The Vintage Theatre Company’s Shakespeare troupe The Rustic Mechanicals will kick off their spring mini-tour this Friday night in Clarksburg.

 

Founding Producer and Artistic Director Jason A. Young cordially invites audiences to enjoy William Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew presented by The Rustic Mechanicals on Friday, February 27 at 8:00 p.m. at the Uptown Event Center in downtown Clarksburg, West Virginia.

 

“I am very excited for the Mechanicals’ season to get started,” said Young. “They have three great shows and tours planned for this year, and The Taming of the Shrew is such a fun way to kick it off.”

 

The Taming of the Shrewis a fast-paced farce about a sibling rivalry and the courting and marriage of a more than difficult would-be wife.

 

Baptista, a rich merchant of Padua, announces that his fair young daughter Bianca will remain unwed until her older sister Katharina, a hellish shrew, has wed. Lucentio, a student and the son of a wealthy merchant of Pisa, has fallen in love with Bianca. He poses as a tutor of music and poetry to gain entrance to the Baptista household and to be near Bianca. Meanwhile, Petruchio, a fortune-hunting scoundrel from Verona, arrives in Padua, hoping to capture a wealthy wife. Hortensio, another suitor of Bianca, directs Petruchio's attention to Katharina. When Hortensio warns him about Katharina's scolding tongue and fiery temper, Petruchio is challenged and resolves to capture her love. Hortensio and another suitor of Bianca, Gremio, agree to cover Petruchio's costs as he pursues Katharina.

 

“The Taming of the Shrew is labeled as one of Shakespeare’s earliest works and also one of his three ‘problem plays’,” said Young. “There have been many productions that use this play to examine gender politics and gender roles, but we are producing in the spirit that we believe it was intended: a funny night of relationship-based comedy entertainment.”

 

The Rustic Mechanicals are the only Shakespeare troupe in West Virginia. Led by troupe director Celi Oliveto, they began in the summer of 2014 with their Shakespeare in the Parks touring production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream followed by the original Halloween avant-garde production of Toil & Trouble.

 

Their 2015 season will feature a troupe of 17 actors mounting touring productions of The Taming of the Shrew, Much Ado About Nothing, and MacBeth.

 

Troupe members perfuming in the upcoming tour of The Taming of the Shrew include Celi Oliveto, James Matthews, Gretchen Ross, Michael Vozniak, Trina Byard, Kaleb Straley, Sasha Bohon, Steve McElroy, Lanette Six, and Craig Snider.

 

In addition to their performance Friday night, The Taming of the Shrew will also play the St. Augustine Social Center in Grafton on Friday, March 6 at 8:00 p.m.; the Marion County Senior Citizen Center in Fairmont on Friday, March 13 at 8:00 p.m.; and the Monongalia Arts Center (MAC) in Morgantown on Saturday, March 14 at 8:00 p.m.

 

All tickets are $10. For more information, call 1-855-VTC-8588 or email VintageTheatreCo@gmail.com.

 

“The Mechanicals make Shakespeare accessible to the audiences of North Central West Virginia, “ said Young. “They present it in a way that everyone can understand and enjoy.”