The Pirates of Penzance

Published Wednesday 18 October 2006 at 16:50 by John Thaxter

Peter Mulloy’s authentic revival of the 1880 version, incorporating the original finale to the Broadway premiere of December 1879, will not only please G&S aficionados but also delight theatregoers with its musicality, brilliant wit and sumptuous ‘high Victorian’ settings. And as Mulloy is proud to point out, his touring show is both ‘un-miked and unfunded.’

Those thirsty for Englishness will respond to the way mere mention of Queen Victoria brings a pack of pirates to their knees. They are rescued from ignominy when it is revealed they are peers of the realm.

The costumes for Mulloy’s first Carl Rosa revival were lost in a fire last Christmas but he has taken the opportunity to redesign and rethink his whole production. The overall style is late Victorian, especially the atmospheric ruined chapel of the second act, a mysterious space lit by moonlight and flaming cauldrons. But the pirates, like those in recent movies, firmly belong to the 18th century, powerfully led by baritone Steven Page.

Tenor David Curry gives Frederic an almost Cameronian niceness, just made for Jacqueline Tate’s enchanting Mabel. Meanwhile, a starry Rosemary Ashe as the rejected Ruth has the benefit of a glove puppet show to illustrate her scene-setting song about his early education. But even before that, behind a gauze drop, we are introduced to Barry Clark’s Major-General taking a comic postcard sea-bathe during the overture.

My own special delight was the troupe of Cornish constables, with a spirited Tarantara! and notably Bruce Graham’s Sergeant in a definitive rendering of A Policeman’s Lot is Not a Happy One, combining open-throated delivery with well-timed comedy, plus a perfect Cornish accent - although this outstanding bass-baritone hails from Scotland.