Prenzie Players ‘shine’ in ‘Taming of the Shrew’
Written by David Burke
Wednesday, 12 March 2008
Original Review

It’s doubtful that when William Shakespeare wrote “The Taming of the Shrew” in the late 16th century that he envisioned it being played using Lean Cuisine, a borderline bondage outfit and with its cast performing the chicken dance.

But that’s just what audiences get in the Prenzie Players’ production of one of Shakespeare’s most famous comedies. The comedic elements that are already there are magnified with some 21st-century sensibility and sarcasm while still maintaining the integrity of the script.

Staged inside Rock Island’s Masonic Temple, the audience gets a 30-minute pre-show/open mike night at the “Temple Tap,” with Prenzie members and the crowd taking the very small stage.

One performer, Christopher Sly (Eddie Staver III), brings a drunken guitar act to the stage, annoying audience members and the cast as well.

It’s decided — as in Shakespeare’s script — to fool the drunken pedant by staging “Shrew” as a play-within-a-play, even dragging him into the action at times, carrying index cards for his portion of the script.

The rest of the show is played entirely in the audience, with the house lights on, at a sometimes-breakneck pace.

Many know the basic “Shrew” plot since variations of it have been used for centuries.

Petruchio (Chris Moore) takes on a bet to “tame” Katherina (Beth Woolley), marry her off and clear the way for younger sister Bianca (Maggie Woolley, playing her sibling’s sibling) to marry.

Bianca is being pursued by Lucentio (Andy Koski), who disguises himself as a teacher to get close to her while his servant (Denise Yoder) plays him.

Moore plays Petruchio as confident but not arrogant in a dashing performance. Beth Woolley’s Kate progresses from a whirlwind of rage and profanities into the tamed title character by the end of the night. Koski and Maggie Woolley have some nice, if not quite adult, exchanges throughout the night.

Among the other excellent performances are J.C. Luxton, with great timing as Petruchio’s servant and sidekick; Jaci Entwisle, in a beautifully poised turn as the girls’ parent (which was written for a male); Jake Walker, as an elderly rich suitor to Bianca and a fey tailor (Eight of the 13 cast members have dual roles) and John Turner as Lucentio’s father.

Jeremy Mahr, in his first Prenzie directing role, breaks away from the proscenium stage and brings the action literally into the audiences’ faces, with movement and dialogue taking place on nearly every inch of the floor.

The modern touches, such as the Lean Cuisine that Petruchio denies Kate, or the chicken dance and white cake and faux champagne for the audience during the wedding scene are inventive without seeming distracting or gimmicky.

It’s a great introduction to Shakespeare for Bardophobes and an entertaining evening.

Prenzie has taken this “great big disco ball of a play,” as one cast member called it during a post-show question-and-answer session, and made it sparkle.

David Burke can be contacted at (563) 383-2400 or dburke@qctimes.com. Comment on this review at qctimes.com.