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Kiss
Me Kate
Kiss Me, Kate tells the tale of two once-married,
now-divorced musical theater actors, Fred Graham and Lilli Vanessi,
who are performing opposite each other in a Broadway-bound musical
version of William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew, in the
roles of Petruchio and Katharina. Already on poor terms, the pair
begin an all-out emotional war midperformance when Lilli discovers
Fred sent his latest fling, Lois Lane, Lilli's wedding bouquet.
(Lois plays the role of Bianca in The Taming of the Shrew.) The
only thing keeping the show together are threats from a pair of
gangsters: Lois's steady boyfriend (and the show's Lucentio),
Bill Calhoun, loves to gamble, and to avoid the responsibility
of paying his debts, has signed Fred's name to an I.O.U. Gangsters
have come to collect on it, and this show will provide the money
that Fred needs to avoid getting his fingers broken. Fred, in
turn, uses the gangsters to prevent the furious Lilli from walking
out on the show after she discovers that the wedding bouquet was
really meant for Lois and throws a tantrum, prompting Fred to
literally spank her onstage. In classic musical comedy fashion,
madness ensues, and both pairs of lovers are ultimately reconciled.
Fred and Lilli presumably re-marry.
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