The Pirates of Penzance

It was in high school when I first saw the Pirates of Penzance. But it was performed by high school students who were, as a whole, unexperienced in the medium of musical theater. Some of them could sing, some of them could act, but not all of them could do both. (It was also kind of hard to make out what they were saying). So naturally, I didn't enjoy the performance all that much. Years later, in the present day, I rediscovered this opera after seeing a college production of The Mikado which sparked my now dominant interest in Gilbert & Sullivan. When I bought this video, I had no idea what was in store. For almost two hours, I was glued to the television and afterwards I could only utter a single word: "Wow". The performers are exactly as I picture them whenever I listen to the soundtrack. One stand-out in the cast is Keith Mitchell in the role of the Major General. He came right in and executed that famous patter song, "I am the very model of a modern major general," with absolute gusto and expression. The only real complaint I had with this video is that one man in the gentlemen's chorus was noticibly flat, which didn't make the policemen's song, "when a foeman bares his steel," as enjoyable. Other than that, the opera was perfectly cast, each performer giving a very solid performance.

This is a filming of a stage production, and not a very good stage production. The sets looked nice but that's about it. Frederic is played but a middle-aged effeminate man; we're supposed to believe he's 21 and in search of love. The Pirate Kings' (and the majority of the casts')lack of acting skills leave every comedic line flat, dropping the audiences interest to boredom. The leads' vocal talent is severely lacking; Frederic, Pirate King, Ruth... all horrid. The show should be energetic and full of life and excitement, but the lack of direction leaves you yawning and waiting for intermission. Seek out the Kevin Kline & Linda Ronstadt, Angela Landsbury version (1983), you'll be much happier.

Of the five productions I have seen of "The Pirates of Penzance," two of them being high school productions, this is the worst. Most of the actors simply dash off their lines without any expression whatever. Keith Mitchell in the role of the Major-General is an exception, I thoroughly enjoyed his performance, and Gillian Knight as Ruth was an absolute delight. I did not enjoy Alexander Oliver as Frederic. He seemed bored with the character. The Pirate King, played by Peter Allen, was passable, but not exceptional. The chorus of women was excellent, but the men were mediocre. I would recommend the 1985 version done by the Stratford Company or even the ridiculous 1980 TV move over this production.

Brent Walker's series of Gilbert & Sullivan productions for "Opera World" had its hits and its misses. This is one of the misses. It does have its good points. Both Ruth and the Major General are done very well. Other than that...the cast is most certainly not a great one and the sets are distractingly bad. The worst of the cast would be Peter Allen's truly abysmal Pirate King. He seems pulled out of a Vegas act and is lost in the world of G&S. The Stradford festival did a very good production of Pirates, do yourself a favor and watch that instead.

A truly awful film. I first saw the Kevin Kline version and went looking for others, but so far have found none as good. This version is particularly flat. Peter Allen's Pirate King dashes off his lines as if reading them for the first time. Frederick could hardly seem less concerned about the beloved comrades he's doomed to death. The fortissimo 'With Catlike tread' is barely audible. The leap year recitation in the crypt is hurried through without any attempt to develop its comic potential. The dancing is poor when it's there at all. The only good thing was the singing of Mabel, better by far than Ronstadt's performance.