★★★★☆ A terrific cast in an exuberant semi-staged production of a quaintly old-fashioned show.

Concert Hall, QPAC
November 12, 2016

Cole Porter’s loosely-based musical version of Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew may have been an inspiration for the Bernstein/Sondheim version of Romeo and Juliet. Although Kiss me, Kate does not attempt to replicate the original story as West Side Story did, it does have a glorious score and some great music, as one would expect from one of the masters of American popular song. Songs such as Another Op’ning, Another Show, Why Can’t You Behave?, Too Darn Hot, Always True to You in My Fashion, Brush Up Your Shakespeare plus the glorious love songs, Wunderbar, Were Thine That Special Face and So in Love, demand great singing. And this we got in spades in this breathless and exuberant semi-staged production by Opera Queensland.

^{Jason Barry-Smith and Naomi Price with the cast of Opera Queensland’s Kiss Me, Kate. Photo by Steve Henry}

Attracting real-life husband and wife team, Peter Coleman-Wright and Cheryl Barker, opera royalty in Australia, to sing the leading roles of Fred Graham/Petruchio and Lilli Vanessi/ Katharine, was a...