Tag Archives: Gilbert and Sullivan

HMS Pinafore
★★★★

King’s Head Theatre

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HMS Pinafore

HMS Pinafore

King’s Head Theatre

Reviewed – 16th April 2019

★★★★

 

“a wonderful example of the mastery of Gilbert and Sullivan’s waggish, Victorian wit and beautifully accessible melodies holding up to time”

 

Often disparagingly relegated to second division opera, Gilbert and Sullivan’s works, in collaboration with Richard D’Oyly Carte, consciously moved away from improvised music hall entertainment to develop a niche genre of English light opera using familiar, stock characters and chorus in ‘topsy-turvy’ plots; ‘HMS Pinafore’ is one of their earliest and best-known productions, which pioneered this innovation. Their first international hit, it satirises the unqualified in positions of power and the stigma of social status in relationships. Both the Rt. Hon. Sir Joseph Porter and Captain Corcoran have unmerited ranks of authority and when the Captain’s daughter falls in love with a common sailor, attitudes are challenged in true ‘G and S’ style. The Charles Court Opera Company cleverly brings to life the timelessness of these issues by fast-forwarding to the 1950s and adapts the reduced cast by submerging the crew in a submarine.

The vocal individuality of the company paints a colourful picture of the tangled web of privilege and prejudice and each singer brings a facet to the stage – in particular, Joseph Shovelton’s ease and comic timing as Sir Joseph Porter, Hannah Crerar’s (Bobstay) radiant voice and presence, Alys Roberts as Josephine, maintaining sobriety with a moving “The Hours Creep on Apace” and Catrine Kirkman’s quirky Cousin Hebe who, single-handedly, makes up for Sir Joseph’s original gaggle of female relatives. The ensembles are generally well-balanced throughout, though Matthew Kellett as Dick Deadeye is sometimes overpowered in the company songs and Jennie Jacobs’ (Buttercup) projection fluctuates with her change of register.

Transferring HMS Pinafore to the recent past with Rachel Szmukler’s functional, retro set and bright, vintage costumes and incorporating more contemporary choreography (Damian Czarnecki), director John Savounin builds a fittingly up-to-date adaptation. The acting is perfectly attuned to the size of the venue and the variety of moods creates a captivating fluidity, combining with David Eaton’s musical expertise to illustrate an ironically significant point without losing the enjoyable, traditional charm; only, perhaps, without a ship of men, does the corresponding role of Buttercup become somewhat ambiguous within the modern set-up. This is a wonderful example of the mastery of Gilbert and Sullivan’s waggish, Victorian wit and beautifully accessible melodies holding up to time in an amusing and enticing evening. William and Arthur would undoubtedly be tickled pink to see how little life has changed since they wrote Pinafore and particularly the current feelings and poignancy of mocking pride in “He is an Englishman”.

 

Reviewed by Joanna Hetherington

Photography by Robert Workman

 


HMS Pinafore

King’s Head Theatre until 11th May

 

Last ten shows reviewed at this venue:
Brexit | ★★★★★ | November 2018
Buttons: A Cinderella Story | ★★★★ | November 2018
Momma Golda | ★★★ | November 2018
The Crumple Zone | ★★ | November 2018
Outlying Islands | ★★★★ | January 2019
Carmen | ★★★★ | February 2019
Timpson: The Musical | ★★★ | February 2019
The Crown Dual | ★★★★ | March 2019
Undetectable | ★★★★ | March 2019
Unsung | ★★★½ | April 2019

 

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Iolanthe – 4 Stars

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Iolanthe

Iolanthe

Richmond Theatre

Reviewed – 16th May 2018

★★★★

“There is an assured originality to Regan’s take on the proceedings”

 

Following on from ‘HMS Pinafore’, ‘The Pirates of Penzance’ and ‘The Mikado’ Sasha Regan continues with the winning formula of an all-male cast with her revival of “Iolanthe”. The triumph of this concept is that it transcends the ‘gimmick factor’ of men trying to be girls. Instead, each member of the fine cast fully inhabits their character, irrespective of gender. While remaining faithful to the spirit of Gilbert and Sullivan, there is an assured originality to Regan’s take on the proceedings.

Torches flash in the darkness of the auditorium as a motley crew make their way to the stage as though breaking into an old schoolhouse. They discover an old copy of Gilbert and Sullivan’s “Iolanthe”, from where the journey through the absurd and gloriously silly story begins. Twenty-five years previous to the action of the opera, Iolanthe, a fairy, had committed the capital crime of marrying a mortal. The Queen of the Fairies, however, commuted her sentence to banishment, on condition that Iolanthe leave her husband and never see him again. Her son, Strephon, now twenty-five has grown up in the mortal world despite being half fairy and is engaged to marry Phyllis – the ward of the Lord Chancellor. But being a mere shepherd, he is not thought worthy by Phyllis’ guardian. Further mayhem ensues when Iolanthe, who has not aged in the quarter of a century, has her exile revoked and is reunited with her son.

As haywire as Gilbert’s libretto is, it is juxtaposed with perhaps the most beautiful of Arthur Sullivan’s scores. This combination makes for a compelling evening. Musical Director, Richard Baker provides the sole accompaniment at the piano, a device that highlights the melodies and allows the voices to take centre stage. That said, though, there were moments that begged for a more varied sound track to stir up the dynamics. But what it lacked in light and shade was compensated for by the quality of the singers. Close your eyes for a moment and it is easy to forget that this is an all-male cast. There is a purity to the finely tuned falsetto that is genuinely moving.

Christopher Finn’s ‘Iolanthe’ has an extraordinary quality to his voice that stands him out, despite having a lesser share of the spotlight than the title character merits. But it is very much an ensemble piece; and each actor, whether in the male or female registers handle the harmonies and the quick-fire patter of the lyrics with ease. And all this marvellous singing is done with their tongues firmly in their cheeks. Only a top notch team can afford not to take itself too seriously in such a relaxed manner. Mixing a fairy story with political satire is always going to be a tall order but this show wins us over with its own eccentric mix of magic and mastery.

 

Reviewed by Jonathan Evans

Photography by Harriet Buckingham

 

Richmond Theatre

Iolanthe

Richmond Theatre until 19th May and touring

 

 

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