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 (Giannini) composing "The Taming of the Shrew" in 1938 while finishing work on his earlier opera, "The Scarlet Letter". He worked sporadically on the opera over the next 12 years; often interrupted by a variety of other music projects and distractions related to World War II that took his attention away from the project. He completed "The Taming of the Shrew" in 1950. In 1954 the NBC Opera Theater filmed a shortened 90 minute version of the opera for television starring John Raitt as Petruchio and Susan Yager as Katharina under the baton of Peter Herman Adler. It was broadcast nationwide