The Pirates of Penzance

Many thanks to Preston Gilbert & Sullivan society for inviting me to see their production of Gilbert & Sullivan's The Pirates of Penzance, performed at the Preston Playhouse. The performance I saw was on Friday 8th March 2024. The story revolves around Frederic, who, having completed his 21st year, is released from his apprenticeship to a band of tender-hearted pirates. He meets the daughters of Major-General Stanley, including Mabel, and the two young people fall instantly in love. However, Frederic soon learns that he was born on 29 February, and so, technically, he has a birthday only once each leap year. His indenture specifies that he remain apprenticed to the pirates until his “twenty-first birthday”, meaning that he must serve another 63 years. Bound by his own sense of duty, Frederic’s only solace is that Mabel agrees to wait for him faithfully. 

I must begin with stating this was one of the most enjoyable productions I have seen within my short tenure as a NODA Representative. This is for a few reasons, which I will explore throughout this review. Direction & production was undertaken by Sue Hurrell & Merle Winstanley. There was a fabulous use of staging and spacing throughout the show, with some great choreographed moments, including the use of mime & physical theatre. These helped to build some outstanding characterisations within the cast, and brought a satirical, cartoonesque feel to the production. This almost animated feel to the production drew out the comedy within the work at every opportunity & ensured the storytelling was articulate & readable even for those audience members who were not au fait with the operatic genre. 

Musical direction was undertaken by Robin Stopford whose recreation of this epic score was a truly incredible feat of including conducting the full 15-piece orchestra. This was flawlessly delivered. As expected, the work opened with an extended overture, which flowed from some up-tempo, rhythmic sections to melodic sentiment, giving insight into the material from within the show. Throughout the entire production there was skilful use of blend and dynamics and to add a cherry on top of this, the cast layered a wonderful vocal quality, which melded with the orchestra to fill the theatre with a rich wall of sound. What’s more, none of the cast were amplified using microphones, which is a testament to their ability to project over such a powerful accompaniment. 

The design elements of the production were to a high standard and matched the aesthetic which added additional continuity, aiding the accessibility of the production. There were 2 set locations, the first being a shoreside where the pirate ship is docked. The second was within a cemetery. Both used a white backdrop which was saturated with colour floods & used to depict time of day. Both the set designed were detailed and beautifully decorated & painted, and there was a hidden raised area upstage left, which was used well to create addition visual stimulation the use of levels. Costumes and make up were to a high quality and, again, consistent to the production style & true to the characters and fitting to the period. 

Now to the cast. The entire team worked as a solid, cohesive unit for the duration of the entire show. This camaraderie was another of the reasons why the show was such a joy to watch, reminding me of the community values that theatre brings, evident through the constructive collaboration of diverse energies, presenting as a humble and unpretentious outcome. The chorus had awesome animation to them, and although cohesive, each had individual quirks and character traits which enriched this. When the full cast were singing, the sound was immense, with a wonderful blend in dynamic harmonies. I also want to say what a delight it was to see sure a strong male representation within the cast!  

Major General Stanley was played by Andrew Lyons who immediately demonstrated the pomp of the character. I was impressed with his articulation of the text within the patter and acting through song in ‘Modern Major Gerneral.’ 

The Pirate King was played by Phillip Walsh who had strong gravitas and I adored his gravelly timbre of the lower parts of his register. 

Samuel was nicely played by Michael Stott with good energy driving the narrative forwards. 

Frederic was played by Andrew Gardener who delivery remarkable story telling through both action & reach and had a fabulous, effortless vocal ability. 

The Sergent of Police was played by Martin Cassell who gave a simple, yet comical character, and I loved the sustention of the West Country accent throughout text & song. 

Mabel was played by Amy Hardy who was incredible in this role. She demonstrated impeccable diversity within vocal technique and played the part naturalistically, breaking this at poignant time by adding contrasting elements of slapstick performance, resulting in some witty and impeccably timed comedic moments within her performance. 

Edith, Kate, and Isabel were played by Becky Dyson, Hannah Dashwood & Ann Cooper respectively with great acting, presented through individual characterisations, with articulate, readable displays of inner though processes, which blended to bring their sibling comradery to life.  

Ruth was played by Nicola Walsh who was, quite simply, outstanding in every way in this role. She provided an extraordinary, flawless, grotesque characterisation, which I would describe as somewhere between Mrs Lovett, Madame Thenardier and Nancy, with exceptional retention of character, acting through song & vocal ability, bringing side splitting, endearing hilarity which completement all the themes and styles I have mentioned within this review. 

Thanks again to Preston Gilbert & Sullivan for provide a fabulous, wonderful presentation of this 145-year-old production to life, in a modern and relevant way. It was certainly a triumph for their 70th anniversary as a society. To see the audience packed to the brim and have them actively involved (the lady next to me was humming along) is a testament to the sentiments I have attested to around this societies’ beloved place in the heart of their community. It was certainly a joy to reflect upon and write this review, so I also thank you also for this opportunity. 

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