Rating: 
Summary: wow
Review: im a major musical theatre fan, and up till seeing this performance, i thought that this show was so-so. Suddenly, when watching this on pbs, my heart drops. Brent Barret and Rachel York are made for these roles and make these roles. And Nancy Anderson great laugh. From Tom, Dick, and Harry to Kiss Me Kate this show is incredible. Rachel York does the perfect "So in Love" and Brent Barrett does an incredible "So in Love (reprise.) The only thing that i tend to think was annoying was that some of the dance sequences and songs seem to last forever. But for any musical theatre fan, I would definatly recommend.
Rating: 
Summary: Frantic and unfunny
Review: In all honesty, if you saw Brian Stokes Mitchell, Marin Mazie and the rest of the gang in the lead roles, then go and watch this... of course, it would be hard not to be disappointed. Mitchell in particular has a persona that can electrify a room by a mere harmless stage entrance... In fact, that was my impression of seeing him in KISS ME KATE, straight from RAGTIME... The second he made the walk on stage, I was like "wow..." - - With that said... Kiss Me Kate is no more... and like most musicals, the "original broadway recording cast" moved on long before the play itself ended. - - The jury... a FANTASTIC cast as long as you don't compare it with the original of that production - - but as is true with most musicals, the camera simply doesn't do it justice. - - For some reason, when it comes to broadway musicals, the human eye is superior to even the most well directed of camera men... And this is doubly so in a musical like Kiss Me Kate which is such a madcap and fast moving musical you'd think that Cole Porter was on high doses of Amphetamines and Moxie cola when he wrote it. Overall : The verdict... I enjoyed the Broadway Revival Production (w/ Stokes/Mazie/Spanger, etc.) more than the movie... but yes, if you're going to compare one cast to another... yes, you're bound to be disappointed... but if you simply watch it without the comparisons, this cast and performance is well worth the money... and unless you have a time capsule and can travel back in time a couple years... this is as good as it gets.
Rating:
Summary: A madcap musical too quick for the cameras...
Review: In all honesty, if you saw Brian Stokes Mitchell, Marin Mazie and the rest of the gang in the lead roles, then go and watch this... of course, it would be hard not to be disappointed. Mitchell in particular has a persona that can electrify a room by a mere harmless stage entrance... In fact, that was my impression of seeing him in KISS ME KATE, straight from RAGTIME... The second he made the walk on stage, I was like "wow..." - - With that said... Kiss Me Kate is no more... and like most musicals, the "original broadway recording cast" moved on long before the play itself ended. - - The jury... a FANTASTIC cast as long as you don't compare it with the original of that production - - but as is true with most musicals, the camera simply doesn't do it justice. - - For some reason, when it comes to broadway musicals, the human eye is superior to even the most well directed of camera men... And this is doubly so in a musical like Kiss Me Kate which is such a madcap and fast moving musical you'd think that Cole Porter was on high doses of Amphetamines and Moxie cola when he wrote it. Overall : The verdict... I enjoyed the Broadway Revival Production (w/ Stokes/Mazie/Spanger, etc.) more than the movie... but yes, if you're going to compare one cast to another... yes, you're bound to be disappointed... but if you simply watch it without the comparisons, this cast and performance is well worth the money... and unless you have a time capsule and can travel back in time a couple years... this is as good as it gets.
Rating: 
Summary: Sheer pleasure
Review: Kiss Me Kate was probably Cole Porter's best work. He himself rated Sam and Bella Spewack's book the best ever. And Shakespeare kicked in the rest of the words. It doesn't get any better than that. The cast is terrific, the production superb, choreography awesome, and no pit orchestra ever sounded better. The film work is the best I've seen of a stage production since the PBS tape of "Carmen" at London's Covent Garden a few years ago.
If watching this doesn't put you in a good mood you need serious help.
Rating:
Summary: Very disappointing.
Review: Looked forward to this a great deal. Own the very well done transfer of the 1953 movie version. Saw the recent stage revival production twice at the Kennedy Center. This version has a very competent cast, but not the equivalent of what I experienced in the live performances I saw. Strangely enough, in this video production, there are several shots of a full-house audience, but it appears the production was actually taped w/o an audience. No curtain calls, for example. To compound this, the audience reaction (laughter, applause, etc.) is only audible selectively here and there throughout. Also, I find the TV/Video approach to be rather annoying. That is to say too many close-ups. I mean real close-ups, so close one can almost see tonsils! Overall, not bad for a rental. On my copy, the DTS version is missing its left surround track.
Rating:
Summary: Been there, Done that
Review: On Thursday, August 22 2002 we had reserved seats in the third row stalls of the Victoria Theatre, London. On the window of the box office was a notice the performance was being videoed, and if we desired, our money would be returned. We did not desire. Cameras were everywhere [one right over my head] and as expected, the individual cast performances were stellar, staging was original and bright. Having seen both the original Kiss Me Kate, and dinner theatre renderings, this was by far the very best.
Rating:
Summary: THE Definitive Production and Performances by the Leads!
Review: The recent PBS version of "Kiss Me, Kate" is an absolutely glorious production of this classic Broadway musical comedy based on Shakespeare's "The Taming of the Shrew." Standout performances and a brilliant directorial vision combine to make this THE very best production ever. The DVD of this Great Performance will rule for ages. Rachel York as Lilli/Kate and Brent Barrett as Fred/Petruchio each bring an underlying tenderness to their off-stage characters that makes you ache to see them get back together in the end. Sure, they rant and rave and fight like wildcats, just as their on-stage counterparts do. But never do you forget that they love each other. Too many productions of this very funny show-within-a-show make the leads one dimensional and totally unlikeable, acting as if they hate each other. This production, directed by Michael Blakemore and performed throughout with tremendous energy and skill, is first and foremost a love story. Everything else - the tongue-in-cheek wit, superb singing, vibrant dancing, innovative orchestration, and even bawdy physical humor - 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 ultimately reaches the stratosphere with her amazing coloratura soprano in her screamingly funny rendition of "Kiss Me, Kate." Matching her every step of the way is Brent Barrett. 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 chemistry between York and Barrett is palpable, even on DVD. They accentuate their volatile relationship with unexpected touches of genuine endearment, such as an unconscious tender brush of an arm during "Wunderbar" or a glistening tear in the eye during the finale. The entire cast keeps up with the pace and tone 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. It will surely be the standard against which all future Kates are measured. It is an unabashed winner.
Rating: 
Summary: Broadway by way London and Tokyo
Review: This is a Japanese TV (NHK Network) taping of an American musical performed in Britain by a multinational cast. The British supporting players generally nail their American accents, but sometimes lose their comic timing in the process. The stage production is okay but uneven. The taping is lousy. This is the second NHK recording of a musical I've seen (the other was the Broadway "Victor/Victoria"). In both cases the line-production and editing decisions were poor -- or perhaps they were decisions that cater well to the aesthetics of a Japanese viewership but don't export well to the West. Obviously, it *is* possible to tape a stage musical well for TV and to capture most of the show's impact (viz Showtime's 1982 "Sweeney Todd," PBS's 1990 "A Little Night Music," etc.). But from now on, if I see the NHK name on a disc of this sort, I'll pass.
Rating:
Summary: Great play, okay production, crummy recording
Review: This is a Japanese TV (NHK Network) taping of an American musical performed in the UK. The British supporting players and chorus generally nail their American accents, but the characters' Americanness feels forced at spots. On the positive side, you still get Cole Porter's fantastic songs in a far more complete form than the 1950s film version provided, and the script holds up surprisingly well after all these years. In other words, this stage production has its good and bad points. However, the taping for television is mediocre. This is the second NHK Network recording of a musical I've seen (the other was the Broadway "Victor/Victoria"). In both cases there were very poor decisions as to choice of camera angles, when to switch from long shots to closeups, and editing in general. To be fair, NHK's target audience is not American, so it may just be a matter of differing tastes and aesthetics between East and West. Either way, I didn't much enjoy this telecast.
Rating:
Summary: Great play, okay production, crummy recording
Review: This is a Japanese TV (NHK Network) taping of an American musical performed in the UK. The British supporting players and chorus generally nail their American accents, but the characters' Americanness feels forced at spots. On the positive side, you still get Cole Porter's fantastic songs in a far more complete form than the 1950s film version provided, and the script holds up surprisingly well after all these years. In other words, this stage production has its good and bad points. However, the taping for television is mediocre. This is the second NHK Network recording of a musical I've seen (the other was the Broadway "Victor/Victoria"). In both cases there were very poor decisions as to choice of camera angles, when to switch from long shots to closeups, and editing in general. To be fair, NHK's target audience is not American, so it may just be a matter of differing tastes and aesthetics between East and West. Either way, I didn't much enjoy this telecast.
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