John-494

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.

I was so excited when I first bought H.M.S. Pinafore on Video. It is one of my favorite musicals, along with many of the other Gilbert & Sullivan operas, but when I watched it for the first time, I was somewhat disappointed. Most of the cast does a really good job with their respective roles. What really infuriated me was Frankie Howerd's interpretation of Sir Joseph Porter. For one thing, he didn't sing a single lyric, he actually spoke through them. When the chorus came in between his solo lines, it didn't make any musical sense. That most definitely would have made Sullivan, who was very adamant about his music being heard, very angry. Another thing he did was ad-lib most of his lines, something Gilbert, being the strict man that he was, would not have allowed. He also had a very annoying speaking voice which I could barely stand listening to. Peter Marshall has a great singing voice and would have otherwise been perfect for the role of Captain Corcoran. Even though he was good in the singing and the dialogue, his manner was too childish. He lacked the dignity that the Captain traditionally has and thought it more suitable to dance around like a five-year-old at a birthday party. I thought it made him look like an idiot. Also, the woman playing Buttercup didn't have a strong singing voice. To me, it sounded like she took a breath between every single word in her aria at the beginning of the show. She also kind of over did it with the acting business toward the end. The rest of the cast was really good. The only minor disappointment I had was that the man playing Rackstraw didn't hit the high note in his recitative leading into the first act, but that's not really a big deal. He was terrific, otherwise. Not the best in the series, but at least it completes the collection.

I'll be honest, I never watched this show while it was on the air. In the past I never cared much for TV. Then I went off to college last fall and I had all this free time on my hands. So what else could I do, but watch television. Then one day I happened to catch this show and I loved it. Since then, every weeknight at 6:30 it's a ritual for me to sit down and watch Mad About You. Paul Reiser and Helen Hunt are the perfect TV couple. I know they're not married in real life, but they make it so believable on the show. Helen Hunt does an especially great job playing Jamie. It's no surprise that she won numerous Emmys for the role. Up until I saw this show, my favorite sitcom was I Love Lucy. The shows back in the fifties and sixties are considered to be some of the best of all time. Then along came Mad About You. I felt that most '90s sitcoms lacked creativity and originality. Mad About You had all the qualities of a great sitcom and it will be remembered for years to come. That's why I believe that it's the best sitcom ever!