But to be honest, I'd have to say that the director (Holly Sargent) miscast many of the roles.

Could you be more specific?

For instance, I don't think Fred Graham/Petruchio (Jim Goldstein) was done well at all. His voice rumbled flatly and his erratic comic timing bothered me. But even more important, he failed to understand Fred's soft side and explore Fred's love for Lilli. This one-dimensional portrayal of the lead, I think, weakened the show.

THE SUPPORTING couple, Lois (Mary Fedor) and Bill (John Stimpson) were thoroughly miscast. Though she looks, appropriately, like an ex-nightclubber, she couldn't sing more than four notes on key. Him, well, he belongs on a junior varsity high school basketball team doing lay-ups instead of prancing around in tights.

Isn't that a little harsh?

Yes. Thank you for stopping me, or I would have criticized the musical director (David Margolin) also.

It's your music.

I think he did a fine job with a tiny orchestra. But he inexplicably cut portions of the score--the prelude to "Wunderbar," for example--and slowed the tempo on several numbers to a despicable crawl. "Another Openin'. Another Show" sounded like a dirge.

You're beginning to sound very negative.

I'll trust you to edit this properly. I still have a few more things to say. Very often, a chorus will save a show. A blend of voices can usually hide the missed notes. Strangely enough, this chorus fails to add much vitality to the show. Chorus numbers dragged, and I laughed at the group tap dance number.

Any last words?

It was an admirable attempt.