The Taming of the Shrew - Episode 1 - To Suck The Sweets of Sweet Philosophy

A student (and eligible bachelor) named Lucentio arrives in Padua with his servant, Tranio, to study philosophy. As they take in the sights they come across the wealthy Baptista and his two daughters, Bianca and Katherina. Bianca is trailed by two suitors, Hortensio and Gremio, who are vying for her affection. Baptista tells them that neither of them will win Bianca’s hand until he marries off his older daughter, Katherina. Meantime, Baptista will keep Bianca at home, seen only by the tutors who he employs to advance her education. Hortensio and Gremio scheme to find a husband for the contrary Katherina. Lucentio, smitten by the beautiful Bianca, hatches a plan with Tranio to gain access to Bianca’s house by changing clothes with his servant and posing as a tutor while Tranio pretends to be Lucentio in order to build Lucentio’s social profile and entertain his father’s guests. When Lucentio’s other servant, Biondello, arrives, Lucentio tells him that he and Tranio switched clothes because he killed a man and has to escape the city. He tasks Biondello with waiting on Tranio and instructs him to refer to Tranio as Lucentio. Elsewhere, the self-assured Petruchio, along with his servant, Grumio, arrives from Verona at his friend Hortensio’s house. Hortensio greets him warmly and learns from Petruchio that he’s come to Padua to find a wife from a wealthy family. Hortensio tells him about Baptista’s daughter, Katherina, but warns him about her ferocious temper. Petruchio is intrigued and vows to make Katherina his wife. Hortensio offers to facilitate the introduction provided Petruchio helps him pass for a music teacher so he can get access to Bianca. The PLAY ON PODCAST SERIES, “THE TAMING OF THE SHREW”, was written by WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE and translated into modern English verse by AMY FREED. All episodes were directed by ART MANKE. Radio play by AMY FREED and LEANNA KEYES.   The cast is as follows:   SUSANNAH ROGERS              as        KATHERINA     ALLEN GILMORE                     as        PETRUCHIO     ANNIE ABRAMS                        as        BIANCA                MIKE McSHANE                       as        BAPTISTA TOM PATTERSON                    as        LUCENTIO KYLE T. HESTER                       as        TRANIO                DANNY SCHEIE                        as        GREMIO and CURTIS J. PAUL BOEHMER                 as        HORTENSIO and PEDANT       ROB NAGLE                                  as        GRUMIO and VINCENTIO KASEY MAHAFFY                        as        BIONDELLO and TAILOR TESSA AUBERJONOIS            as        WIDOW and HABERDASHER   Casting by THE TELSEY OFFICE: KARYN CASL, CSA. Voice and Text Coach: JULIE FOH Original music composition, Mix and Sound Design by LINDSAY JONES. Sound engineering by SADAHARU YAGI. Mix Engineer and Dialogue Editor: LARRY WALSH. Podcast Mastering by GREG CORTEZ at New Monkey Studio. Coordinating Producer: TRANSCEND STREAMING (KYRA BOWIE and LEANNA KEYES). Executive Producer: MICHAEL GOODFRIEND.   The Play On Podcast Series “THE TAMING OF THE SHREW” is produced by NEXT CHAPTER PODCASTS and is made possible by the generous support of THE HITZ FOUNDATION. Visit NEXTCHAPTERPODCASTS.COM for more about the Play On Podcast Series. Visit PLAYONSHAKESPEARE.ORG for more about Play On Shakespeare.   Subscribe to Play On Premium on Apollo Plus for ad-free episodes and join our Patreon for exclusive merchandise and early commercial-free releases. Go to playonpodcasts.com for our Bonus Content, where you’ll find interviews with the artists, producers and engineers who brought it all to life. And remember:  “A woman may be made a fool if she has not the spirit to resist”. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices