The Taming of the Shrew Characters

Kate is the title character (the "Shrew") of the play. The eldest and unmarried daughter of Baptista Minola, no man wants anything to do with her because she's got a hot temper, slaps people around...

Petruchio is a wealthy bachelor who is on the prowl for a rich wife. When he hears about Katherine Minola, he agrees to marry her despite (or, perhaps because of) her reputation as a shrew. You see...

Christopher Sly is a drunk and a beggar with a string of menial jobs and an appetite for cheap beer. He talks a lot of trash, likes bar brawls, and has no respect for women. He's also easily duped...

Bianca is the youngest and favorite daughter of Baptista Minola. When we first encounter her, she is surrounded by her doting dad, her jealous sister, and a group of suitors that can't wait to get...

Bart doesn't have many lines but he's an interesting figure. We only ever see him in character in the Induction (he dresses up as a woman and pretends to be Sly's wife as part of an elaborate pract...

Baptista is the wheeling and dealing father in search of suitable husbands for his daughters, Bianca and Katherine. Baptista treats marriage negotiations like a business – his girls go to the...

Lucentio is a rich kid who travels to Padua to top off his education and "see the world." His plans to study and make his family proud are quickly abandoned when he spots Bianca and falls in love w...

Hortensio is Petruchio's best friend and sort of his wingman. (He tells Petruchio about Kate and personally escorts his pal to Baptista's house to seal the deal.) Hortensio is also in love with Bia...

Gremio is an old man who actually thinks he has a chance with Bianca. He's referred to as a "Pantaloon," which is a figure from the Italian commedia dell'arte tradition of slapstick, improv theater...

Tranio is Lucentio's "trusty" servant. Unlike the other servants, Tranio is smart, loyal, and acts as a kind of surrogate father or mentor to Lucentio. He gives all kinds of advice like "Forget stu...

Grumio is Petruchio's old servant. He has a tendency to interpret his master's speeches and commands in the most literal and ridiculous way imaginable. His misinterpretations, however, are responsi...

Biondello is another one of Lucentio's servants, though he's not as "trusty" or as interesting as Tranio. He's obedient to Lucentio and basically does what he's told when Lucentio orders him to pre...

You remember him, right? He's the jerk in the Induction scenes at the beginning of the play – he stumbles across a passed out Christopher Sly and decides to teach the drunken beggar a "lesson...