REVIEW: The Taming of the Shrew at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-on-Avon

TRAVELLING across the hundreds of years since the Bard first put quill to paper this is one of those comedies that easily stands the test of time, especially when director Gregory Doran puts what is his special stamp on it.

This delightful production see Mr Doran getting the entire cast to wring the very last vestiges of humour from every line and facial expression.

If you've had a bad day at the office, been irritated on the road or seen your favourite football team lose a vital game, then head for the RSC and give your spirits the kind of lift this production most certainly will.

Perhaps these days some might frown on what is, after all, hardly a politically correct play but only hard-line femininists would surely take offence.

Kate, the shrew who has to be tamed, eventually 'succumbs', I suspect on her terms, posing enough mystery as to who manipulated who.

Alexandra Galbraith has the voice and face, let alone the stage presence and talent, to make her role as Kate quite memorable, while Jasper Britton's Petruchio has the authority and the warmth to win over both his Kate and the audience.

A rumbustious show with a lively support cast containing several other exceptional performances. You could go through so many names -- such as Rory Kinnear's Tranio and Christopher Godwin's suitably ageing would-be suitor of Kate's prettier and younger sister. He could easily have doubled as a Shakespearean Bruce Forsyth.

Great fun, and a great night out.

Alan Wallcroft