Kiss Me Kate
Broadway Musical
Previews October 25 1999
Opened
November 18 1999
Closed December 30 2001
Run 28 previews | 881 performances
Running Time 2 hrs 30 mins | 1
intermission
Tickets $60 to $90
Prices do not include any taxes,
service charges or other charges
Performances
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Mon
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Tue
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Wed
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Thu
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Fri
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Sat
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Sun
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2:00P |
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2:00P |
3:00P |
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8:00P |
8:00P |
8:00P |
8:00P |
8:00P |
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Creative Sam
Spewack & Bella Spewack book | Cole Porter music
| Cole Porter lyrics | Kathleen Marshall choreographer
| Michael Blakemore director
Cast Carolee Carmello | Burke Moses |
Janine La Manna | Michael Berresse
Opening Cast Marin Mazzie | Brian Stokes
Mitchell | Amy Spanger | Michael Berresse
Another opening and Oh! What a show!
The first full Broadway restaging of Kiss Me Kate since its
1948 opening is a rousing success. No small part of the success is
the respect shown the original show by the current production team.
They did not try to improve, they did not try to update, they did
not try to jazz it up for younger audiences. The new Kiss Me
Kate is as empty headed as the first, a fun night on the Great
White Way. Probably pretty close to what the going-to-see-a-show
experience was 50 years ago
The setting: Baltimore tryouts of Taming
of the Shrew. The setup: The two stars, divorced from each
other, constantly bicker and backstab. A couple of plug-ugly
gangsters trying to collect on a bet. An American Noises Off
if you will. This last of the American musical-comedies for
musical-comedies sake bars no jokes and makes no apologies. The Sam
and Bella Spewack book is a throwback delight; the audience doesn't
have to think, just laugh. And just tap their feet to the Cole
Porter score. The original producers were taking a gamble on Porter
at the time (a gamble on Cole Porter?), his type of musical show had
gone out of style. He threw everything he could into Kiss Me
Kate and 50 years later audiences again hoot and howl
Bryan Stokes Mitchell and Marin
Mazzie are dazzling in the leads, opening up and allowing themselves
to become caricatures. Both show great range in styles; Mr Mitchell
might well be able to extend his popularity to movies, a la Nathan
Lane
Bottom Line Have some fun. Go
see a show
Notes The original production of Kiss
Me Kate opened December 30, 1948, at the New Century Theater.
Heading the cast were Alfred Drake, Lisa Kirk, Thomas Hoier and Don
Mayo
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