From October 17–19, “Shakespeare in the Quad” returned to Trinity College for the Trinity College Dramatic Society’s (TCDS) abridged performance of The Taming of the Shrew. 

The play is a comedy following the love lives of Italian noblewoman Katherine (Jane Carty), her sister Bianca (Maria Miroshnichenko), and their suitors. 

Katherine strongly resists the prospect of marriage, but is courted by Petruchio (Avril Brigden), who, in a plot to secure her father Baptista’s (Jacob Dowdall) money for himself, abuses Katherine until she succumbs to his advances and agrees to marry him. Meanwhile, Bianca is pursued by a range of suitors who eagerly await Katherine’s marriage, as her father does not allow Bianca to marry until Katherine does.

Modern-day inclusions to a Shakespearean comedy 

The play’s co-directors, Mia Aubuchon and Mia Rebelo, were keenly aware of The Taming of the Shrew’s sexism. In an interview with The Varsity, Aubuchon explained that they wanted the audience to not just laugh at the comedic scenes, but also consider how misogyny in the play “reflects on society then and society now.” 

According to Rebelo, the directors incorporated modern creative motifs while keeping the language Shakespearean and the costuming historically inspired. This emphasized the relationship between the play’s Elizabethan context and the present and made the production more accessible for the audience.

Those creative choices were a particularly strong point of the production, and certainly the most memorable component. One standout scene, where Gremio (Gustavo Costa) and Tranio (Ivan Anand) compete for Bianca’s hand in marriage by offering Baptista increasingly extravagant gifts, was reimagined as a performative male competition: Gremio and Tranio showed off various pieces of feminist literature and an abundance of Labubus while they recited their Shakespearean dialogue. 

The performative male scene, alongside smaller touches like Hortensio (Yael Sher) and Gremio’s over-the-top flexing and Petruchio’s ever-present baseball cap, put the play’s performances of gender in conversation with those of the modern-day without detracting from its Shakespearean elements.

Opening night substitutions

The opening performance on Friday night had some unfortunate difficulties. Four actors in the company had midterms at the same time as the performance, resulting in a total of six characters requiring covers: Katherine, Bianca, Biondello, Nathaniel, the tailor, and the pedant.

Additionally, the rehearsal process was compressed to only six weeks, meaning that some of the actors were not off-book by Friday. This was distracting and made their delivery somewhat choppy, which detracted slightly from the quality of the performance. 

The weather likewise presented challenges to the show: midway through the performance, it began to rain heavily, requiring the stage lights to be turned off for the last 50 minutes.

Despite these difficulties, the actors in The Taming of the Shrew performed excellently. The entire cast had amazing physicality on stage, communicating their characters’ emotions in an over-the-top manner that was perfect for a comedy. 

Brigden’s arrogant and expansive movements showed off Petrucio’s fuckboy persona, which contrasted wonderfully with Lucentio’s (Marcus Hermary) timid yet excitable personality. Dowdall’s open gestures and broad smile brought Baptista to life, complementing his honest personality. 

The whole cast of supporting actors, particularly Nicholas Cikoja, Lev Tokol, and Nola Tedrick, added vibrancy to the production. Each of the minor characters was unique and left a strong impression, which maintained a feeling of novelty throughout the play.

The range of the cast wasn’t limited to comedy, however. The scenes depicting Petruchio abusing Katherine were horrifying and well-executed by both actors, bringing weight to the production. 

The final scene, during which the successful suitors compete to find out which of them has the most obedient wife, was similarly uncomfortable to watch. This scene created a stark contrast with the production’s boisterous and comedic opening, which completed the progression from laughter to discomfort that Aubuchon and Rebelo had aimed for.

TCDS’s production of The Taming of the Shrew accomplished everything a modern rendition of Shakespeare should. It provided its audience with new ways to interpret old characters, bridging the gap between its modern audience and its historical context and causing plenty of laughter along the way.