The Taming of the Shrew in performance reviewers as being extremely physical. Lunt and Fontanne were the most famous celebrity couple of the time, and their backstage fights were rumoured to be just as ferocious as their on-stage performances. So legendary did the tempestuous reputation of the couple become that Cole Porter's 1948 musical "Kiss Me, Kate", about a fiery couple attempting to stage an adaptation of "The Taming of the Shrew", was based on their real-life antics. In the latter half of the twentieth century, the play has been frequently staged all over the world. Some notable productions include: "The Shrew"s popularity on stage has continued
The Taming of the Shrew Shrew" and "A Knack to Know a Knave" as supporting a date of composition prior to June 1592. Stephen Roy Miller, in his 1998 edition of "A Shrew" for the New Cambridge Shakespeare, agrees with the date of late 1591/early 1592, as he believes "The Shrew" preceded "A Shrew" (although he rejects the reported text theory in favour of an adaptation/rewrite theory). Keir Elam, however, has argued for a "terminus post quem" of 1591 for "The Shrew", based on Shakespeare's probable use of two sources published that year; Abraham Ortelius' map of Italy in the fourth edition of "Theatrum Orbis