Tag Archives: Lizzi Gee

THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE

★★★★

UK Tour

THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE at Wilton’s Music Hall

★★★★

“A new and mostly fresh-faced cast give their all to this hugely enjoyable show”

At the highpoint of the Victorian era, WS Gilbert and Sir Arthur Sullivan collaborated on 14 hugely successful comic operas, thanks to their being brought together by Richard D’Oyly Carte at the Savoy Theatre. Sullivan wrote the music and Gilbert the words. The duo’s gift for catchy tunes and clever and witty lyrics won them huge success.

HMS Pinafore, The Mikado and The Pirates of Penzance have long been out of copyright and remain firm favourites for amateur companies around the world. So far, so familiar. But what happens when you freshen up these old warhorses and stage them with an all-male cast?

Since 2009 London-based director Sasha Regan has been doing just that, first at the Union Theatre, which she founded, and subsequently on tour around the country and to Australia. When asked why an all-male cast, she once said she loves their innocence. “Like a bunch of fresh-faced schoolboys, they have an energy that is infectious”. That fizzing energy rocked Wilton’s Music Hall last night.

A new and mostly fresh-faced cast give their all to this hugely enjoyable show, injecting much delightful scampering campery into the already irreverent old story. David McKechnie (the very model of a modern Major-General) is the only cast member to have appeared in Sasha Regan’s show before and his version of the most famous patter song (think the original rap) is a tour de force.

Thanks to the direction and some ingenious and ultra-precise and always enchanting choreography by Lizzi Gee, the cast occupy the entire theatre most enjoyably. From the opening scene where the troupe of white clad performers bowl energetically on to the stage through the auditorium, their movement is a delight.

Amongst the best known numbers in the show are ‘When a felon’s not engaged in his employment’ (a Policeman’s lot is not a happy one) – sung with great gusto by a knee-trembling chorus of Policemen, and ‘Hail poetry’ a beautiful rendition of this a cappella anthem.

These choruses are well-suited to an all-male cast. The greatest challenges are in the female roles, where Sullivan wrote some beautiful bel canto tunes. As Mabel, Luke Garner-Greene makes an impressive stage debut, gamely tackling the considerable falsetto challenge. Robert Wilkes as Ruth has some terrific comic moments. Tom Newland is the living embodiment of the swaggering pirate king and Cameron McAllister has a fine voice and touching innocence in his performance as Frederic.

Right down to its cheesy ending when all’s right in this shining take on the Victorian world, Sasha Regan’s The Pirates of Penzance is a delightful don’t miss.


THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE at Wilton’s Music Hall

Reviewed on 31st October 2024

by David Woodward

Photography by Mark Senior

 

 

 

 

 

 

Previously reviewed at this venue:

THE GIANT KILLERS | ★★★★ | June 2024
A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM | ★★★★★ | April 2024
POTTED PANTO | ★★★★★ | December 2023
FEAST | ★★★½ | September 2023
I WISH MY LIFE WERE LIKE A MUSICAL | ★★★★★ | August 2023
EXPRESS G&S | ★★★★ | August 2023
THE MIKADO | ★★★★ | June 2023
RUDDIGORE | ★★★ | March 2023
CHARLIE AND STAN | ★★★★★ | January 2023
A DEAD BODY IN TAOS | ★★★ | October 2022

THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE

THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE

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A Christmas Carol

★★★★★

The Old Vic

A CHRISTMAS CAROL at the The Old Vic

★★★★★

A Christmas Carol

“The quality and theatricality of this production is unparalleled”

Few pieces of literature have had such a profound impact on how we think of Christmas today as Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. Has the festive season truly begun unless you’ve read the book, seen a TV adaptation or listened to the Great Gonzo and Rizzo the Rat tell their version of events? With so many adaptations across different mediums it’s hard to pick favourites, or see in advance what another one might bring to the table.

Enter Matthew Warchus’ production at the Old Vic, now in its fifth year at the venue and with US, Irish and Australian versions on the roster. Having passed the poster for the show many times over the years, I have cynically thought this production would be more about fattening the goose of the Old Vic at a time of thin gruel for theatres. This may well still be true, but there are more joyful reasons I am now sure this show comes back, year after year.

The quality and theatricality of this production is unparalleled. The auditorium of the Old Vic is transformed with a cross-shaped stage to bring the audience in to the action, quite literally, with mince pies and satsumas handed out by ushers and actors before they seem to spontaneously start to perform. Recognisable carols are sung by the cast throughout, elevated by the tinkling of handbells and supported by a string quartet some of whose members occasionally grace the stage to play the fiddle alongside the chorus. It leans in to the best parts of live performance with aplomb – audience interaction, mesmeric set and resonant live sound to fully immerse the audience in Dickens’ Victorian Southwark.

“The final act is full of Christmas magic that will have you gasping in awe”

Eccleston is fearsome as Dickens’ miserly Mr Scrooge, a character whose name and exclamation of ‘Bah Humbug’ have become shorthand for anti-Christmas sentiment. He embodies the tight-fistedness of the role, striding across the stage sweeping his tattered coat behind him and adding a Shakespearean flair to his enunciation. Jack Thorne’s adaptation gives more depth to Scrooge’s backstory, finding the cause of his fastidiousness to finance in the debt-ridden woes of his father and desire to provide for his first love Mr Fezziwig’s daughter, Belle, artfully portrayed by Frances McNamee.

One of the reason’s this 180 year old story is so enduring is its message of hope and charity. Who couldn’t be moved by the Cratchit family? It’s not just Tiny Tim, adorably portrayed by Freddie Merritt as one of four actors on rotation, but the warmth and adoration of Rob Compton as Bob Cratchit for his darling wife despite the meagre mealtime offerings that warms the hearts of the audience and Mr Scrooge. His evolution to a man who “knew how to keep Christmas well” is delightfully uplifting with so much to see and be excited by. The final act is full of Christmas magic that will have you gasping in awe as a result of Rob Howell’s set and costume. Full credit due to the expertise of the full crew for delivering such a thrilling production.

Isn’t a production like this just what we love about Christmas? The ritual. The repetition every year of the same decorations, carols, movies. It allows us to live in a world where nothing has really changed, everything is simple, and there is promise that we can reset and start over again. No matter what there is to come or what has gone before, we are safe in the knowledge that at this time of year we know the next line, and the one after that. No matter if it’s Christopher Eccleston, Michael Caine, or Suranne Jones delivering it. Make this show a Christmas tradition, particularly if you have young children. It converted this Scrooge and will you too.


A CHRISTMAS CAROL at the The Old Vic

Reviewed on 22nd November 2023

by Amber Woodward

Photography by Manuel Harlan

 


 

 

Previously reviewed at this venue:

Pygmalion | ★★★★ | September 2023

A Christmas Carol

A Christmas Carol

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