By Elyse Trevers
They don’t make musicals like “Kiss Me, Kate” anymore — musicals where the attractive lovers argue, sing and then make up, the music is memorable, the athletic dancing is breathtaking and even the bad guys are likable.
The musical, by Samuel and Bella Speck with music and lyrics by Cole Porter, is 70 years old, and, in fact, in 1948 won the very first Tony Award for Best Musical. (The elderly gentleman in the theater behind me kept comparing the revival to the original.) Like the groundbreaking “Oklahoma,” the musical that first integrated music and lyrics with the script, this show features two sets of lovers. Frederick (Will Chase) and Lilli (the divine Kelli O’Hara) are a divorced couple who reunite to put on the Shakespearean comedy, “The Taming of the Shrew.” In the secondary plot, another pair of performers, Bill (the talented Corbin Bleu) and Lois Lane (a bubbly Stephanie Styles) add comedy and dance. The action begins when Bill loses $10,000 at a high stakes poker game and forges Frederick’s name to the IOU.
Using Shakespeare, “Kiss Me, Kate” is a play within a play. During rehearsals, Fred and Lilli quickly fall into old patterns and their quarrels escalate, but first they sentimentally remember the good times and sing “Wunderbar.” Later, Lilli nostalgically recalls their love and sings the beautiful song, “So In Love.” Quickly her feelings toward Frederick turn to anger when, mistakenly, she receives flowers he intended for a young chorus girl. Lilli announces she’s quitting the show. Shrewdly, Frederick uses the two thugs sent to collect on “his” IOU to keep Lilli at the theater.
The music is classic, and Porter’s lyrics are very witty, especially in “Brush Up Your Shakespeare” sung by the two henchmen. Porter was able to cleverly allude to and rhyme several Shakespearean plays. John Pankow and Lance Coadie Williams are funny as the two thugs who relish the limelight.
The physical comedy gifts of the two main performers are evident during the quarrel scene in “Taming.” Lilli and Frank as Petruchio and Kate kick and hit each another. Lilli is truly angry at Fred who defends himself while the rest of the cast tries to stay on script. Bleu’s dancing highlights his physical talents, especially when he holds onto a ladder and tap-dances upside down.
Act II begins with “Too Darn Hot,” as the entire ensemble, led by James T. Lane, sings and dances in the alley during intermission. The number, choreographed by Warren Carlyle, stops the show for several moments of applause.
If you buy tickets just to hear Kelli O’Hara, the glorious soprano who has a made a career revitalizing musical revivals (“Pajama Game,” “The King and I”, “South Pacific”), you will not be disappointed. Her voice is thrilling and she lights up the stage with her presence.
Will Chase (TV”s “Nashville”) as Frederick is a fine match for O’Hara. Although his voice is not on par with hers, his energy and verve make him an attractive leading man. Charming, he works really hard, especially in songs like “Where Is the Life that Late I Led.”
Directed by Scott Ellis, “Kiss Me Kate” has some musical numbers that go on too long. “Brush Up Your Shakespeare” and “Always True to You in My Fashion” end to tumultuous audience applause, only for the singers to return to sing the refrain and then again and again unnecessarily.
Despite its advanced years, “Kiss Me Kate” has aged pretty well, with a few adjustments. One reason is that the most offensive and sexist elements of “The Taming of The Shrew” are not depicted onstage. Over the years, revivals of “Kiss Me Kate” have included slight changes. At the end of the musical, Lilli’s final song has been modified (additional music by Amanda Green.) Instead of the character disparaging her sex and singing “I’m Am Ashamed that Women are So Simple,” the word “People” is substituted instead.
Times change but the basically people don’t. Give them a musical to charm and entertain them and they will buy tickets. This was true 70 years ago and it’s still true for “Kiss Me Kate” today.
