‘Taming of the Shrew’ gets new look

Audience members attending the April 12 performance of “Taming of the Shrew” were surprised to see that the stage in the Snow Fine Arts Auditorium had been transformed into a scene from the Wild West.
The UCA Theatre Department took the Shakespearian play and, with the exception of the script which was unchanged, turned it into a western.
The play, according to the program notes, was originally written around 1592 and was written to be performed in a town in Italy during the Renaissance era.
Director Chris Fritzges took this play and translated it to be more relatable to a southern audience.
Audience members such as sophomore Allison Hillis seemed to enjoy this rendition of “Taming of the Shrew.”
“I think it went well,” she said. “The play was done really well, but there wasn’t a big turnout. The actors seemed spot on and for the first performance, it was well put together.”
Hillis said she enjoyed this production even more than the others done by the theatre department in the past.
“I think it was definitely unique,” she said. “I think it was easier to understand than most of the others, through the humor. The Shakespeare language was definitely easier to understand.”
Two large, roll-away props were used in the production. One of which featured the main town scenery on the front, including the jail and saloon, and the other, on the back, served as the backdrop to a dinner table.
Junior Jennifer Hicks was the wardrobe head and did the makeup design for the production.
She said she thought opening night was a success and that she was glad they didn’t have any big problems. She also described the difficulty of making the costumes for the play.
“I think what was really challenging was how much was built in the shop,” she said. “We have a large stock so a lot of things are usually pulled and altered but for this show we built vests for all the men, skirts for all the women, jackets, dresses and more. I was in charge of patterning and stitching Gremio’s jacket. I’ve never patterned before so that was the most challenging thing for me.”
One distinctive make-up characteristic that was hard to miss was the fact that some characters wore very large noses.
“The production has a commedia dell’arte inspiration so the noses are in reference to commedia masks,” she said. “They help add to the comedy of the show.”
Hillis said she thought the effect was successful because the noses were interesting and served the right purpose.
“They were definitely noticeable,” she said. “I think it showed just a humorous approach since the only people that had them were the old man, Tranio and Vincentia.”
The crowd applauded loudly as the actors got on stage to take their bow. A loud roar could be heard throughout the crowd as the two main actors, Adam Bennett and Ashli Brown, took the stage for the final bow.