Don’t miss the opportunity to come in from the cold to the cozy theatre and see William Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, directed by Meghann Borum, at the Ponca Playhouse for the last performances on January 28, 29 and 30. This fast-paced, funny play is an auditory and visual delight and well worth your time.

The classic tale involves a wealthy family of two sisters: the young, desirable Bianca who has many suitors, and the older sister, Katherine, who is stubborn and ill-tempered. The expectation of their father, as was custom at the time, is for the older sister to marry first. Consequently, the suitors hatch a plan to find Katherine a husband forthwith, leading to the entry of the brash Petruchio who just happens to be looking for a rich wife. He agrees to take on the challenge even though they warn him, vowing to “tame the shrew.”

There is the first challenge of this production: a controversial storyline. Yes, it may seem outdated and go against the fibers of Feminism that the central male character is basically breaking Katherine’s spirit at first, but stick with it; there’s more to it than that, and the talent of the director and actors will guide you. And, there’s much fun along the way!

Petruchio, played by Nathan Oesterle, is near repulsive from his entrances with overconfidence and bawdy gestures until he becomes truly abhorrent in his measures of torturing his wife into submission, but he’s supposed to be. He is also well-matched to the sister-slapping Katherine, portrayed by Dana Willoughby. She shows that she is no stranger to using physical threats like tying her sister’s hands and pulling her hair, which reveals not only some jealousy but likely frustration with the lack of control over the situation. She spits her words with such venom that the whole town fears her, but in the scene wherethese two vicious characters come together for the first time to match wits, sparks begin to fly, underscored amusingly by contemporary music. Even though the two are a bit barmy, the skill of the actors’ sparring is a joy to witness.

It appears that Katherine appreciates that Petruchio has as sharp a tongue as she, but she will not allow herself to be wooed so quickly. Now, this is not to say that the audience will see only negative traits in those two all the way to the end. The actors do a good job of showing the transition that exists in all relationships where couples come together and sort of balance each other out: they become more calm, comfortable, and contented; they mature into a more loving and respectful relationship (not that everyone goes through all the pains those characters do).

That doesn’t mean Katherine’s fire is out; there is evidence in the end that she can still be wild when she wants to be. Katherine’s spirit isn’t really broken, but her bitterness is gone.

Another barrier many productions like this one will face is simply the language. Even many avid theatre goers avoid Shakespeare for fear they will not be able to follow the traffic of the stage; however, with clever cuttings, articulation and skilled acting, the director and cast make even the most complicated scenes of Shakespeare’s contriving and conventional disguising of characters easy to follow and exhilarating to watch.

In fact, Borum has applied a Shakespeareanesque maneuver that makes her production, if possible, both timely and anachronistic. In today’s theatre, cross gender casting is common; however, during the Elizabethan Era, only males were allowed to be actors. Therefore, males played all roles. There are times today when a female is cast to play a male role and vice versa. Instead, Borum has chosen to gender flip Lucentio to Lucentia, acted well by Carli Pendleton, allowing the play to explore another aspect of choosing who we love, and it works. Afterall, the dialogue already allows for it: Bianca will not share with her sister which of the suitors she likes best. This interpretation allows another reason – none of them are women! Dare I say Shakespeare would’ve done this himself outwardly had he been able to do so without persecution.

Lucentia wouldn’t have been able to pull it off without her right hand, Tranio, well performed by John Badley, whose quick scheming allows Lucentia a chance to meet Bianca in the first place. In the scenes where some of the suitors have gone into disguise as tutors in order to get closer to Bianca, the audience gets to delight in the wackiness of the characters, yet versatility of the actors. Jake Arington playing Litio, the music tutor, is desperate for Bianca’s attention and silly, but he also inhabits Hortensio, his other character, with ease and charm.

The most amusement, as is true of Shakespeare’s comedies, comes from the servants. Ryan Brown’s portrayal of Grumio leads the pack, and while it would be easy to make clownish characters overdone, the actors stop short of that.

Technically, the show runs smoothly, other than one, full-ensemble scene where the focus is difficult to follow, but the scenes are quickly paced, and transitions are well-rehearsed. Emily Rose Parman, production designer, has done a lovely job creating a rich and warm space that is colorful and vibrant, which is no easy feat in a black box theatre, and Nathan Oesterle’s music was a riot! It accentuated the content and added to the fun.

Overall, the play is truly entertaining, and I encourage you not to miss the enchantment! Come support the arts and these actors at the Ponca Playhouse.