Kiss Me, Kate
Music	Cole Porter
Lyrics	Cole Porter
Book	Bella and Samuel Spewack
Basis	The Taming of the Shrew byWilliam Shakespeare
Productions	1948Broadway 1951West End 1999Broadwayrevival 2001West End revival 2019Broadway revival
Awards	1949Tony Award for Best Musical 1949Tony Award for Composer and Lyricist 1949Tony Award for Best Author 1999Tony Award for Best Revival

Kiss Me, Kate is amusical with music and lyrics byCole Porter and a book byBella and Samuel Spewack. The story involves the production of a musical version ofWilliam Shakespeare'sThe 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 playingBianca, and her gambler boyfriend, Bill, who runs afoul of some gangsters. The original production starredAlfred Drake,Patricia Morison,Lisa Kirk andHarold Lang.

Kiss Me, Kate was Porter's response toRodgers and Hammerstein'sOklahoma! and otherintegrated 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 onBroadway.^[1][2] In 1949, it won the firstTony Award for Best Musical.

ProducerArnold Saint-Subber conceived the idea forKiss Me, Kate after witnessing the on-stage/off-stage battling of husband-and-wife actorsAlfred Lunt andLynn Fontanne during their 1935 production ofThe 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 enlistedCole Porter to write the music and lyrics.^[3]

Porter's score drew from musical styles of theItalian Renaissance,Verdi's operas, blues, theViennese waltz, and, in "Brush Up Your Shakespeare", the 1897 hybrid "Bowery waltz". In writing the lyrics forKiss Me, Kate, Porter drew from Shakespearean themes and language, without creating something esoteric, and the song "Always True to You in My Fashion" was inspired by theErnest Dowson poem "Non Sum Qualis Eram Bonae Sub Regno Cynarae”, with its refrain "I have been faithful to thee, Cynara, in my fashion".^[3][4][5][6]

After a 3½-week pre-Broadway tryout at theShubert Theatre inPhiladelphia starting December 2, 1948, the originalBroadway production opened on December 30, 1948, at theNew Century Theatre, where it ran for nineteen months before transferring to theShubert, for a total run of 1,077 performances. Directed byJohn C. Wilson withchoreography byHanya Holm, the original cast includedAlfred Drake,Patricia Morison,Lisa Kirk,^[7]Harold Lang,Charles Wood andHarry Clark.Brooks Atkinson ofThe 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."^[8] The production won 5 Tony awards including Best Musical. The 1949 original cast recording has been inducted into theLibrary of Congress'sNational Recording Registry for the album's "cultural, artistic and/or historical significance to American society and the nation's audio legacy".^[9]

The originalWest End production opened on March 8, 1951, at theColiseum Theatre, and ran for 400 performances. Directed by Sam Spewack with choreography again by Holm, this production starred Patricia Morison,Bill Johnson,Adelaide Hall andJulie Wilson.

The original Australian production played from February 1952 atHis Majesty's Theatre, Melbourne, before seasons in Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide until 1954. The production featuredHayes Gordon and Joy Turpin (later replaced byEvie Hayes).^[10][11][12]

A London revival opened in December 1970 at the London Coliseum, in a production by theSadler's Wells Opera. The cast featuredEmile Belcourt (Petruchio), Judith Bruce,Eric Shilling, Ann Howard (Kate), Francis Egerton and Robert Lloyd, with direction byPeter 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".^[13] This revival had a "brief run", according to theEncyclopedia of the Musical Theatre.^[14][15]

TheRoyal Shakespeare Company staged a production which opened at theRoyal Shakespeare Theatre,Stratford-upon-Avon, on February 10, 1987,^[16] toured the UK from March to May,^[17] and then played at London'sOld Vic Theatre from May 19, 1987.^[18] Directed byAdrian Noble and staged byRon Field, the production starredNichola McAuliffe andPaul Jones as Lilli/Kate and Fred/Petruchio, with Tim Flavin and Fiona Hendley as Bill/Lucentio and Lois/Bianca. The gangsters were played byEmil Wolk andJohn Bardon, who shared the 1987Olivier 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.^[19] The production moved to theSavoy Theatre on January 15, 1988, with a new cast.^[20]

A short-lived Broadway revival ran at the Broadway Theatre in January 1952. It was directed byJohn C. Wilson and choreographed byHanya Holm. Holly Harris and Robert Wright starred as Lilli and Fred.^[21]

A Broadway revival opened at theMartin Beck Theatre on November 18, 1999, and closed on December 30, 2001, after 881 performances and 28 previews. Directed byMichael Blakemore, Produced byRichard Godwin, and choreographed byKathleen Marshall andRob Ashford, the opening night cast includedMarin Mazzie,Brian Stokes Mitchell,Amy Spanger,Michael Berresse,Ron Holgate,Lee Wilkof andMichael Mulheren. This production won theTony 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, andMichael Berresse,Lee Wilkof andMichael Mulheren received Tony nominations for Best Featured Actor in a Musical.

AWest End revival opened at theVictoria 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 andMarin Mazzie co-starred.^[22]

Chichester Festival Theatre's 2012 revival of the show transferred to theOld Vic Theatre on London's South Bank in November 2012, with an official opening in December.^[23] It starredHannah Waddingham as Lili/Kate and Alex Bourne as Fred Graham. The production was directed byTrevor Nunn. The show received positive reviews from critics and audiences.^[24]Hannah Waddingham and Alex Bourne were both nominated for the 2013 Olivier Awards as Best Actress/Actor in a Musical for their performances.

In September 2015Opera North presented a revival directed by Jo Davies, choreographed byWill Tuckett. The production opened at theLeeds Grand Theatre before touring toTheatre Royal Newcastle,The Lowry Salford, andTheatre Royal Nottingham.^[25] The production was co-produced withWelsh National Opera who continued to tour it in 2016, first as part of the Shakespeare400 season at theWales Millennium Centre, Cardiff, and then toLiverpool Empire Theatre,Bristol Hippodrome,New Theatre Oxford,Mayflower Theatre Southampton,Birmingham Hippodrome, andVenue Cymru Llandudno, before returning to Cardiff.^[26] The production was revived atLondon Coliseum briefly in June 2018, following a return visit to Leeds Grand Theatre in May 2018.

TheRoundabout Theatre Company presented a revised third Broadway revival ofKiss Me, Kate withKelli O'Hara as Lilli Vanessi/Kate,Will Chase as Fred Graham/Petruchio,Stephanie Styles as Lois Lane/Bianca, andCorbin Bleu as Bill Calhoun/Lucentio. The production is directed byScott Ellis and choreographed byWarren Carlyle,^[27] with minor "feminist" updates byAmanda Green to make the musical "more accessible for today's audiences".^[28] Roundabout produced a benefit concert of the show with O'Hara, Ellis, and Carlyle in 2016.^[29] The revival had a limited run atStudio 54. Previews began on February 14, 2019, with the opening on March 14. The production closed on June 30, 2019.^[30][31][32]

A revival directed byBartlett Sher and choreographed byAnthony Van Laast ran at theBarbican Theatre in London from June 4 to September 14, 2024, with an official opening on June 18. The production starredAdrian Dunbar as Fred / Petruchio andStephanie J. Block as Lilli / Katharine. Other cast members includedCharlie Stemp as Bill / Lucentio,Georgina Onuorah as Lois / Bianca, andNigel Lindsay andHammed Animashaun as the gangsters.^[33][34] The production was filmed on stage for a November 17, 2024 release in UK cinemas and internationally.^[35][36]

Act I

The cast of a musical version ofWilliam Shakespeare'sThe 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 asPetruchio; his movie-star ex-wife, Lilli Vanessi, is playingKatherine. The two seem to be constantly arguing, and Lilli is particularly angry that Fred is pursuing the alluring young actress Lois Lane, who is playingBianca. 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").^[7] The suitors hatch a plan for him to marry Kate, as Baptista is rich. Kate, however, has no intentions of getting married ("I Hate Men"); Petruchio attempts to woo her ("Were Thine That Special Face"). Offstage, Lilli has an opportunity to read the card. She walks on stage off-cue and begins beating Fred, who, along with the other actors, tries to remain in character as Baptista gives Petruchio permission to marry Kate. Lilli continues to strike Fred, and he ends up spanking her onstage.

Offstage, Lilli furiously declares she is leaving the show. However, the gangsters reappear, and Fred tells them that if Lilli quits, he'll have to close the show and won't be able to pay them the $10,000; the gangsters force her to stay at gunpoint. Back onstage, Bianca and Lucentio dance while the chorus performs "We Sing of Love", covering a scene change. The curtain opens, revealing the exterior of a church; Petruchio and Kate have just been married, and they exit the church; the gangsters, dressed in Shakespearean costume, are onstage to make sure that Lilli stays. Petruchio implores for Kate to kiss him, and she refuses. He lifts her over his shoulder and carries her offstage while she pummels his shoulder with her fists ("Kiss Me Kate").

Act II

During the show's intermission, the cast and crew relax in the alley behind the theater, lamenting that it's "Too Darn Hot" to meet their lovers that night. The play continues, as Petruchio tries to "tame" Katherine and mourns for his now-lost bachelor life ("Where Is the Life That Late I Led?"). Offstage, Lilli's fiancé Harrison Howell is looking for her. He runs into Lois, and she recognizes him as a former lover but promises not to tell Lilli. Bill is shocked to overhear this, but Lois tells him that even if she is involved with other men, she is faithful to him in her own way ("Always True to You in My Fashion").^[7] Lilli tries to explain to Howell that she is being forced to stay at the theatre by the gangsters, but Howell doesn't believe her and wants to discuss wedding plans. Fred insidiously points out how boring Lilli's life with Howell will be compared with the theatre. Bill sings a love song he has written for Lois ("Bianca").

The gangsters discover that their boss has been killed, so the IOU is no longer valid. Lilli leaves—without Howell—as Fred unsuccessfully tries to persuade her to stay ("So in Love" (Reprise)). The gangsters get caught on stage and improvise a comedic tribute to Shakespeare in which they explain that knowing Shakespeare is the key to romance ("Brush Up Your Shakespeare"). The company prepares for the conclusion of the play, the wedding of Bianca and Lucentio, even though they are now missing one of the main characters. However, just in time for Katherine's final speech, Lilli arrives onstage ("I Am Ashamed That Women Are So Simple"). Fred and Lilli wordlessly reconcile on stage, and the play ends ("Kiss Me Kate" (Finale)) with them, as well as Bill and Lois, kissing passionately.

Notes

• In 1998, the original cast recording of the 1948Broadway production was inducted into theGrammy Hall of Fame.
• The songFrom This Moment On, originally from Porter's 1951 musicalOut of This World, was added tothe 1953 film version ofKiss Me Kate. This song was also added to Act II, betweenAlways True to You in My Fashion andBianca, in the 1999 revival.
• For the 2019 revival, "I Am Ashamed That Women Are So Simple" was changed to "I Am Ashamed That People Are So Simple."
• ^ songs were cut from the2024 London revival.

Afilm version of the same name was released in 1953. There have been at least five television productions, the first onHallmark Hall of Fame in 1958, with Drake and Morison reprising their Broadway roles,^[40] the second recorded for the launch ofBBC Two in the UK in 1964, starringHoward Keel,Patricia Morison,Millicent Martin andBill Owen; the third in 1968 with then husband-and-wife teamRobert Goulet andCarol Lawrence,^[41] and the fourth in 2003 onGreat Performances, a high-definition shot performance of the London revival withBrent Barrett andRachel York. The fifth, a live filming of the2024 London revival, which played in select movie theaters on November 17, 2024, aired as part ofGreat Performances on May 30, 2025.^[35][42]

• McBrien, William (2000).Cole Porter. Reprint edition. New York: Knopf.ISBN 0-679-72792-2
• Stempel, Larry (2010).Showtime: A History of the Broadway Musical Theater. New York: W.W. Norton and Company.ISBN 0-393-92906-X
• Information from the TamsWitmark website
• Information from the Imagination website

• ​Kiss Me, Kate​ at theInternet Broadway Database
• "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 atVariety

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