VO's Pirates of Penzance a festive, ridiculous escapade

The Pirate King and the Major General
[Photo by Tim Matheson]

Watching Pirates of Penzance by Vancouver Opera was like watching an episode of Monty Python or an old skit from SNL. Some of the jokes may have aged with time. The clothes and the hair have definitely aged with time. But as with any timeless form of comedy, the audience still gets it and everybody gets a good laugh.

PIRATES OF PENZANCE
Vancouver Opera
Queen Elizabeth Theatre
Dec 1-9, 2012
Tickets via [VancouverOpera.ca]

In the spirit of the Holidays, I took mother with me to catch the opening show of Pirates. Upon our arrival to the theatre, we were amused to find a rowdy bunch of pirates roving amongst the audience crowd. There no onstage supers in Pirates, instead they add some flavour to the pre-show, resulting in some rather varied reactions from the Opera-going crowd. Of course mother and I couldn't resist grabbing a shot.

Mom poses with the Pirate supers

The highlight of the night was by far Christopher Gaze's updated "I Am The Very Model of a Modern Major-General." In a brilliant turn by Vancouver Opera, some of the lyrics had been updated to be more current. And not just current, tailor-made to be very relevant to the Canadian, Vancouver-based crowd. The unexpected nature of the lyrics change had the entire audience laughing out loud and cheering for what was already the most popular number in the entire opera. The original lyrics to the song can be found within the pages of the show's program, complete with explanations of the more obscure references. However, to catch the updated version you have to go and see the show for yourself.

Bard on the Beach's Gaze as the Major-General
[Photo by Tim Matheson]

In Act 2, the baritones of the Vancouver Opera chorus manage to win the crowd with their physical comedy and comedic timing. As a group of bumbling police officers, led by Giles Tomkins, they manage to sing through a complex series of slapstick moves, all without missing a beat. The comedy within the show overall is often dependent on physical humour, and there were numbers where the movements weren't as large or a polished as it could've been. The baritones however, prove that they are more than just deliciously deep voices.

The drag queen moment of the show comes from Rachel Fenlon's entrance in Act 1. Seriously, what an entrance. Everything from her voice, her shimmering golden curls, to her pure white gown screamed "Me! Stare at me!" A product of Vancouver Opera's Young Artists Program, Fenlon proves to the Opera scene that she was indeed a choice candidate for the program. My own mother was quite impressed, more than once whispering to me how "effortless" Fenlon's soprano was.

Ruth (Judith Frost) and the Pirates of Penzance
[Photo by Tim Matheson]

Pirates was first performed in New York in 1879, and for an opera that's been around for more than a century, proves that some stories just never go old. You have your feisty cougar chasing after the young hottie. The Major-General would probably have been the Octomom of his time if reality TV existed. The flamboyant Pirate King paved the way for Johnny Depp's own famously flamboyant Pirate. Also, I'm pretty sure the opening of Act 2 with all the daughters in their nightgowns was the closest thing they had to a lingerie fashion show back in 1879.

If you're looking for a festive show to lighten up your holiday season, check out Pirates of Penzance.

Posted by Filipina Colada