Kiss Me, Kate is a musical with music and lyrics by Cole Porter and a book by Bella and Samuel Spewack. The story involves the production of a musical version of William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew and the conflict on and off-stage between Fred Graham, the show's director, producer, and star, and his leading lady, his ex-wife Lilli Vanessi. A secondary romance concerns Lois Lane, the actress playing Bianca, and her gambler boyfriend, Bill, who runs afoul of some gangsters. The original production starred Alfred Drake, Patricia Morison, Lisa Kirk and Harold Lang.
Kiss Me, Kate was Porter's response to Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma! and other integrated musicals; it was the first show he wrote in which the music and lyrics were firmly connected to the script. The musical premiered in 1948 and proved to be Porter's only show to run for more than 1,000 performances on Broadway. In 1949, it won the first Tony Award for Best Musical.
Conception
Producer Arnold Saint-Subber conceived the idea for Kiss Me, Kate after witnessing the on-stage/off-stage battling of husband-and-wife actors Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne during their 1935 production of The Taming of the Shrew. In 1947, he asked the Spewacks (undergoing their own marital woes at the time) to write the script; Bella Spewack in turn enlisted Cole Porter to write the music and lyrics.
Productions
Original Broadway production
After a 3½-week pre-Broadway tryout at the Shubert Theatre in Philadelphia starting December 2, 1948, the original Broadway production opened on December 30, 1948, at the New Century Theatre, where it ran for nineteen months before transferring to the Shubert, for a total run of 1,077 performances. Directed by John C. Wilson with choreography by Hanya Holm, the original cast included Alfred Drake, Patricia Morison, Lisa Kirk, Harold Lang, Charles Wood and Harry Clark. Brooks Atkinson of The New York Times praised the "authentic book which is funny without the interpolation of gags. Cole Porter has written his best score in years, together with witty lyrics. Under Hanya Holm's direction, the dancing is joyous. And Lemuel Ayers has provided carnival costumes and some interesting scenery." The production won 5 Tony awards including Best Musical. The 1949 original cast recording has been inducted into the Library of Congress's National Recording Registry for the album's "cultural, artistic and/or historical significance to American society and the nation's audio legacy".
Original London and Australian productions
The original West End production opened on March 8, 1951, at the Coliseum Theatre, and ran for 400 performances. Directed by Sam Spewack with choreography again by Holm, this production starred Patricia Morison, Bill Johnson, Adelaide Hall and Julie Wilson.
The original Australian production played from February 1952 at His Majesty's Theatre, Melbourne, before seasons in Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide until 1954. The production featured Hayes Gordon and Joy Turpin (later replaced by Evie Hayes).
1970 London and 1987 UK revivals
A London revival opened in December 1970 at the London Coliseum, in a production by the Sadler's Wells Opera. The cast featured Emile Belcourt (Petruchio), Judith Bruce, Eric Shilling, Ann Howard (Kate), Francis Egerton and Robert Lloyd, with direction by Peter Coe and choreography by Sheila O'Neill. Coe did a translation for British audiences, including having "a tea wagon", and included "traditional English music hall jokes". This revival had a "brief run", according to the Encyclopedia of the Musical Theatre.<!--(more information necessary, this production is something of a black hole on the Internet.)-->
The Royal Shakespeare Company staged a production which opened at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon, on February 10, 1987, toured the UK from March to May, and then played at London's Old Vic Theatre from May 19, 1987. Directed by Adrian Noble and staged by Ron Field, the production starred Nichola McAuliffe and Paul Jones as Lilli/Kate and Fred/Petruchio, with Tim Flavin and Fiona Hendley as Bill/Lucentio and Lois/Bianca. The gangsters were played by Emil Wolk and John Bardon, who shared the 1987 Olivier Award for Outstanding Performance of the Year by an Actor in a Musical, while McAuliffe won the Olivier for Outstanding Performance of the Year by an Actress in a Musical. The production moved to the Savoy Theatre on January 15, 1988, with a new cast.
1952 and 1999 Broadway revivals
A short-lived Broadway revival ran at the Broadway Theatre in January 1952. It was directed by John C. Wilson and choreographed by Hanya Holm. Holly Harris and Robert Wright starred as Lilli and Fred.
A Broadway revival opened at the Martin Beck Theatre on November 18, 1999, and closed on December 30, 2001, after 881 performances and 28 previews. Directed by Michael Blakemore, Produced by Richard Godwin, and choreographed by Kathleen Marshall and Rob Ashford, the opening night cast included Marin Mazzie, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Amy Spanger, Michael Berresse, Ron Holgate, Lee Wilkof and Michael Mulheren. This production won the Tony Awards for Best Revival of a Musical and Best Actor in a Musical for Mitchell; Marin Mazzie received a Tony nomination for Best Actress in a Musical, and Michael Berresse, Lee Wilkof and Michael Mulheren received Tony nominations for Best Featured Actor in a Musical.
2001 and 2012 London revivals
A West End revival opened at the Victoria Palace Theatre on October 30, 2001, and closed on August 24, 2002. As with the 1999 Broadway revival, Michael Blakemore was the director with choreography by Kathleen Marshall. Brent Barrett and Marin Mazzie co-starred.
Chichester Festival Theatre's 2012 revival of the show transferred to the Old Vic Theatre on London's South Bank in November 2012, with an official opening in December. It starred Hannah Waddingham as Lili/Kate and Alex Bourne as Fred Graham. The production was directed by Trevor Nunn. The show received positive reviews from critics and audiences. Hannah Waddingham and Alex Bourne were both nominated for the 2013 Olivier Awards as Best Actress/Actor in a Musical for their performances.
2015 Opera North production
In September 2015 Opera North presented a revival directed by Jo Davies, choreographed by Will Tuckett. The production opened at the Leeds Grand Theatre before touring to Theatre Royal Newcastle, The Lowry Salford, and Theatre Royal Nottingham. The production was co-produced with Welsh National Opera who continued to tour it in 2016, first as part of the Shakespeare400 season at the Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff, and then to Liverpool Empire Theatre, Bristol Hippodrome, New Theatre Oxford, Mayflower Theatre Southampton, Birmingham Hippodrome, and Venue Cymru Llandudno, before returning to Cardiff. The production was revived at London Coliseum briefly in June 2018, following a return visit to Leeds Grand Theatre in May 2018.
2019 Broadway revival
The Roundabout Theatre Company presented a revised third Broadway revival of Kiss Me, Kate with Kelli O'Hara as Lilli Vanessi/Kate, Will Chase as Fred Graham/Petruchio, Stephanie Styles as Lois Lane/Bianca, and Corbin Bleu as Bill Calhoun/Lucentio. The production is directed by Scott Ellis and choreographed by Warren Carlyle, with minor "feminist" updates by Amanda Green to make the musical "more accessible for today's audiences". Roundabout produced a benefit concert of the show with O'Hara, Ellis, and Carlyle in 2016. The revival had a limited run at Studio 54. Previews began on February 14, 2019, with the opening on March 14. The production closed on June 30, 2019.
2024 London revival
A revival directed by Bartlett Sher and choreographed by Anthony Van Laast ran at the Barbican Theatre in London from June 4 to September 14, 2024, with an official opening on June 18. The production starred Adrian Dunbar as Fred / Petruchio and Stephanie J. Block as Lilli / Katharine. Other cast members included Charlie Stemp as Bill / Lucentio, Georgina Onuorah as Lois / Bianca, and Nigel Lindsay and Hammed Animashaun as the gangsters. The production was filmed on stage for a November 17, 2024 release in UK cinemas and internationally.
Casts
<!-- DO NOT ADD COLUMN UNTIL PRODUCTION OPENS -- Please add only long-running, major market productions to the table. -->
{| class="wikitable" width:90%;"
|-
! scope"col" | Character
! scope"col" | Original Broadway cast (1948)
! scope=col | Original West End cast (1951)
! scope"col" | 1999 Broadway revival
! scope"col" | 2019 Broadway revival
|-
! scope="row" | Fred Graham/Petruchio
| align="center" colspan="1"|Alfred Drake
| align=center|Bill Johnson
| align="center" colspan="1"|Brian Stokes Mitchell
| align="center" colspan="1"|Will Chase
|-
! scope="row" | Lilli Vanessi/Katharine
| align="center" colspan="2"|Patricia Morison
| align="center" colspan="1"|Marin Mazzie
| align="center" colspan="1"|Kelli O'Hara
|-
! scope="row" | Bill Calhoun/Lucentio
| align="center" colspan="1"|Harold Lang
| align=center|Walter Long
| align="center" colspan="1"|Michael Berresse
| align="center" colspan="1"|Corbin Bleu
|-
! scope="row" | Lois Lane/Bianca
| align="center" colspan="1"|Lisa Kirk
| align=center|Julie Wilson
| align="center" colspan="1"|Amy Spanger
| align="center" colspan="1"|Stephanie Styles
|-
! scope="row" | First Man
| align="center" colspan="1"|Harry Clark
| align=center|Danny Green
| align="center" colspan="1"|Lee Wilkof
| align="center" colspan="1"|John Pankow
|-
! scope="row" | Second Man
| align="center" colspan="1"|Jack Diamond
| align=center|Sidney James
| align="center" colspan="1"|Michael Mulheren
| align="center" colspan="1"|Lance Coadie Williams
|-
! scope="row" | Harrison Howell
| align="center" colspan="1"|Denis Green
| align=center|Austin Trevor
| align="center" colspan="1"|Ron Holgate
| align="center" colspan="1"|Terence Archie
|-
! scope="row" | Henry Trevor/Baptista
| align="center" colspan="1"|Thomas Holer
| align=center|Daniel Wherry
| align="center" colspan="1"|John Horton
| align="center" colspan="1"|Mel Johnson, Jr.
|-
! scope="row" | Hattie
| align="center" colspan="1"|Annabelle Hill
| align=center|Adelaide Hall
| align="center" colspan="1"|Adriane Lenox
| align="center" colspan="1"|Adrienne Walker
|-
! scope="row" | Paul
| align="center" colspan="1"|Lorenzo Fuller
|align=center|Archie Savage
| align="center" colspan="1"|Stanley Wayne Mathis
| align="center" colspan="1"|James T. Lane
|}
Plot
Act I
The cast of a musical version of William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew is rehearsing for the opening of the show that evening ("Another Op'nin', Another Show"). Egotistical Fred Graham is the director and producer and is starring as Petruchio; his movie-star ex-wife, Lilli Vanessi, is playing Katherine. The two seem to be constantly arguing, and Lilli is particularly angry that Fred is pursuing the alluring young actress Lois Lane, who is playing Bianca. After the rehearsal, Lois's boyfriend Bill appears; he is playing Lucentio, but he missed the rehearsal because he was gambling. He tells her that he signed a $10,000 IOU in Fred's name, and Lois reprimands him ("Why Can't You Behave?").
Before the opening, Fred and Lilli meet backstage, and Lilli shows off her engagement ring from Washington insider General Harrison Howell, reminding Fred that it is the anniversary of their divorce. They recall the operetta in which they met, which included "Wunderbar", a Viennese waltz; they end up fondly reminiscing, singing and dancing. Two gangsters show up to collect the $10,000 IOU, and Fred replies that he never signed it; the gangsters obligingly say they will give him time to remember it and will return later. In her dressing room, Lilli receives flowers from Fred, and she declares that she is still "So In Love" with him. Fred tries to keep Lilli from reading the card that came with the flowers, which reveals that he really intended them for Lois. However, Lilli takes the card with her onstage, saying she will read it later.
The show begins ("We Open in Venice"). Baptista, Katherine and Bianca's father, will not allow his younger daughter Bianca to marry until his older daughter Katherine is married. However, she is shrewish and ill-tempered, and no man desires to marry her. Three suitors – Lucentio, Hortensio, and Gremio – try to woo Bianca, and she says that she would marry any of them ("Tom, Dick, or Harry"). Petruchio, a friend of Lucentio, expresses a desire to marry into wealth ("I've Come to Wive it Wealthily in Padua"). the second recorded for the launch of BBC Two in the UK in 1964, starring Howard Keel, Patricia Morison, Millicent Martin and Bill Owen; the third in 1968 with then husband-and-wife team Robert Goulet and Carol Lawrence, and the fourth in 2003 on Great Performances, a high-definition shot performance of the London revival with Brent Barrett and Rachel York. The fifth, a live filming of the 2024 London revival, which played in select movie theaters on November 17, 2024, aired as part of Great Performances on May 30, 2025.
Awards and nominations
Original Broadway production
{| class="wikitable" width="95%"
|-
! width="5%"| Year
! width="20%"| Award
! width="45%"| Category
! width="20%"| Nominee
! width="10%"| Result
|-
| rowspan="5" align="center"| 1949
| rowspan="5"| Tony Award
| colspan="2"| Best Musical
|
|-
| Best Author (Musical)
| Samuel and Bella Spewack
|
|-
| Best Original Score
| Cole Porter
|
|-
| Best Costume Design
| Lemuel Ayers
|
|-
| Best Producer of a Musical
| Saint Subber and Lemuel Ayers
|
|}
1987 Royal Shakespeare Company UK revival
{| class="wikitable" width="95%"
|-
! width="5%"| Year
! width="20%"| Award
! width="45%"| Category
! width="20%"| Nominee
! width="10%"| Result
|-
| rowspan="3" align="center"| 1987
| rowspan="3"| Laurence Olivier Award
| colspan="2"| Best Musical Revival
|
|-
| Outstanding Performance of the Year by an Actor in a Musical
| John Bardon and Emil Wolk
|
|-
| Outstanding Performance of the Year by an Actress in a Musical
| Nichola McAuliffe
|
|}
1999 Broadway revival
{| class="wikitable" width="95%"
|-
! width="5%"| Year
! width="20%"| Award
! width="45%"| Category
! width="20%"| Nominee
! width="10%"| Result
|-
| rowspan="22" align="center"| 2000
| rowspan="12"| Tony Award
| colspan="2"| Best Revival of a Musical
|
|-
| Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical
| Brian Stokes Mitchell
|
|-
| Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical
| Marin Mazzie
|
|-
| rowspan="3"| Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical
| Michael Berresse
|
|-
| Lee Wilkof
|
|-
| Michael Mulheren
|
|-
| Best Direction of a Musical
| Michael Blakemore
|
|-
| Best Choreography
| Kathleen Marshall
|
|-
| Best Orchestrations
| Don Sebesky
|
|-
| Best Scenic Design
| Robin Wagner
|
|-
| Best Costume Design
| Martin Pakledinaz
|
|-
| Best Lighting Design
| Peter Kaczorowski
|
|-
| rowspan="10"| Drama Desk Award
| colspan="2"| Outstanding Revival of a Musical
|
|-
| Outstanding Actor in a Musical
| Brian Stokes Mitchell
|
|-
| Outstanding Actress in a Musical
| Marin Mazzie
|
|-
| rowspan="2"| Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical
| Michael Mulheren
|
|-
| Lee Wilkof
|
|-
| Outstanding Director of a Musical
| Michael Blakemore
|
|-
| Outstanding Choreography
| Hanya Holm
|
|-
| Outstanding Orchestrations
| Don Sebesky
|
|-
| Outstanding Set Design
| Robin Wagner
|
|-
| Outstanding Costume Design
| Martin Pakledinaz
|
|}
2001 London revival
{| class="wikitable" width="95%"
|-
! width="5%"| Year
! width="20%"| Award
! width="45%"| Category
! width="20%"| Nominee
! width="10%"| Result
|-
| rowspan="11" align="center"| 2002
| rowspan="9"| Laurence Olivier Award
| colspan="2"| Best Musical Revival
|
|-
| Best Actor in a Musical
| Brent Barrett
|
|-
| Best Actress in a Musical
| Marin Mazzie
|
|-
| rowspan="2"| Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical
| Nancy Anderson
|
|-
| Michael Berresse
|
|-
| Best Director of a Musical
| Michael Blakemore
|
|-
| Best Theatre Choreographer
| Kathleen Marshall
|
|-
| Best Set Design
| Robin Wagner
|
|-
| Best Costume Design
| Martin Pakledinaz
|
|-
| Evening Standard Award
| colspan="2"| Best Musical
|
|-
| Critics Circle Award
| colspan="2"| Best Musical
|
|}
2012 London revival
{| class="wikitable" width="95%"
|-
! width="5%"| Year
! width="20%"| Award
! width="45%"| Category
! width="20%"| Nominee
! width="10%"| Result
|-
| rowspan="5" align="center"| 2013
| rowspan="5"| Laurence Olivier Award
| colspan="2"| Best Musical Revival
|
|-
| Best Actor in a Musical
| Alex Bourne
|
|-
| Best Actress in a Musical
| Hannah Waddingham
|
|-
| Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical
| Adam Garcia
|
|-
| Best Theatre Choreographer
| Stephen Mear
|
|}
2019 Broadway revival
{| class="wikitable" style="width:100%;"
!Year
!Award
!Category
!Nominee
!Result
|-
| rowspan="12" align="center" | 2019
| rowspan="4" |Tony Award
| colspan="2" |Best Revival of a Musical
|
|-
| Best Actress in a Musical
| Kelli O'Hara
|
|-
| Best Choreography
| Warren Carlyle
|
|-
| Best Orchestrations
| Larry Hochman
|
|-
| rowspan="3"| Drama Desk Award
| colspan="2"| Outstanding Revival of a Musical
|
|-
| Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical
| Corbin Bleu
|
|-
| Outstanding Choreography
| Warren Carlyle
|
|-
| rowspan="2" |Drama League Awards
| colspan="2" |Outstanding Revival of a Broadway or Off-Broadway Musical
|
|-
|Distinguished Performance Award
|Kelli O’Hara
|
|-
| rowspan="3" |Outer Critics Circle Awards
| colspan="2" |Outstanding Revival of a Musical (Broadway or Off-Broadway)
|
|-
|Outstanding Choreographer
|Warren Carlyle
|
|-
|Outstanding Actress in a Musical
|Kelli O'Hara
|
|}
2024 London revival
{| class="wikitable" style="width:100%;"
!Year
!Award
!Category
!Nominee
!Result
|-
| rowspan="2" align="center" | 2024
| rowspan="2" |WhatsOnStage Awards
| colspan="2" |Best Musical Revival
|
|-
|Best Choreography
|Anthony Van Laast
|
|}
Notes
References
- McBrien, William (2000). Cole Porter. Reprint edition. New York: Knopf.
- Stempel, Larry (2010). Showtime: A History of the Broadway Musical Theater. New York: W.W. Norton and Company.
- Information from the TamsWitmark website
- Information from the Imagination website
External links
- "Cole Porter Reference Guide" at Stephen Sondheim site, compiled by Michael H. Hutchins
- PBS review of 1999 Broadway production - "A Smashing Revival", by Michael Coveney
- Review of original Broadway production at Variety