⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ and a half
Translating a book from the page to the screen is not a simple process. Look up reviews of various movies that are based from books and you’ll see people lamenting left out scenes and redesigned characters. While one can leisurely savour a book over days, movie adaptations do not have the luxury of time. Hence, cuts are necessary.
Translating a play from the late sixteenth century presents the extra challenge of trying to reshape outdated beliefs so that they suit modern sensibilites yet keeps the tone of the original text.
Taming of the Shrew is especially challenging to modernise because it is so steeped in what we would now label as misogyny. Bianca cannot be wed until her older sister is. Dowries. And taming a strong-willed woman to subservience.
How will Bogan Shakespeare tackle this one?
If you’re looking for a “faithful to text” adaption, this is not it. It is a loosely based adaption, along the lines of “10 things I hate about you” but pared back further.
Bogan Shakespeare have aged our characters. They are now middle-aged sandgropers, which conveniently allows them to discard the need for parental figures in this play.
Katherina is now a divorcee who has not dated for four years, while Lucentio and Bianca are the partnered up finance bro and Stepford girlfriend.
The trio are on a weekend getaway, with Lucentio sneakily inviting his friend Petruchio as a foil for their third wheel. The play concentrates solely on the foursome, with no scheming suitors in sight.
This is another major omission from the source text. Consequently, the depth of the original play feels lost.
However, even though this play does not have as many Shakespearean elements as last year’s reincanation of Romeo and Juliet, it is still entertaining.
Because Shakespeare or not, Bogan Shakespeare has such a talent for seamlessly integrating Australiana into their productions.
The audience roared with laughter at their good-natured jibes at hospitality venues in Margaret River. I don’t think I’ll be able to look at THAT big silver bowl without chuckling to myself now.
The cat and dog relationship between Katherina and Petruchio was magnetic to watch. The acrtress portraying Katherina did it with such aplomb that I couldn’t help but wonder if she was acting or playing herself on stage.
I also loved Dean Lovatt’s portrayal of Petruchio. When we meet him, Petruchio is a hard partying bogan.
However, as the play progresses, he goes from blindly listening to Lucentio to backing himself. He genuinely wants to connect with Katherina, despite her protestations. He begs her to see his layers.
By the end of the play, he is transformed. While he maintains his ocker persona, he also allows Katherina to speak freely. In fact, he even meekly sits on the pub bench when she admonishes him in the middle of her rousing speech.
Wait hang on.
I see what you’ve done Bogan Shakespeare, you clever ducks.
You’ve not tamed a shrew, you’ve tamed… a bogan!
Well played, team. Well played.