The Pirates of Penzance – Wilton’s Music Hall, London

Music: Arthur Sullivan

LIbretto: W.S. Gilbert

Director: Sasha Regan

For many, The Pirate of Penzance is the acme of Gilbert and Sullivan’s comedic operettas. W.S. Gilbert’s libretto is one of his silliest but funniest, and while Arthur Sullivan would go on to create more outstanding scores in other operas, here he perfectly matches Gilbert’s sense of light comedy.

In the 15th year since it first debuted at the Union Theatre, Sasha Regan’s all-male production continues to lean into the comedy, expertly elevating the jokes at every point. There is inherent humour in an ensemble of muscular young men all playing the daughters of Major-General Stanley (David McKechnie), of course. However, Regan shows that she understands Gilbert’s jokes on the printed page and how performance and sight gags can enhance proceedings.

The story is slight. Frederick (Cameron McAllister) is a 21-year-old in Victorian England about to end his indenture to the eponymous Pirates of Penzance. His apprenticeship resulted from a slip by his nursemaid, Ruth (Robert Wilkes), who misheard the request to let him train to be a pilot. Frederick’s sense of duty is such that, while he will remain loyal to Tom Newland’s Pirate King until the last second of his indenture, he intends to rid the land of pirates once freed.

Throw into the mix that the pirates themselves are honourable (they refuse to prey on vessels lesser than their own and feel compelled to release any prisoners who say they are orphans), that when Frederick meets Luke Garner-Greene’s Mabel and her sisters, they are the first women (except for Ruth) he has seen, and that because he was born on February 29th, his actual release from piracy won’t come until his 21st birthday in 1940, the stage is set for two hours of operetta silliness.

Musical director Giannis Giannopoulos works hard to play Sullivan’s score so effectively, his piano the sole musical accompaniment for the ensemble. In the faded splendour of Wilton’s Music Hall, that score never feels underpowered, save perhaps for the Act II appearance of Lewis Kennedy’s Sergeant and the rest of his police team. Their stomping boots occasionally drown out both piano and the ensemble’s fine vocal performances, but such moments are brief.

And it is the vocal performances that make or break any Gilbert and Sullivan performance. Here, the all-male cast, by necessity, requires a lot of high voices. And while some of the ensemble’s falsetto tones occasionally slip, there are also some accomplished countertenor performances, especially from Garner-Greene as Mabel. With no additional amplification, the occasional phrase gets lost in Wilton’s acoustics. Still, in the main, Garner-Greene delivers a bravura performance that musically compares to many women who have taken on the role.

Opposite her, McAllister’s Frederick is similarly strong musically, although in crowd scenes, he does tend to get lost in the way that a traditional musical theatre hero should not. Partly, that’s down to the costume design, which dresses nearly all the ensemble in the same natural linen colours. Some characters pop – Newland’s pirate king in his embroidered coat or McKechnie’s initial appearance as the Major-General in hunting red – but otherwise, it is charismatic performance that draws the eye.

Such performances abound throughout. Chief among these is McKechnie, who delivers as well-rounded a performance as Gilbert’s script could possibly allow. Wilkes similarly milks the performance of Ruth throughout Act I; although the character falls into the background in the second act, Wilkes ensures her presence is still felt.

There may be niggles here and there – maybe the Pirate King could have more bass in his tones, perhaps the policemen’s knock-kneed fear is a little overdone – but the overall impression is pure joy. Pirates of Penzance is always considered one of the most accessible Gilbert and Sullivan works, and this production affirms that in every way. Unlike the policemen on stage, this audience’s lot is a very happy one.

Continues until 23 November 2024, and then tours