The Taming of the Shrew:
In the town of Padua, two suitors—Hortensio and Gremio—desperately want to marry Baptista’s lovely younger daughter, Bianca. But there’s a catch: Baptista won’t let Bianca marry until a husband is found for her older sister, Katharina, known for her wild temper and sharp tongue.
Lucentio, a young man newly arrived to town, sees all this and falls head over heels for Bianca. He hatches a clever plan with his servant, Tranio. Tranio will pretend to be Lucentio to plead his case to Baptista, while Lucentio disguises himself as a tutor to get close to Bianca.
Petruchio arrives in Padua with his servant Grumia. He’s bold and daring, looking for a wealthy wife. Hortensio suggests that Petruchio should woo and wed Katharina for her generous dowry, despite her reputation as a shrew. Hortensio will pretend to be a tutor for Bianca.
Baptista accepts the disguised Hortensio (“Licio”) and Lucentio (“Cambio”) as tutors for her daughters, welcomes Tranio (disguised as her master Lucentio) as an additional suitor to Bianca, and gives Petruchio her blessing to woo Katharina.
Katharina resists Petruchio’s romantic advances in a spirited courting scene, but Petruchio convinces Baptista that Katharina secretly professed her love for him, and Baptista sets a wedding date for the couple, eager to be rid of her difficult daughter.
Hortensio and Lucentio each tutor Bianca and try to woo her, using Latin and music to profess their secret love, but Bianca clearly prefers Lucentio.
At Petruchio’s wedding to Katharina, chaos ensues. Petruchio arrives late, wearing ridiculous clothes that shock the wedding party and guests. After a wild wedding ceremony, Petruchio refuses to stay for the reception, whisking his bride away against her will.
-Intermission-
The newlyweds arrive at Petruchio’s house after a difficult journey. Here, Petruchio’s behavior becomes even more peculiar. He throws tantrums over everything the servants do, and plans to not let Katharina eat or sleep, all part of his plan to “tame” Katharina and make her more obedient.
Seeing that Bianca loves Lucentio, Hortensio decides to give up Bianca and marry a rich widow instead. Lucentio’s servant Biondello finds a traveler who Tranio convinces to pose as Lucentio’s father, Vincentio, to help persuade Baptista to allow Bianca to marry into his noble family.
Under Petruchio’s orders, Grumia won’t let Katharina have any food, causing her to lose her grip. A tailor brings elegant clothes for Katharina, but Petruchio pretends to hate the clothes and won’t listen to Katharina’s opinion or allow her to keep them.
The fake Vincentio and Baptista agree to let their kids marry. Biondello arranges for a priest to marry Bianca and Lucentio in secret that night.
On their way back to Padua, Petruchio wears Katharina down by saying things that aren’t true and constantly disagreeing with her. She gets tired of it and finally agrees to do what he says. They meet Lucentio’s dad, the real Vincentio, on the way.
The real Vincentio is surprised to arrive at his son’s house and find an imposter pretending to be him, and is outraged to recognize his servant Tranio pretending to be Lucentio. Bianca and the real Lucentio come back from getting married and tell their parents everything.
At a party to celebrate all the marriages, the men tease Petruchio about marrying a shrew, but he responds with a challenge to see who has the most obedient wife. He amazes everyone when Katharina obeys him immediately. He tells Katharina to give a speech on a woman’s proper duty to her husband. Everyone waits with baited breath to see how she responds.