at New Empire Theatre until Saturday 28th April
Little Theatre Club’s Pirates of Penzance is a joy to watch and
hear with its strength in every department and shows the work of the club at its
best at the New Empire Theatre this week with performances until Saturday (April
28).
Doreen Goodfellow’s production shows how really good LTC are chorally in this
Gilbert and Sullivan and leading the vocal stakes among the soloists is Ryan
Taylor as Frederic, the pirates’ apprentice who at his coming of age vows to
give up his foul trade but finds it more difficult than he might have expected.
His newly found love Mabel (Sarah Parmenter) is equally strong vocally and like
Ryan makes the whole thing look almost effortless.
Then there is Paul Allwright’s wonderfully over the top Pirate King and Sally
Lightfoot’s nicely played Ruth, Frederic’s middle-aged nurse who signed him up
to piracy in the beginning.
John Onslow obviously relishes the chance to play the Major General with the
tongue twisting numbers this entails, while the cowardly comic policemen
choreographed by Beverley Onslow nearly bring the house down with their antics
led by their sergeant strongly played and sung by Dave Lobley.
Overall Beverley’s effective choreography adds a lot to the whole production
which goes with a swing without any awkward pauses.
Some of the most impressive numbers include Mabel and the Girls’ Poor Wandering
One, I am the Model of the Modern Major General sung in double quick time by
John Onslow. and With Catlike Tread, which includes nearly the entire cast.
Musical director Paul Green leads a really good pit orchestra who add the
important final touch to this high standard Pirates and Penzance.
It deserved all the applause it received on its opening night and left everybody
happy and buzzing as they left the theatre.
JOHN GILES