William Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew is one of the most classic comedies throughout all of literature. Several stage productions have been professionally done, and each version has it positive sides and negative sides. This paper will be about comparing and contrasting the two versions I have seen. I have seen the Elizabeth Taylor version that I'll be calling the "movie version" and I have seen the one we watched in AP English. Even though both versions are telling the same story the way in which they do it and the director's interpretation are very different from each other.

Both versions of the play I have seen have several similarities, but really are more different from each other than similar. One semi-important scene both versions leave out is the introduction, with Sly the beggar. Both directors must have decided that these scenes really don't help the play much and it would be best if they are left out. Another thing I noticed is when Kate smashes a lute on Hortensio's head he runs around when the smashed lute around his neck. That's really about where the similarities stop. Almost all of the other aspects of both plays are different from one another.

First off just the general characterization of some main characters is way different from each other. In the movie version Petruchio is cast as kind of a grizzled older man while in the play version, he was a young man sowing his wild oats. Kate is played as pretty much a total psycho in the beginning of the movie version. In the play version she is very shrew, but at least she isn't destroying everything she sees. The version we watched in class was very true to the play, I wish the say could be said for the movie version. There are several scenes and lines that are left out of this version, and on top on that a bunch of scenes were added for possibly "dramatic effect." This was kind of distracting, but I suppose if one didn't know the play very well then it wouldn't be that big of deal. One part I did enjoy in the movie version that was kind of implied in the play version was when Kate was getting married and Petruchio gives her an obnoxious kiss.

Both versions of the play were good for different reasons. The play version was better in one is a true conusor of Shakespeare. While the movie version was good if one just likes a good story that makes one feel all warm inside. The play version was far superior in accuracy, but it still didn't have young Elizabeth Taylor.