Opus Theatre, Saturday 21st September 2019
In was inevitable that the town famed for its pirates should attract the joyous romp which is Merry Opera’s approach to The Pirates of Penzance. I doubt if in the last fifty years I have ever experienced – including early Doyle Carte and the more recent ENO productions – a presentation so hugely enjoyable and yet amazingly faithful to the original. The comedy, and the many laughs along the way, derives entirely from Gilbert’s text. There are no additional gags to try to make it more relevant. There are no knowing nods towards modernity. Yet the premise of the story still makes as much, or as little, sense as it did then. At the heart of the tale is the question of DUTY, a fact made absolutely clear by the placard which is held up every time the word is mentioned. I need not draw any close contemporary political parallels to state that the concept of duty is just as problematic today as it was then.
At the heart of the approach are two salient ideas. The text is spoken with great clarity and in Queen’s English – a refreshing change for those of us of a certain age – and the choreography is wild and ever present. The pirates can’t quite forget that they are all noblemen who have gone wrong and thus tend to overplay their hands as blood-curdling rebels. Christopher Faulkner’s Samuel is particularly impressive here with a large amount of extraneous arghs and ers. Ashley Mercer’s Pirate King is somewhat more civilized and in many ways seems the most level headed of the crew. Gareth Edmunds’ Frederick displays a charming naivety of manner as well an heroic tenor voice. This is superbly matched by Rosie Lomas’ Mabel for whom the Donizetti-like coloratura has no terrors. Her Poor wandering one was everything bel-canto could desire. Phil Whilcox’ Major General gave us a good humoured old cove with the lighting articulation in the patter song worthy of the best of Rossini. By contrast Matthew Quirk’s lugubrious Sergeant of Police was warm and almost cuddly.
Rosemary Clifford’s Ruth may have, unconventionally, actually looked younger than her 47 years but the accent and slightly raunchy approach were absolutely appropriate.
The clarity of diction from Major Stanley’s daughters was impeccable and the other pirates/lords swaggered with aplomb.
The instrumental arrangement for solo violin, wind and piano by Gabriel Chernick was impressively effective and, within the confines of a close acoustic, more than sufficient to represent Sullivan’s often basic harmonies. Pianist Alexander Maynard, violin Eloise Macdonald and wind player Georgina van Hien did a sterling job and often added surreptitiously to the humour of the evening.
A return to Hastings from Merry Opera can’t come too soon.