Political satire is all the rage right now. Desperate times call for merciless punditry, all the better to ease the chaos that rises like Noah’s flood. Terms like: “partisanship”, “tribalism”, “unruly” and “insurrection” barely seem to cover it. If it all. To the rescue comes Lauren Gunderson with The Taming, a cunningly constructed fable. Three women find themselves somehow in a rather wild dialectic on the foundations of democracy and constitutional government. Gunderson has written a smart, glib allegory on how practical, decent, too often polarized folks can coexist. The Taming is entertaining, if not altogether substantive.
Patricia and Bianca find themselves held prisoner in an upscale hotel room, with no idea how they got there. Patricia works for a carnivorous, ultraconservative senator. Bianca is a left-wing progressive liberal, who writes a very successful blog. Both have the fierce courage of their convictions, and once the other is identified as an arch-nemesis, the litany of name-calling ensues. The two square off, while trying to ascertain how they’ve found themselves in this posh prison, nursing brutal hangovers. Enter Katherine, Georgia’s contestant for the Miss America Contest. Not only is she a devoted, articulate patriot (as are the other two) she is on a crusade, to salvage our sinking society. Gracious and respectful though she may be, she refuses to parole Bianca and Patricia until they work out a manifesto to restore America to its former integrity. Such as it was. The three embark on an excursion to colonial times, when the forefathers were hammering out the details of the Constitution.
The program notes explain The Taming is Gunderson’s spin on Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shrew, which struck me as odd. Shakespeare’s comedy considers male versus female dynamic; dominance and capitulation to the alpha. While Gunderson’s comedy is nothing if not feminist. If Katherine has the upper hand it’s nothing to do with her gender or sexual orientation. If anything The Taming mocks these stereotypes, which is fine, because, it is a spoof.
Director Cheryl Denson has juggled the elements of bickering, optimism and subversiveness with great skill, using the considerable strengths of Kimberly Michelle Thomas, Leslie Marie Colins and Jenna Caire to best advantage. The actors evolve as the narrative does, skillfully avoiding the appearance of contrivance. Denson handles the improbable premise with a light, yet firm touch, sailing through without missing a note.
WaterTower Theatre presented: The Taming: October 13th-24th, 2021. 15650 Addison Rd, Addison, TX 75001. 972-450-6232 Boxoffice@Watertowertheatre.org