The Community School Players are taking on "Kiss Me, Kate," one of the great American musicals. "Kate" gave Cole Porter the opportunity to take Shakespeare on a delirious ride.
When it opened on Broadway in 1948, it became an instant classic. It was inspired by two of Broadway's leading stars of the day, Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontaine, who famously battled their way through a production of "The Taming of the Shrew."
In "Kiss Me, Kate," Porter (with a book by Sam and Bella Spewack) took the same concept—a married, theatrical couple, Fred Graham and Lilli Vanessi—and set their hilarious tale to some of the best songs ever created. Voila! A masterpiece was created.
Even Porter himself described "Kiss Me, Kate" as "the best ever." It was also the biggest hit of his career, originally playing 1,077 performances on Broadway where it won five Tony Awards. It then reopened at the London Coliseum in 1951 and continued to play another 400 performances. It was revived on Broadway in 2000.
In this production, directed by Fritz Brun, Lilli and Fred are played by Community School junior Louisa Waycott and senior Kevin Wade. Teddy Minford and Harry Dreyfuss play the secondary leads, Lois Lane and Bill Calhoun.
Other members of Fred's company are played by Estelle Rudolph, Rachael Becker, Caleb Sonneland, Gabby Sisson, Sam Farnham, Mac Whittington, Christian Dallago, Sarah Adicoff, Caroline Fairchild, Shawnee Brew, Anja Sundali, Alexandra Dallago, Amaya Ingram, Ashley Bradley, Elizabeth Beesley, Emmy O'Reilly, Erin Yelda, Sarah Jane Slater, Alexis du Pont, and Trevor Boley. Ross and Ryon Campbell are two gangsters. Casper Brun is Gen. Harrison Howell. Will Van Eaton is stage manager assisted by Dewie Sherwood, Cody Boeger, Chris Woodard and Quinn Baser.
"In each of our last three seasons one production has been devoted to Shakespeare, either in adaptation, or straight up. In the fall of 2003 we performed 'The Boys from Syracuse,' Rogers' and Hart's take on Shakespeare's 'The Comedy of Errors,'" Brun said. "In the spring of 2005 we performed 'Hamlet' straight up. 'Kiss Me, Kate' shows both the private lives of Fred Graham's theatre company as well as their performance of Shakespeare's comedy, so we are talking of a play within the play here."
Portrayed are various periods in Lilli and Fred's theatrical (and romantic) lives beginning in the 1930s, with a theater company in the 1940s and performing a Shakespearean comedy from the late 1500s. Their production of "Taming of the Shrew" opens on the first anniversary of their divorce.
"Dramaturgically, 'Kiss Me, Kate' is ingenious, moving from the present to the past, interweaving completely contemporary characters like two gangsters, with the archetypal lovers from Shakespeare's comedy," Brun said. "This calls for a score comprising a mix of styles. Cole Porter met this challenge charmingly, producing pastiches of German operetta and Renaissance music; a hot jazz sequence; and love songs that became American classics."
The musical director/conductor is Dick Brown. Among the 18 amazing and memorable songs are "Too Darn Hot," "Why Can't You Behave," "So In Love" and "Brush Up Your Shakespeare."
Put in context of the time when the play premiered, Brun pointed out that as "late as 1948 most Americans watching the feud between Lilli Vanessi and Fred Graham were looking into a magical world known to most only from gossip magazines, the world of show business. (It was also) the single arena where women had been the equals of men for centuries.
"Today it's different, of course. The 'Kiss Me, Kate' story is relevant for most couples. Today many couples comprise a woman who, like Lilli Vanessi, may earn more and is better known than her husband. This equality has not necessarily been accompanied by more harmony than what happens between Fred/Petruchio and Lilli/Kate. The old adage still applies: 'You can't live with them, and you can't live without them!'"
Rounding out the support team for this production are Hilarie Neely and Michelle Minailo, who choreographed the show, set design by Kingsley Murphy and Rebecca Waycott, lighting by Jay Cutler and costumes by Cynthia Jesinger and Winkie McCray.
'Kiss Me Kate'
Community School Players present 'Kiss Me, Kate,' Thursday, Nov. 10, through Saturday, Nov. 12, at 7:30 p.m. Matinees set for Saturday, Nov. 12, and Sunday, Nov. 13, at 2:30 p.m. at The Community School Theatre, in Sun Valley. Tickets, which are $16 for adults and $8 for students, are available at Chapter One Bookstore in Ketchum and at the theatre door. Theatre hotline: 622-3960, ext. 118
