The Taming of the Shrew
Baptista Minola, a rich gentleman of Padua, has two daughters - Bianca and Katherine. Bianca, the younger daughter, has many suitors, including Hortensio and the elderly, wealthy Gremio. Sharp-tongued and wilful, Katherine seems to terrify men and no one wants to marry her, despite her fortune.
Baptista is determined that Bianca can not marry until Katherine is married, any prospect of which seems a long way off. Gremio and Hortensio agree to try to find a husband for Katherine.
Enter Petruchio, an old friend of Hortensio. Petruchio is in search of a wife with a large dowry. He is not put off by tales of Katherine's wilful and wayward behaviour.
Young Lucentio, travelling from Pisa with his groom Tranio, has barely arrived in Padua when he sees and falls instantly in love with Bianca. Hearing that Baptista wants tutors for his daughters, Lucentio disguises himself as a tutor, 'Cambio', while Tranio pretends to be Lucentio.
Hortensio, similarly inspired, disguises himself as a music teacher, Litio. Old Gremio is delighted to have found in Cambio a schoolmaster who will woo, he thinks, Bianca on his behalf with love poems. Both are put out to discover yet another rival in the supposed Lucentio.
In exchange for twenty thousand crowns in hand and the promise of half Baptista's lands in years to come, Petruchio agrees to marry Katherine. Tranio (disguised as Lucentio) and the rich but ancient and doddery Gremio compete with their respective fortunes to win Bianca. Baptista promises his daughter to 'Lucentio' (i.e. the disguised Tranio), subject to his securing his father, Vincentio's, agreement of a vast financial settlement.
Meanwhile, the real Lucentio makes himself known to Bianca and she falls in love with him. Hortensio resigns his claim on Bianca and instead marries a wealthy widow.
To get round the awkward business of the parental settlement, Tranio finds a stranger (a Pedant from Mantua) to impersonate Lucentio's father, Vincentio. Petruchio marries Katherine and takes her off to his country house, where he proceeds to 'tame' her by depriving her of sleep and food and continually contradicting her.
Believing he has tamed the 'shrew', Petruchio takes Katherine back to her father's house. No one is ready to believe that Katherine has changed. The newly married Lucentio and Hortensio each bet a hundred crowns that Katherine is the least obedient of the new wives.
Katherine is the only one of the three wives who comes when summoned and so, to everyone's astonishment, Petruchio wins his wager and Katherine lectures Bianca, the Widow and the assembled company about the duty women owe their husbands.
