The Taming of the Shrew 2:1

play

Armed with a whip, Kate interrogates her sister Bianca about her suitors until their father Baptista intervenes.

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The Taming of the Shrew 4:3

play

On the road to Padua, Petruchio convinces Kate to call the sun 'the moon'.

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  • What was your starting point for Shrew?
  • How violent is Petruchio in your production? How does he abuse Katherine?
  • Why did you keep the Christopher Sly 'Induction' scenes? Is your Petruchio Sly?
  • Is Shrew the fantasy of a drunken lout? Or the fantasy of an ordinary man?
  • Is Katherine abused by both Petruchio and her father? Can Petruchio be seen as her rescuer?
  • Does Katherine step out of the role of victim in the end?
  • How do you end the play?
  • Does Katherine need taming?
  • Do we see any love between Katherine and Petruchio in this production?
  • Where and when have you set the production?
  • Are you using Commedia dell'Arte influences in this production?
  • How did you envisage Petruchio and Katherine when you were commissioned, and how far have you realised that?
  • Do we see Katherine and Petruchio attached to each other when they first meet?
  • Is this a play about money?
  • Do we laugh at the abuse? And does this make us guilty?
  • In rehearsals, do you explain your interpretation or do the actors bring ideas too? What workshops did you do?
  • Do you abridge the text before the rehearsal period? Or amend as you go along?
  • Elizabeth I was monarch when this play was written - did this affect attitudes to women in Shakespeare's time?
  • How often do you watch the show?

What was your starting point for Shrew?

Act and Scene
Credit
RSC
Date
2008
Copyright
© RSC

How violent is Petruchio in your production? How does he abuse Katherine?

Act and Scene
Credit
RSC
Date
2008
Copyright
© RSC

Why did you keep the Christopher Sly 'Induction' scenes? Is your Petruchio Sly?

Act and Scene
Credit
RSC
Date
2008
Copyright
© RSC

Is Shrew the fantasy of a drunken lout? Or the fantasy of an ordinary man?

Act and Scene
Credit
RSC
Date
2008
Copyright
© RSC

Does Katherine step out of the role of victim in the end?

Act and Scene
Credit
RSC
Date
2008
Copyright
© RSC

How do you end the play?

Act and Scene
Credit
RSC
Date
2008
Copyright
© RSC

Does Katherine need taming?

Act and Scene
Credit
RSC
Date
2008
Copyright
© RSC

Do we see any love between Katherine and Petruchio in this production?

Act and Scene
Credit
RSC
Date
2008
Copyright
© RSC

Where and when have you set the production?

Act and Scene
Credit
RSC
Date
2008
Copyright
© RSC

Are you using Commedia dell'Arte influences in this production?

Act and Scene
Credit
RSC
Date
2008
Copyright
© RSC

Do we see Katherine and Petruchio attached to each other when they first meet?

Act and Scene
Credit
RSC
Date
2008
Copyright
© RSC

Is this a play about money?

Act and Scene
Credit
RSC
Date
2008
Copyright
© RSC

Do we laugh at the abuse? And does this make us guilty?

Act and Scene
Credit
RSC
Date
2008
Copyright
© RSC

Do you abridge the text before the rehearsal period? Or amend as you go along?

Act and Scene
Credit
RSC
Date
2008
Copyright
© RSC

How often do you watch the show?

Act and Scene
Credit
RSC
Date
2008
Copyright
© RSC

These clips are taken from a recording of the Director Talk public event on 30 April 2008 in the Courtyard Theatre. Interview by Paul Edmondson.

Download: transcript [PDF]

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