Calgary\u2019s Full Circle Theatre is flipping the script on a Shakespeare play, performing an adaptation that\u2019s anything but a classic staging.<\/p>\n
The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare has a pretty controversial premise to the modern eye. The main plot follows a willful woman who must be placated and \u201ctamed\u201d before she can be convinced to marry.<\/p>\n
However, mind games and physical manipulation of hunger and thirst for coerced betrothal just don\u2019t play as well now as they did in the 1500s.<\/p>\n
But Full Circle Theatre artistic director Erin Weir says while the show is problematic, they still wanted to do it because of the witty repartee.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are these amazing scenes, the banter, this is some of Shakespeare\u2019s best banter,\u201d she explained.<\/p>\n
So they came up with a way to flip the script.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was like, you know what? Let\u2019s just do it. Let\u2019s just gender flip it, and we\u2019ll see what happens,\u201d Weir says.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd maybe it\u2019ll still be problematic. Like maybe it\u2019ll still make people really mad, but at least people will be talking, and we\u2019ll find something out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another reason for the swap is more practical and works out well for the Calgary theatre community.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are so many talented femme-presenting actors in Calgary who do not get opportunities,\u201d Weir says. \u201cWhy are we going to do a show where we have to cast fifteen male presenting actors?\u201d<\/p>\n
She says the flip changes the way scenes play out and shifts the ending, too. In the original, the romance between the leads is questionable. Here, with a man playing Catharina, renamed Cade, the dynamic leans toward genuine connection.<\/p>\n
In true Full Circle Theatre fashion, this adaptation is anything but a classic Shakespeare staging.<\/p>\n
Director and dramaturge Kaylee Rigget expands the concept by relocating the play to a \u201cromantasy\u201d setting. Most of the characters are Fae and live in a fairy world.<\/p>\n
Full Circle Theatre is an indie company that draws on professional talent as a space to play and experiment. Audiences can expect a labour of love driven by professional skill and attention to detail.<\/p>\n