"Great Performances" Kiss Me Kate (TV Episode 2003) Poster

(TV Series)

(2003)

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8/10
Fantastic Recording, minus a few odd camera decisions.
AmbitiousAardvark20 June 2006
A fantastic cast and a slew of great performances highlight this version of the 1999 revival.

The orchestrations are top notch, and the choreography is jazzy and energetic.

With Brent Barrett and Rachel York playing the two leads, the performance really painted a wonderful picture, and they sang the score with a gusto that would make any Cole Porter fan proud.

Nancy Kathryn Anderson's Bianca/Lois is sultry and at the same time enticingly comical. "Always True to You Darling In My Fashion" was a powerhouse show stopper.

Michael Berresse was also a stand-out as Bill/Lucentio, especially shining in the dance department.

The only real complaint, is that the camera tends to stay on close-ups of the performers, and rarely backs away to let the viewer see the whole picture. Because of this, some of the brilliant choreography is missed, and the viewer is left looking at a single actor's expression to a dance step off-screen. The dances of the show were choreographed with the audience in mind, meaning that the view-point was meant to be from the front, and oddly-placed profile camera angles during the dance numbers take away from the overall 'look'. This is most noticeable in "Tom, Dick, or Harry"
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8/10
Remember the creators
scottnyc26 December 2006
This is a worthy recording for television of one of the best stage productions I've ever seen (I was lucky to see it on Broadway around 1999).

This being a movie site, it's understandable that the credits above read as they do, but I want to point out that the main creators of this production, which was the best traditional production of a book musical I've ever seen, are inadequately credited or not mentioned at all here.

The stage director, the great Michael Blakemore (who won a Tony Award for his work here) also adapted the material. The brilliant choreographer, Kathleen Marshall, is responsible for the spectacular dances that are the show's greatest element (though every piece of the puzzle, from the costumes and sets to the performances, is superb). Most hilarious is the passing mention of composer/lyricist Cole Porter, who is after all the creative genius that stands as the main creator of KISS ME KATE.

I also wanted to mention that, although everyone is good in this televised version, I missed some of the best performances from the Broadway cast, most notably Brian Stokes Mitchell in the male lead and Lee Wilkof as a singularly hilarious gangster.
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9/10
A terrific stage version, superior to the film
TheLittleSongbird17 May 2014
That is not to knock the film because I for one still thoroughly enjoyed it, especially for the choreography, Howard Keel's voice and Ann Miller. Just that this version has a little more energy, is more complete and with the audience has more of a spontaneous feel and theatrical spirit which is always thrilling. The camera work doesn't really do the production justice, it is very jumpy and there are too many close-ups instead of being expansive. Talking solely about the production, there is actually no real obvious complaint. The sets and costumes are rustic and colourful and the production is beautifully lit. Cole Porter's score is magnificent and one of his best, and the band/orchestra- very stage performance pit orchestra like- play it with great precision without feeling rhythmically rigid. The brass are dominant in orchestration and give it plenty of welly, while being careful to balance. The conducting is capable of energy and intimacy. The choreography in its best moments is absolutely electric, especially in Too Darn Hot which is the very meaning of a blistering show-stopper, very like the song. The dialogue and story, traditional, updated or whatnot would always be witty and charming with an emotional core, and how they're done in this production is no exception at all, and in this regard it is done better than it is in the film. The performances are really top-notch, admittedly you do miss Ann Miller's dancing and Howard Keel's singing but these performances are still worthy, all spirited dancers, strong singers and able actors. Top honours go to Rachel York, who is outstanding in every way. A beautiful woman, she possesses an even more beautiful voice that sounds capable of a hybrid of lyric opera and musical theatre and a real personal charm and warmth. She is a great actress too, she is hysterically funny in places and her emotional moments do pull at the heart-strings. Brent Barrett is a handsome and appealingly charismatic partner, his voice is not as good as Keel's in the film but there is some truly lovely tone that shows good phrasing and nuances. All in all, terrific and superior to the still very entertaining film version. 9/10 Bethany Cox
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10/10
Everything that the 1953 M-G-M film should have been
critic-228 February 2003
At last, somebody has had the good sense to present an excellent, uncut, uncensored "Kiss Me Kate" on television.

Those who are familiar with the classic musical only through the wildly overpraised 1953 film can now see for themselves how much better the show is in its original form. This is the London production of the recent Broadway revival, all two-and-a-half hours of it. The lyrics have been left as Cole Porter wrote them, all the songs are retained, and performed at their full-length, so that we can bask in their gentle naughtiness.

Everything about this production is as good as it could possibly be. While Brent Barrett as Fred Graham/Petruchio does not have the huge baritone voice that Howard Keel has, his voice is certainly quite excellent, and he sings his Act II reprise of "So in Love" with enormous sentiment. His Lilli Vanessi/Katherine is Rachel York, who is not only infinitely sexier than Kathryn Grayson was in 1953, but outacts and outsings Grayson all the way. (Barrett himself also gives a fine acting performance as Fred, investing the character with much more hilarious sneakiness than Keel did in the film version. Their scenes together crackle with a depth and electricity I have never seen in this musical, and their nuances of expression when they recall their happier wedded days bring a very welcome touch to the story.)

The character of nightclub singer Lois Lane--no, not the "Superman" character---has been made in this production into a real floozy, complete with an annoying speaking voice, unlike the ladylike but scatterbrained character than Ann Miller played in the film, and Nancy Anderson is excellent in the role. It makes her "Taming of the Shrew" transformation into the demure Bianca that much more incongruous. Michael Berresse as Bill Calhoun/Lucentio is miles ahead of Tommy Rall's grating, cutesy performance in the M-G-M film. He is very appealing in the role, a fine singer, and an excellent dancer.

The gangsters are every bit as funny as in any other production of this musical, and we finally get to hear the entire "Brush Up Your Shakespeare", with its lyrics getting more and more suggestive with each verse.

"From This Moment On" is sung in this version not by Bianca's suitors, but by Lilli and her new fiancée, here refashioned into a pompous General Douglas MacArthur look-alike with Presidential aspirations, rather than a Texas oil tycoon.

The choreography is brilliant, with a truly showstopping "Too Darn Hot", performed, as it should be, by the black characters in the show. The direction, by veteran Michael Blakemore, is completely assured, and if this production of "Kate" seems slow to some people, perhaps it's because they are used to the 113 minute film rather than this 150 minute staging. (More of Shakespeare's text for "The Taming of the Shrew" is featured in the stage version.)

This "Kiss Me Kate" is deserving of all the acclaim it has gotten, and is one of the finest musical productions PBS has ever broadcast.
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10/10
The definitive production and performances by the leads!
lovesclassics30 May 2003
This is a glorious production of "Kiss Me, Kate." Rachel York and Brent Barrett each bring an underlying tenderness to their characters that makes you ache to see them get back together in the end. Sure, they rant and rave and fight like wildcats, but never do you forget that they love each other. Too many productions of this very funny show make the leads one dimensional and totally unlikable, acting as if they hate each other. This production, directed and performed throughout with tremendous energy and skill, is first and foremost a love story. Everything else - the tongue-in-cheek humor, singing, dancing, orchestration, and even slapstick - is consistent with the passion that emanates from the two leads.

And the two leads are superb. Rachel York has a vocal range that is unequalled in musical theater today. She sings her torchy version of "So In Love" with a heartbreaking sincerity, then belts her "I Hate Men" with raucous wild abandon. She then reaches the stratosphere with her amazing coloratura soprano in her screamingly funny rendition of "Kiss Me, Kate." Brent Barrett proves to be her match every step of the way. He infuses his "Were Thine That Special Face" and reprise of "So in Love" with absolute adoration, but also demonstrates unbridled machismo in "I've Come to Wive It Wealthily in Padua" and "Where Is the Life That Late I Led."

The entire cast keeps up with the pace set by York and Barrett. The show never lets down, and everyone seems to be having great good fun with the unrepressed music and lyrics of Cole Porter. This PBS version of "Kiss Me, Kate" will undoubtedly prove to be a classic, with the performances by Rachel York and Brent Barrett considered definitive. This Broadway revival will be the standard against which all other Kates are sure to be measured. It's a winner.
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10/10
Rachel York is THE star!
kyrie_eleison1 September 2004
The whole musical was wonderfully rendered, I was more surprised than delighted when watching it on Taiwan PTS.

Rachel York is definitely the star of the show, her impeccable layers of tone colours and surprising (again!) varieties of skills ranging from a possible Mozart's Queen of the Night, a Puccini's Mimi, Strauss' Rosalinde, to a Wagnerian Tristan, as very well mentioned in the previous IMDb member's comment.

York is a true actor and a fine musician.

Barrett somehow reminded me of the young Baryshnikov in the ballet version, both were dashing and fun. Baryshnikov was creative and bold enough to break into the theatre from one of the side exits at the audience when he performed in Taipei some 10 years ago, his entrance impressed me profoundly ever since. Barrett made a similar impact on TV, I would be glad to imagine how those lucky people in London felt at that moment. Barrett drew your attention all the time when he sang, acted, or spoke.

If York stole the show, her fellow actors played her guardian angels.

BRAVO!
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10/10
A Musical Masterpiece
reverendherzog27 February 2003
I was just commenting the evening of February 26, 2003 that Great Performances on PBS needed to have more musicals from Broadway. Sure enough that evening KISS ME KATE appeared and completely took me by surprise.

This revival musical had everything that it needed. It started out a little slow, but as it progressed they gave us great music and astounding dancing. The story was well written set against Shakespeare's THE TAMING OF THE SHREW, the music was spectacular as written by the great Cole Porter, and the acting was extremely well done by the entire cast. This show is certainly a must see.

Highlights include: So In Love, It's Too Darn Hot, Always True to You Darling In My Fashion, and Brush Up Your Shakespeare
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10/10
What "The Music Man" (Broderick) should have been.
standardmetal28 February 2003
I saw the original Broadway show but I don't remember much about it. But this "Kiss me Kate" (a London production from the Victoria Theater.) was everything it should be. For my taste, Nancy Anderson as Lois Lane (Bianca, not Clark Kent's girlfriend.) was a bit too much like Marian the Librarian in the other show but she sang well. Brent Barrett and Rachel York (Fred and Lilli) were excellent and Teddy Kempner and Jack Chissick were skilled comedians as the two thugs. Nolan Frederick (?) stood out in the "Too Darn Hot" number and the dancing and acrobatics were terrific. Perhaps the backstage sets came out a bit dark and I really think PBS should not have cut into the end like that to direct everyone to their website. They might have waited a bit more or been less obtrusive. On the whole, a "triumph", as they say, which "The Music Man" was decidedly not.
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8/10
a bit too modernized for my taste
macheath-ny31 December 2006
I first saw this show when it was broadcast live in the 1950's with Alfred Drake and Patricia Morrison, the two leads from the original Broadway cast. I won't be too old fogeyish, but I find the new version, as typified by Rachel York's modernization of inflection in "So In Love" to be a bit overmuch. Admittedly, I'm of the old school, but the bluesy tone just doesn't go with the melody for me. If you want to know what I'm getting at, get ahold of the Drake/Morrison original cast recording. It's too bad that new directors feel they have to imprint their egos not only on the acting and dialog, but the arrangements as well. They might do better to consider Porter the equivalent of Verdi or Puccini, and at least leave the music the way he composed and directed it.
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Once again is not enough
gmcdouga-129 May 2004
I first saw KMK on stage in Chicago in about 1949, saw the movie with Kathryn Grayson (Didn't like her too much - rather unusual for me) but loved the two hoods. James Whitmore was terrifically funny.

I really enjoyed this version since it was far closer to the original show than the Hollywood version was.

Unfortunately there IS a major problem with the script.

To understand many of the references you have to be in at least your 60s because if the WWII references and the immediate post-WWII references.

The General tho was the perfect pompous ass and Rachel York as Lily was outstanding,

As to the comparison with Music Man, let's face it NOBODY will ever replace Robert Preston as Prof Harold Hill, not now not ever. Mathew Broderick is a nice actor, but I would never cast him in that part, NEVER.
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4/10
Poor Cole
fubared18 August 2007
This 'version' of the original makes several really unforgivable mistakes. First is the use of musical numbers written for or used in the film version which were not in the original. Second is the addition of lyrics which extend some of the songs far beyond their welcome (most obviously 'Brush Up', 'Bianca' and 'Always True'). 3rd...and worst...they bring back old-fashioned Hollywood racism, and relegate the black performers to the parts of servants. What they could and should have done was cast a black Katherine or Lois. I'm sure they could have found a much better singer than Rachel York. In fact both leads lack any subtlety or nuance in their performances. I realize the leading man is an over-baked ham, but does he have to play the entire role that way, and the leading lady is equally less subtle in her own overbaked way. In fact 'Lois' is the only actor and singer deserving of her part. Her boyfriend is both bland and a poor singer. He may possess a certain athleticism as a dancer, but athletic abilities aren't what make a good dancer. And who were the 2 queens playing Bianca's other 'suitors'? Couldn't they have found 2 guys a little less gay? And where did they find the 2 stiffs for the 'gangsters'? Wheeler and Woolsey were funnier than these 2 guys...and that isn't saying much.

All in all a big disappointment. Dull direction, awkward and lifeless choreography, mediocre orchestrations, and generally poor casting. They should have stuck to the original.
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10/10
"You bit King Kong and gave him rabies."
Bernie444417 December 2023
Next best thing to see the real thing live. There are other classic versions of "Kiss Me, Kate" and local plays. This "Great Performances": Kiss Me Kate (2003 TV S31. E9) is still a standalone solid presentation.

It was a live performance of the 1999 revival, filmed at The Victoria Palace Theater London, the theatre in which it was staged, and in front of a live audience. A musical based on Shakespeare's "The Taming of the shrew."

Brent Barrett as Fred Graham / Petruchio Rachel York as Lilli Vanessi / Katherine Nancy Anderson as Lois Lane / Bianca Michael Berresse as Bill Calhoun / Lucentio

The presentation is clear, and the sound is well recorded. You do not have to be a Cole Porter fan or even familiar with Shakespeare to appreciate this lesson on the evils of gambling and its consequences.
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10/10
When it comes to Cole Porter and Shakespeare, "Anything Goes!"
mark.waltz19 January 2018
Warning: Spoilers
I don't know if the girls today in society go for classical poetry, but anybody who is interested in classic musical theater and the Bard absolutely loves this peppy send-up on "The Taming of the Shrew", mixing modern day musical theater with that classic comedy. This is the London transfer of the hit 1999 Broadway revival, due for another revival in 2019, which will make it 70 years young. The original Lili Vanessi/shrewish Kate (Patricia Morison) attended the opening night of the 50th anniversary revival, and later sang a song from "The King and I" to its 2014 revival leading lady, Kelli O'Hara, at the age of 100! Ironically, Marin Mazzie (who played Lilli/Kate in the last revival) would replace the upcoming Kate (Kelli O'Hara) in "The King and I", a role that Ms. Morison played on Broadway for more performances than any other actress. Still with us at the age of 102, Ms. Morison might just be around to see this upcoming revival come to fruition, to which I would certainly proclaim "Wunderbar!" to a classic actress I once had the pleasure of dining with.

A picture of Ms. Morison and Brian Stokes Mitchell at the premiere showed the enamored Broadway vet engulfed in his arms as memories of her days singing, dancing, clowning and fighting with Alfred Drake in the original production took ahold of her memories. She got to perform that part on TV twice, once in 1958 with Drake and later in 1964 for British television with the film's Fred/Petruchio, Howard Keel. An amusing meeting with the film's Lili/Kate (Kathryn Grayson) got me the anecdote of her telling me about having been a tomboy in childhood and learning how to play baseball helped her with the 3-D filming of tossing objects at the camera during the "I Hate Men" sequence. Here, the Lili singing it is Rachel York, and she goes hog wild with temperament, throwing (in character) everything she can get her hands on at the male characters passing her by or hiding off stage. Suddenly, her Kate is furious too, finding the card that ex-husband Fred/Petrucchio (Brent Barrett) had left in flowers for someone else that she got ahold of herself. It's obvious that their egos caused the marriage to end, not the lack of love, and that's the theme of this delightful show that might be set in the 40's, but proves that in love and war, all is fair, and nothing changes but the date.

Broadway vets Michael Berresse and Nancy Anderson add the fun, youthful romance to the important secondary characters, Bill/Lucensio and Lois (Lane!)/Bianca. "I would gladly give up coffee for Sanka" is one of the clever Cole Porter rhymes used in this show's fantastic score, and indicates the playfulness going on backstage during a show's rehearsal. Porter always used a subtle blue humor in his lyrics, some that the critics picked up on but older audiences rather naively did not get. A group of gangsters watching Lili to prevent her from escaping all of a sudden steal the show in Act II when they break into "Brush Up Your Shakespeare!" which hysterically mentions practically every play the Bard wrote, cleverly insinuating connections between the titles and male/female bedroom relations. When they break into an encore after the applause dies down, it gets all the funnier, and has become one of the great showstoppers in musical theater history.

While the movie version has been maligned for certain cuts and alterations, I find it perfectly satisfactory, with Grayson and Keel a perfect replacement for Morison and Drake (thankfully preserved through the 1958 TV production), and Ann Miller and Tommy Rall excellent in the second leads. This production may not reflect the original book, and modern touches make it more reachable for audiences in the 2000's. York and Barrett put great heart into their performances, and the cliches that sometimes make old musicals (or even new musicals set in the same time period) seem irritating or cliched. Along with Berresse and Anderson, the ensemble is brilliant, with great dancing coming from the other two "Bianca" admirers, and hysterical comic timing from Teddy Kempner and Jack Chissick as the stage struck gangsters. Colorfully recorded with excellent sound mixing, this is as good a TV production of a classic musical that you can get, and it makes me wish there had more done like this.
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