Sometimes I think we forget that storytelling first came around a campfire. That human drama, and the development of character came first through oral tradition, and then into written documentation. This, I think, is what makes the role of a playwright so challenging. This is what makes Shakespeare so fascinating – both his works, and the man. He never forgot that a story must first be heard in order to be understood.
It is in the interpretation of the words, in the life that we breathe into them that makes the writing worthwhile. And Shakespeare got that.
The Taming of the Shrew can illustrate that perfectly. I always found it interesting that people can find it so offensive and chauvinistic. Granted, it was written at a time when women had few rights and value in society. But let's not forget, he was also working for a woman who was ruling the largest empire in the Western world. And as Shakespeare probably would have said, “My mama didn't raise no fool!”
Yes, it can be chauvinistic and insulting to women (and men). But that's only if the actors and director who have been lent Shakespeare's play interpret, and infuse, it with such emotion that the audience is left with no other recourse but to be disgusted.
But what if it were given a comedic bent, like in this rendition here where Petruchio and Katherina meet for the first time, by the American Conservatory Theater?
Rather than a struggle for domination/submission, perhaps we can see a glimpse of Shakespeare's idea of what a truly and evenly matched competition looks like. Here, our Petruchio is intrigued by the strong-will Katherina. And she is just as intrigued. The game's afoot.
Now this scene, with John Cleese, where Petruchio brings Katherina to his home.
Instead of a young, swarthy, confident, and motivated Petruchio found in the Commedia dell'arte of the ATC, Cleese interprets his words in a sorrowful, reflective, and even self-mocking manner. You get the sense that this Petruchio almost despises his actions and regrets their circumstance. He is actually pleading with the audience, “If you know of a better way for Katherina and I to meet common ground, and make a go of this marriage, please tell me.”
It's almost heartbreaking, and Petruchio is no longer a contemptuous pig, but a man with feelings.
But my favorite, absolute favorite, favorite of all The Taming of the Shrew is from the BBC's Shakespeare Re-Told. Taking the essence, the meaning of Shakespeare's words, and reproducing them in the 21st century makes The Bard's genius even more recognizable. I love this scene, where Petruchio threatens to dump Kate's suitcase in the pool unless she goes to him. What she does instead is absolutely lovely.
The director allows for both their pride to remain intact, and yet a reconciliation to occur on equal footing. Petruchio, because he must follow through with his word, even though it's clear he'd much rather not. And Kate is allowed her pride, and a chance to establish herself as her own person, when she goes to her husband only after he dumps the suitcase into the pool. She goes to him because she wants to, and not because she must.
Maybe that is what Shakespeare always intended to show. Marriage, all human relationships for that matter, are about the give-and-take. And when we learn what to give, and what to take, and how much, when, are things truly equal. Neither Petruchio nor Katherina had that understanding or disposition at the beginning of the play.
Which leads us to beg the question: who was really being tamed, and who really was the shrew to start with?
I suppose people will just have to keep acting between the lines, until we figure it out. Not a bad deal at all.