JENNIFER OWENS

MY REVIEW

On Wednesday 27th of February my college class went to see Kiss Me Kate at the Old Vic. Trevor Nunn’s revival of the 1948 classic, I can safely say, was too darn hot. With music and lyrics by Cole Porter and the book written by Samuel and Bella Spewack the musical was just as fun and loving as it was 65 years back. There's no doubting the talent on display – either in Nunn's cast or Porter's blissful score, which includes ‘Always True to You in My Fashion’. And there's plenty of appeal in the Spewack's witty book, in which backstage rivalries and love affairs spill over on stage as a theatre company produces an out-of-town musical version of ‘The Taming of the Shrew.’ 

The show stared much talent including Hannah Waddingham and Alex Bourne. Also a familiar face, Adam Garcia tapped his way into the limelight as leading role, Bill. Hannah Waddingham stood out for me, changing her vocal tone throughout. ‘The Taming of the Shrew’ showcased her strong, operatic voice in contrast to her modern tone in the backstage scenes, with smooth licks and riffs. This was effective because it helped to distinguish the two different characters, which is essential to this format of musical. However I was let down by Adam Garcia. He gave an egotistical impression, almost as if he was too good for this musical. I was unimpressed with the click track he danced to in the added tap number because he is a professional tap dancer and should be able to perform this live.

 

The format of this musical is different to the average performance because it features a play within a musical. This isn’t something that is done often; in fact it’s quite rare. I feel this worked really well because the setting and lighting was well executed. When the performers were backstage there was a light projecting onto the set, cast extras were walking back and forth so shadows were formed. This gave the impression that ‘The Taming of the Shrew’ was still being performed whilst the leads were arguing and continuing discussions of their personal life. I liked the way Hannah Waddinghams character overlapped her offstage anger with her ‘Shrew’ character. This was cleverly done and worked well. 

The original score is written by Cole Porter in which the music is classical with a alight urban fizz. That urban fizz is double the fun in this revival. The musical number ‘Too Darn Hot’ was the highest point of the show. The music over powered the atmosphere in the room and lifted the whole theatre into the sexy number and had everyone out their seats. The band in full swing enhanced the dancers on stage, who gave the number exuberance and excitement. Splits and kicks filled the stage and the technique of all this was bang on point.

Frankly, nights at the theatre don’t often come more enjoyable than this!