Gilbert & Sullivan - The Pirates of Penzance / Jon English, Simon Gallaher, Helen Donaldson, Toni Lamond, Derek Metzger, Tim Tyler, Craig Schaffer

This is not the traditional "Pirates", it's true. It's a descendant in spirit of Papp's 1980 New York production, and takes some of the same modern liberties while still standing on its own. So be prepared for a more openly comedic take, and one which breaks the fourth wall early and often. This recording was made well into the production's run, too, so the audience is both aware of what's up and willing to be played to and feed the show's energy.Jon English's Pirate King is, of course, reminiscent of Kevin Kline's; he's swarthy, smarmy, over-the-top and completely unselfconscious throughout the show. Toni Lamond's Ruth is played similarly, and a fine complement to English in all of their shared scenes.Helen Donaldson's Mabel is more low-key, but willing to have fun with her material when appropriate (especially the coloratura on "Poor Wand'ring One" and in the ensemble conclusion of "When the Foeman Bares His Steel") while toning it down for the more "serious" numbers. Simon Gallaher's Frederic similarly is played mostly straight, though again has some openly hammy moments (notably at the end of "Oh, Is There Not One Maiden Breast"). Donaldson and Gallaher also are the strongest voices by far, and have solid enough chemistry to occasionally make the viewer forget they're in a comedy.Derek Metzger as General Stanley holds up well, though his makeup could be more convincing. Tim Tyler's sergeant of police is clearly taking slapstick cues from Tony Azito, but that's not a bad thing, and Tyler's mannerisms and voice are distinct enough to establish this as his own adaptation of the role. And the condensed Edith/Kate/Isabel roles (credited as "The Fabulous Singlettes") bring just the right touch of camp to each of their appearances.The show does run a bit long to accommodate the various gags, including a stupendous number of audience-encouraged encores on "With Cat-Like Tread", but despite that it never feels as if it's dragging. The energy is relentless, from the somersaulting pirates at the opening of Act I straight through to the stepped-up "mega-mix" medley that runs during the credits.Ultimately, though, your reaction to Gallaher's adaptation will come from your own expectations of what "Pirates" ought to be. If you're looking for a more staid and polished production in the tradition of D'Oyly Carte, you'll probably be best off staying away. But if you're open to quite a bit more comedy in your comic opera, you'll find plenty of entertainment here.

Yes, at some time or another in this production, every cast member does some mugging for the audience. Some more than others. Some of it is down right shameless. The thing is, I saw a portion of this on the ARTS cable network before I bought it and read the reviews here so I had an idea what I was getting. I got exactly what I expected. This DVD gives you excellent performers (maybe not great actors) but fantastic performers. The biggest ham is John English as the pirate king. His interplay with the conductor is terrific and as other reviewers have stated, he is not taking his role seriously. If however, you watch the performance it is obvious that every move has been rehearsed over and over and that all these spontaneous acts come off flawlessly. Derek Metzger as the major-general was a bit annoying with his extra antics, but I could live with that. Tim Tyler as the sergeant did a nice job but I especailly enjoyed his bit with (I think they were ping-pong balls)after his first entrance. Simon Gallaher as Frederic was great and Helen Donaldson was the first Maybel I've ever seen that actually seemed to have a personality. Most Maybels are just there looking cute and singing. She actually used expressions starting with her first entrance: Yes it's Maaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyy Bel! Then she got in to the part with the marching song. Hmmm..Good acting and a nice voice. Nice concept. I also would be neglectful if I did not mention the 3 daughters of the Major-General. They indeed tend to chew up the scenery when they were on, but those ladies had some talent!!! This DVD provided exactly what I expected and what I hoped for when I ordered it. This is just 115 minutes of fun. Even the opening overture starts out with the cast having fun with Gilbert and Sullivan. I've read that G & S purists might not like this production. I don't know what a G & S purist is. I love Gilbert and Sullivan and this version did not offend me at all. Maybe I'm not a purist. If you're not a 'purist', don't miss this version of Pirates of Penzance. If you enjoy it once, you will want to watch it again...and again...and again...and...well, you get it. This is an easy DVD to recommend.

This version of "Pirates" is worth the viewing if only to hear the tenor; fantastic control and amazing voice.Most of the play is tossed away carelessly as the principles (Pirate King and & the Major General) never take what they are doing seriously and we are constantly aware that they are aware they are doing a play and are trying ever-so-hard to be funny.The 3 Singlets, cast as the ("8, or 9, or 10 in all") General's daughters are talented singers, but their singing doesn't make up for the fact that they look more as if they should have been cast as Ruth(s) AND they chew (read devour) the scenery whenever they're on stage. Oh. Did I mention that for some inexplicable reason they found it necessary to add a rock n' roll beat to many of the songs?Imagine "Pirates of Penzance" done almost completely for Burlesque and you get the overall impression. If one principle character was overplayed, it might have been cute - this many hammy over-the-top actors and it's just too much. The Pirate King is especially appealing and would have added a certain cache if some of the others had been restrained; notably the Major General who let no sight gag or mugging opportunity slip past him - even those that destroyed character, pace, and plot.The less said about Ruth, the better. I suspect she is an Australian celebrity; I can't think she was chosen for her acting or singing. The Police Sergeant is a skilled contortionist.HOWEVER - the saving grace of the piece are Frederick and Mabel. They are just too darn good to miss.The scenes where the Singlets are restrained, where the Major General is GONE, or the Pirates are on alone work well.If you are prepared for a bit of a roller-coaster ride, this show is worth watching. Just be prepared with the 'mute' or 'fast forward'.

Jon English was a great talent supported by equally good artists

I am a big G&S fan, and know this show very well. This is defiinitely an Australian twist on the show, with some brilliant singing and an overall hilarious presentation. I am very pleased I bought it!

Also schon mal vorweg: mit dem Werk "Pirates of Pensance" von G+S hat diesesgrottenschlechte Machwerk absolut nichts gemein. Eigentlich kann es sich nurum eine Parodie handeln, allerdings im Stile so mancher "Comedians": billigerKlamauk. Nicht mal ein Orchester bekommt man geboten, lediglich einen Band -Elektronik - Mix. Ich habe die CD nach den ersten 20 Minuten herausgezogenund sofort entsorgt. Schade für das Geld !

Firstly, I have to admit to a very wide music taste, but not a lot of opera. I also have a broad sense of humour. I also 'flick' a lot with the TV.Noticing G & S on the Sky Arts channel I stopped to see what it was like - WOW! - the show was very good. After a few minutes the wife and I were completely hooked. It seemed years since we had had such a great belly laugh and were in awe at the antics of Jon English. The rest of the cast were utterly brilliant. The whole experiance must be repeated.After searching the internet for ages for a DVD I finally tracked down a reasonably priced one on Amazon - the only possible drawback seemed to be that it was region 1 not 2. Checking our old machine it said multi-region - Ha! Very shortly we recieved the disc and tried it - Joy! It worked; everything stopped to watch the show again - and again the next night and so on. We have had a G & S night so the word is spreading!If you want to be entertained, the sheer brilliance of this Australian Company is hard to beat. As an operetta it is excellently performed, singing well listenable, but the comedy is just the right level to be really entertaining.We would certainly recommend this DVD.One word of warning - you might laugh yourself silly, you will certainy become hooked!

I like all of it. An A1 cast and performance.