Ah yes, words matter.
Gilbert and Sullivan’s “Pirates of Penzance” is a zany operetta about duty, love, promises and what we say to each other. At every turn, there’s comic confusion because of some misunderstanding.
Take “pirate” and “pilot.” In the opening scene, that conundrum unravels how a young man mistakenly found himself indentured to thieves. Later, “orphan” and “often” confound the best minds. Throughout, such arguments billow into song. If done with a crisp, light touch, the musical can bubble over with wit.
The Fort Lewis College Theatre Department will open “Pirates” tonight on its MainStage. It’s directed by the fearless department chairman Dennis Elkins, who recently broke both arms skiing and is directing under a tent of a shirt with a show-must-go-on attitude.
Knowing the challenge of staging any G&S operetta, Elkins has chosen a version recalibrated by Joseph Papp and the New York Shakespeare Festival. Papp’s 1981 Broadway production of the classic British romp was so successful, it morphed into a movie starring Kevin Kline as the Pirate King and Linda Ronstadt as Mabel.
Elkins has assembled a spirited college cast with two inimitable community members, Gordon Thomas as Major-General Stanley and Hattie Miller as Ruth, the hard-of-hearing matron. Both figure importantly in the plot. Working with the FLC Music Department, Elkins has also secured an onstage pit orchestra, directed by John O’Neal. Overall musical direction is in the capable hands of Charissa Chiaravalloti and Paula Millar.
Seen in a rehearsal earlier this week, the FLC production aspires to the zest of the original 1879 “Pirates” premiere and the effervescence of its Broadway incarnation.
The fanciful and highly improbable plot centers on a band of loopy pirates who encounter chirpy maidens on the coast of England. The pirates land near Penzance, which, if you’ve traveled, happens to be a real place in Cornwall. It’s Feb. 29, 1897, and the pirates are celebrating the 21st birthday of Frederic, their youngest mate. His apprenticeship ends at midnight when he comes of age. The back story is encapsulated in a song with Ruth. And soon, Frederic surprises his shipmates with his unusual plans. That’s enough to get you started on a voyage into Sullivan’s jaunty music and Gilbert’s dazzling lyrics running like crazy ribbons through his cartoonish story.
A quintet of players form the ensemble’s core: Frederic (an eager and appealing Holden Grace), The Pirate King (the uber-charming, swash-buckling Jonathan Patton), Mabel, Frederic’s sweetheart (the astonishingly talented Johannah Laverty), her father, Major-General Stanley (the very model of a modern rapster Gordon Thomas), and the plot-hinging figure of Ruth (the wily Hattie Miller). In Act II, the central quintet is joined by a bumptious copper, Sergeant York (the lanky, affable Austin Minard). Throughout, the central cast is ably supported by minions of maidens, pirates and constables.
Elkins has pitched the production to surround and engage the audience. Aisle entrances and exits constantly provide surprises. Lively action stops and starts, forming sudden freeze frames that swiftly melt and move on. Because a G&S universe thrives on word play and those pesky misunderstandings, Elkins has instructed his company to articulate under threat of you know what.
Even at rehearsal, it is safe to say that musically, the cast performed several cuts above previous productions. Credit solid coaching and casting. Master costumer Jane Gould and her staff have created a period look right down to high-button shoes. Other creative team members mix 19th century frou-frou with 21st century fizz.
If you’re a Gilbert and Sullivan fan or if you’ve never seen G&S, don’t miss this production. Catchy melodies and literate humor will send you out singing patter songs or humming pretty laments. Next week, I may well hear you humming “I am the very model of a modern major general.”
Judith Reynolds is an arts journalist and member of the American Theater Critics Association.
If you go
What: “Pirates of Penzance,” an operetta by Gilbert and Sullivan, Fort Lewis College Theatre Department, directed by Dennis Elkins.
When: 7:30 p.m. March 24, 25, 30, 31 and April 1; 2 p.m. Sunday, March 26.
Where: FLC MainStage
Tickets: $18 adults; FLC staff, faculty and student information available at www.durangoconcerts.com, Durango Welcome Center, 802 Main Ave., or at the door.
More information: Call 247-7657.
