"Another Show"

Throughout my life, I have been exposed to the many aspects of theatre. I’ve seen more performances than I can count. I’ve participated in many shows, both on stage and backstage. Because of this, going to see Kiss Me, Kate with our class was not a big deal to me. Honestly, I probably would have gone to see the show on my own. I have seen many different varieties of live theatre, from high school productions to local theatre to Broadway. Each is unique in its own way. Obviously, Kiss Me, Kate did not compare in scale to a full Broadway performance. However, the show was, in fact, one of the better college performances I have seen. I had high expectations for the show, simply because I knew that Penn State had a fairly good theatre program.

The show lived up to my expectations. The set was creative, and it looked very professional. The cast was phenomenal. I looked through the program and saw that seniors played the four lead roles, so I attribute their talent to how long they have been studying to earn this role. I only had one problem with this show – it was very long. Perhaps I was just tired, but towards the end of the second act, the play just seemed to drag on. Mostly, it is not the company’s fault for the length, just the author of the original musical.

I am a big fan of almost every musical. I absolutely love music, so watching characters express their feelings through song makes sense to me. Some of my favorite musicals include Grease, Wicked, Cinderella, Singin’ In the Rain, and Thoroughly Modern Millie. I like all types of musicals – ranging from recent hits to old classics. While I had never seen Kiss Me, Kate before, I knew it was a popular musical from around the 1940s. Overall, it was pretty much like I expected. It was mostly a love story, with some funny scenes in between.

Though I was unsure as to how I would feel about the musical numbers, I was pleasantly surprised. I have never been a big fan of songs from older musicals, because I tend to prefer the big spectacle of modern musical. However, one number from Kiss Me, Kate caught my eye. I really loved “Too Darn Hot.” It was very enjoyable and a great opening number for the second act. Everything, from the red lights to the jazzy music to the intense dancing, is exactly why I love theatre. The energy from the actors filled the theatre, and it really showed through their performance.

I have not read or seen Taming of the Shrew, but I did have a general knowledge of the play. I had seen movies that were loosely based off of Shakespeare’s work, so I knew the general plot of it. Knowing the general plot of the play definitely helped me understand the plot of Kiss Me, Kate a lot more clearly. It was also funny being able to pick out the similarities between the two shows.

Overall, I really enjoyed my time seeing Kiss Me, Kate. Now that I have a general idea of the quality of Penn State’s theatre, I think I will definitely attend more of their shows in the future.