Opera review: The Pirates of Penzance at the English National Opera

4 / 5 stars
The Pirates of Penzance at the English National Opera

GILBERT and Sullivan operettas have been murdered for so long by amateur opera companies that they have generally been shunned by "proper" opera houses other than G&S specialists, but Mike Leigh's production of The Pirates of Penzance for the ENO shows what glorious entertainment they can provide.

Opera The Pirate of PenzanceTOM BOWLES

The Pirates of Penzance at the English National Opera

This was generally acclaimed when it was first seen two years ago, but its first revival is even better thanks partly to an inspired cast but also to some lovely comic touches presumably introduced by revivals director Sarah Tipple. 

The plot, as with most G&S, is ludicrous. Through a mishearing of the word "pilot" as "pirate" Frederic has served an indenture from a very young age to a band of pirates. His contract, however, expires on his 21st birthday, and the story begins with him preparing to leave the pirates and return to normal life.

Unfortunately for him, his plans are thrown into disarray when it is found that he was born in a leap year on February 29, so his 21st true birthday will not occur until he is in his 80s.

The audience left the theatre with big smiles on their faces

Meanwhile, however, he has fallen in love with Edith and struggles with his conscience to find a moral solution to his dilemma. 

The pirates meanwhile have their own problems, being too tender-hearted towards orphans, which has become so well known that all their potential victims pretend to be orphans.

Add the very model of a modern major-general and a batch of cowardly policemen and we have all the elements of a typical G&S romp. 

What makes the current production outstanding is the quality of the cast. 

The Pirates of Penzance TOM BOWLES

The Pirates of PenzanceTOM BOWLES

What makes the current production outstanding is the quality of the cast

Both Andrew Shore (Major-General Stanley) and John Tomlinson (Sergeant of Police) are serious opera singers of the very highest quality and to see them letting their hair down and having real fun is a delight.  Add Ashley Riches as a splendidly swashbuckling Pirate King, David Webb as a delightfully innocent Frederic, Soraya Mafi outstanding, in both voice and comic acting, as Mabel, and some of the best, most perfectly disciplined chorus singing I have heard at the ENO and the whole thing is a real delight. 

On the first night, it took a little time for the cast to settle down to enjoying themselves, but once they did so especially after the interval, it was pure joy. When it was over, I noticed the audience leaving the theatre with big smiles on their faces, humming the tunes, a sure sign that the production has worked.

Tickets: 020 7845 9300 or www.eno.org  (in production until March 4).

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