The Spring of the Shrew

"I come to wive it wealthily in Padua!" (I,ii) 

The final reading of our 2011-12 season is Taming of the Shrew, which has been a popular selection among theater makers this year. Productions have recently closed in London and New York, and Synetic's rendering at Shakespeare Theatre Company's Lansburgh Theatre closes April 22.

And there is still time to see Kate and Petruchio mix it up in Vancouver at Bard on the Beach's Shakespeare Festival and, closer to home, at Folger Shakespeare Library's Elizabethan Theatre.

The lady may "lose" this particular skirmish in the age-old battle of the sexes, but Petruchio's approach is more like the breaking of a bronco or, as he implies, the training of his falcon. Domestication of the shrew, he would argue, is in both partners' long-term interest.

Ay, and amid this hurly I intend
That all is done in reverend care of her;
And in conclusion she shall watch all night:
And if she chance to nod I'll rail and brawl
And with the clamour keep her still awake.
This is a way to kill a wife with kindness;
And thus I'll curb her mad and headstrong humour.
He that knows better how to tame a shrew,
Now let him speak: 'tis charity to show.

I confess, though, I prefer a more literal interpretation of the phrase "to kill with kindness."

What: Taming of the Shrew full text (courtesy of MIT)
When: Sunday, May 6, 2012, 1 to 4 p.m.
Where: American University's Bender Library, Room 306
What else: The attending Readers are invited to propose selections for the 2012-13 season, so bring your Complete Works!
RSVP:  Cindy Wagner, e-mail hosaajoy 'at' gmail.com

In Bard We Trust!