreciation for the text from this ACT version which strips everything down to the dialogue and sends the actors out to do battle. The impetus for this production is that the play is performed in the style of "commedia dell'arte," an Italian theatrical form that flourished throughout Europe from the 16th to 17th centuries (well, "The Taming of the Shrew" is set in Italy and the play was written during the 16th century, so it makes sense). This approach emphasizes ensemble acting and celebrates rich verbal humor, without disdaining physical comedy. However, do not expect to be seeing masks, because while that was key to "commedia dell'arte" where the mask was more important than the player because of the standardized characters (e.g., capitano, harlequin, pantaloon, etc.), this is not that traditional a performance. Of course, this does emphasize how much "Shrew" is like a traditional "commedia dell'arte"; you certainly have Zanni, the madcap servants, as well as the young couple whose love is thwarted by their parents with Bianca and Lucentio. Watching this play certainly emphasizes the production over the individual performances. However, you will be allowed to indulge a momentary pause when you notice that it is Marc Singer ("The Beastmaster") who is play Petruchio. Harry Hamlin is recognizable in a bit part, but the rest of the cast has remained unknown, which, again, emphasizes the script more than the actors. Even Fredi Olster, who plays Katherina, has disappeared except for choice roles like the Woman in Hallway in "Burglar" and Judge Winters on "Walker, Texas Ranger." The bottom line is that if I was interested in turning young students onto Shakespeare, in terms of the love of language and the joy in word play, then this ACT production of "The Taming of the Shrew" from the Broadway Theater Archive would be the one I would show them. Certainly the broad style of the comedy will drive home the various nuances of the Bard's language (although I agree with those critics who say Shakespeare is responsible for the main Petruchio-Katherina plot line and not the Bianca-Lucentio sub-plot). Besides, they will probably be excited to see the Beastmaster in action again.
Rating:
Summary: Imaginative Theatre At Its Finest
Review: I first became aware of this production back when I saw a version someone taped off the PBS presentation. It was passed around by students in our theatre program until the videotape had places that were literally unwatchable. Everyone loved it! It revived an interest in Commedia dell'Arte for us. When I showed it to my children--in upper elementary and middle school at the time--they became Shakespeare addicts and to this day will watch Shakespeare for enjoyment.
I have since purchased the DVD and use it regularly as part of my teaching materials. I rank it up there with the Reduced Shakespeare Company for just plain fantastic, inventive theatre! It rejuvenates me every time I watch it!
Buy it! It will change your opinion of the potential of theatre and Shakespare forever!
Rating:
Summary: Best ever
Review: I saw this in the seventies when I was a teenager. It is the best rendition of Taming of the Shrew I have ever seen. I have looked for it for years. So glad I found it. I am buying it today. If you want to see Shakespeare as it was originally intended watch this one.
Rating:
Summary: Love it!! Love it!!
Review: I saw this years and years ago on tv so I got into Shakespeare.
It was so much fun to watch it and it was the first time I saw
Marc Singer in anything and then he went on to star in "V". So
I was really excited to see this performance available so I can
watch it any time I want to. Its still a great performance so
if you enjoy fun performances as well as Shakespeare, watch/buy this one!!!
Rating: 
Summary: Slapstick but good
Review: I watched this video in my Shakespeare class after we completed the play in clas. When we watched this version, I thought it was awful. Why must there be sound effects after every move? And what's with the ship scenery? I did, however, love Fredi Olster's portrayal of Katherine/Katerina. The best part, no doubt, is when she calls Vincentio a "young, budding virgin." Most of the class (all girls and one boy) obsessed over Petruchio (Marc Singer). Complaining about the slapstick nature of this version, I couldn't wait to watch the Franco Zeffirelli version starring Liz Taylor and Richard Burton. It was terrible! It was overly dramatic. While Shakespeare didn't give stage directions, I hardly think that this film was what he had in mind. It was so old and stuffy that I fell asleep watching it. If you are choosing between versions, definitely choose the William Ball version (Olster and Singer) because, while it may not be altogether serious, it is probably the best version around.
Rating:
Summary: The New Shakespeare
Review: I'm a student and I took Shakespeare as a class this year the first book we are reading is "Taming of the Shrew" and we are watching this video as we read. It is so much fun to watch and it's very interesting! I LOVE IT! It does not follow the same the same lines as normal plays of WS, but it was done so well, and its def the comidic version. And you can also pick up on all the sexual indunnos that most people miss when reading shakespeare's plays.. I LOVED IT!
Rating:
Summary: A Production Not to Be Overlooked
Review: It's hard to say which is my favorite available version of The Taming of the Shrew. Certainly the Burton/Taylor/Zefferelli film is the best movie version, but this filmed theater production has a lot going for it as well. First of all, the director, Kirk Browning, is one of our hidden national treasures. He has had a long career of bringing quality productions from the theater and from opera to the small screen. This is one of his crowning achievements. Not everyone has had the chance to venture out to San Francisco and catch a live presentation from one of the top two repertory companies in the the nation, The American Conservatory Theater (ACT), on Geary st. in that fair city. This production catches a great company at its best. It is worthy of time-capsule status. This is from the golden era of theater and from a period when Bill Ball was still at the helm of an institution that has always had the highest reputation for quality staging and for a great ensemble troupe of players. ACT has always stressed two aspects both in terms of training and production, physical dexterity (including energy) and vocal acuity (the resident speech trainer, Anne Fletcher, was one of the best in the business). This production highlights both. The actors have verve, panache and speek the speech "trippingly on the tongue." Marc Singer and Fredi Olster create the sort of dynamic interplay that unfortunately is all too rare in most productions of this play. They appear to be having a ball. Singer also shines as Christian in another ACT production (Cyrano de Bergerac) which is also available in the Broadway Thater Archives series. An ACT fixture, Peter Donat, is the memorable Cyrano in that play. Those of you who only know of Singer from his role as The Beastmaster, will be pleasantly surprised at what a quality actor he really is.
Rating:
Summary: OH. MY. GOD.
Review: Marc Singer. Bare to the waist. In tights. What more needs to be said?
Rating:
Summary: OH. MY. GOD.
Review: Marc Singer. Bare to the waist. In tights. What more needs to be said?
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