The Mikado

Published Monday 4 February 2008 at 09:55 by Paul Vale

The town of Titipu is subject to its fair share of intrigue but none more so than when the Lord High Executioner offers the hand of his ward to a penniless wandering minstrel. Gilbert and Sullivan’s immortal tale remains as fresh as ever and whilst this particular production adds little that is new, it has pace, humour, remarkably ornate costumes and bright, colourful settings.

Andrew Rees and Charlotte Page work well together as the lovers Nanki-Poo and Yum-Yum. The very Welsh Rees hit a few surprise bum-notes to begin with but soon settled into the swing of things whilst Page demonstrates a fine vein of humour behind a delicate soprano voice. No stranger to the role of Ko-Ko, Fenton Grey is a wonderful comedian who reiterates the sense of lower middle class in the character. Roberts is on a roll here, from his little list of very twenty-first century miscreants to his superb, mock-melancholy Tit-Willow. Bruce Graham has a face that appears to have been created to play Pooh-Bah, the haughty Lord High Everything Else and Sophie-Louise Dann makes a perfectly pitched Pitti-Sing, who really does appear to be filled to the brim with girlish glee.

Nichola McAuliffe as Katisha appears a little weak at first, but gradually warms to the role culminating in a rather touching Alone, and yet alive. Casting Alistair McGowan is a masterstroke and his Mikado of Japan is a joyous amalgam of every politician or royal he might have impersonated on television. Director Peter Mulloy should be congratulated for upholding an honourable tradition perhaps, rather than creating new theatre.