Former Port Hedland resident Joanna Tyler takes on Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shrew at Araluen Botanic Park

Former Port Hedland resident Joanna Tyler is heading to the magical setting of Araluen Botanic Park this November to take part in one of Shakespeare’s funniest plays. The Taming of the Shrew, directed by Paul Treasure, sees Joanna Tyler play the character of Bianca, the most beautiful girl in Padua who wants to get married but her father insists her older sister Katherina be married first. This adaptation of the play set in the 1950’s will open on Saturday at the Roleystone Theatre. Tyler spent 12 years in Port Hedland before moving to Perth for high school. Tyler said when she grew up in Port Hedland in the 1990’s there was a culture of dancing and music in the town. “I got into it through school and then when I left school, I started doing community theatre in Perth and that went through to me doing a degree in performing arts. I just never really stopped,” she said. “There’s a misconception that Shakespeare is high art and while the plays are gorgeous, they are not as fancy as people think, they’re actually highly comic. “Being able to modernise it slightly and set it in the 1950's definitely has an impact on that as well.” Treasure said much of the humour came from headstrong characters trying to outmanoeuvre each other. “There is also a lot of opportunity for some very funny physical comedy and, at the same time, keeping the underlying themes relevant to a modern-day audience,” he said. The play will run until November 14.