The Pirates of Penzance
Music by Arthur Sullivan
New Arrangements by Kevin O’Donnell
Libretto by W. S. Gilbert
Directed by Sean Graney
Produced by the-hypocrites
At Chopin Theatre’s downstairs studio
Reinvented Pirates of Penzance sinks into sloppy parody
Director Sean Graney’s wild take on Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Pirates of Penzance comes off as more of a college frat and sorority prank than an operetta. Upon entering the promenade-styled runway setting, we see a group of Beach Boy look-a-likes dressed in short shorts playing guitars, hardly a Gilbert & Sullivan setting.
Once the performance begins, we quickly become haunted by awful singing and poor musicianship that butchers Arthur Sullivan’s melodic music. I guess I’m too much of a traditionalist to appreciate Graney’s humor because I think he took a polished, witty, and humorous classic and reduced it to a fumbling parody. His production is filled with actors who are not singers, who sport terrible British accents, and who have limited music skills making his Pirate of Penzance 80 minutes of torture for me. The standing throughout didn’t help.
I must confess that the opening night audience seem to laugh and enjoy the show which can be a dangerous thing since those who attend this show who are not familiar with Gilbert & Sullivan may think that Graney’s production is authentic G & S – which it is not. I guess those who hate G & S will enjoy the deconstruction of a classic operetta.
A parody of a satire can work if you have excellent singers and musicians capable of doing justice to the work. In this case, the material is over the heads of the cast. Robert McLean is a fine actor who is miscast as the Pirate King and Sergent of Police since he is weak singer. The same holds for Zeke Sulkes as Frederic. The only legitimate singer here is Shawn Pfautsch who should of been cast as Fredic but was reduced to an ensemble role. Christine Stulik’s shrill voice hurts her as Ruth and Mabel. The only somewhat bright spot comes from Matt Kahler who almost lands the famous patter song “I am the very model of a modern Major-General” – almost; he does garner many laughs.
The 80 minute one act contains too much needless movement that forces the audience to move about creating poor sight-lines for many. I’m not a fan of promenade staging. The story has too much mumbling and campy acting making for a confusing storyline. I believe if your going to mount an operetta, please cast experienced musical comedy performers and musicians. You can do parody and over-the-top satire of a classic – just use expert singers and musicians. Why make such a melodic score and such witty libretto suffer? If you see this show, remember it is NOT a typical production but a deconstruction. To many, it’ll play as a funny mock of G & S. Just be warned.
Somewhat Recommended
Tom Williams
At Chopin Theatre, 1543 W. Division St., Chicago, IL, tickets $28, Senior/students $14, call 773-989-7352, www.the-hypocrites.com, Thursdays thru sundays at 7:30 pm, Sundays at 3 pm, running time is 80 minutes without intermission, through January 30, 2011
Here is a sample from a classic production of Penzance:
God forbid anyone makes fun of the INCREDIBLY stupid Pirates of Penzance! This play is ridiculous to begin with, so for it to ever be produced at ALL is a boon for those men. I was there on opening night and had a great time because the play is irreverent and actually funny, not playing to old math and misspelling jokes, but now we know your type of comedy! LOL!
I’m glad you enjoyed the show. I crave good singing and strong music in my operettas and I didn’t find it in that production. As I said, it seems to play to the haters of G & S.