Pirates of Penzance![]() (Broadway version)
Producer : Amanda Howell
Stage Manager : Sue DuPont
Musical Director : Charlie Cain
You're a bobby dazzler, PaulReview by : Richard Parr
It was anchors aweigh on a rip-roaring song and dance adventure at the gala performance of Dereham Operatic Society's jazzed-up Broadway version of the Gilbert and Sullivan favourite. And what a sparkling Saturday evening's entertainment it proved to be, with hard-working cast giving a refreshing vitality to this famous operetta.From the start, the action set a breathless pace that was maintained to the end. This the society's 58th musical was a real tour-de-force, with every individual in the cast contributing to the overall dazzling effect. John McInnes coped well with the demanding role of the Pirate King, with the wonderful Nick Bird as the apprentice pirate (his Elvis cameo was marvellous).Nick's partnership with the lovely Katie Wicks, as Mabel, was a joy to watch. Director Amanda Howell and musical director Charlie Caine can be congratulated on a production that was not only a musical triumph but contained rich strands of comedy.This was particularly so in the appearance of the policemen. Paul Woodhouse, as their sergeant, almost stole the show with his acrobatic antics and "rubbery" arm and leg movements. He was an absolute hoot and a firm favourite with the audicne.David Rees was an admirable Major General, looking every inch the part in his white tropics uniform. The appearance of his beavy of beautiful daughters in their pretty pastel dresses and ribboned bonnets created a colourful vista as they danced and skipped across the stage.In a show full ofwell-known numbers, several stood out, including How Beautifully Blue the Sky, When the Foreman Bares His Steel, With Cat Like Tread and Oh Better Far to Live and Die .SHOW PHOTOS
PRESS PHOTOGRAPHS
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![]() ![]() February 2012
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