The Taming of the Shrew

The Taming of the Shrew is a brilliantly surreal and controversial romantic comedy that explores
the complexities of marriage. Lucentio arrives in the Italian city of Padua and instantly falls in
love with the beautiful Bianca. Bianca already has two suitors and her wealthy father has declared
that no one may court her until her older sister, the ill-tempered and vicious Katherine, is married.
This problem is solved when a brash young man named Petruccio arrives in Padua to find a rich
wife, and agrees to marry Katherine without ever meeting her. Katherine agrees to the
arrangement, after which her husband attempts to ‘tame’ her through violence, starvation, and
sleep deprivation. While Petruccio incessantly breaks down Katherine’s willfulness, Lucentio,
disguised as a Latin teacher, continues to woo her sister Bianca. This is a tale rife with mistaken
identities and transformation that examines the cruel nature of control.