Gilbert & Sullivan's THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE

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Friday, June 21st, 2024
June 21 at 7:30pm June 23 at 2:00pm

The Pirates of Penzance was first performed in New York City 145 years ago. It is one of the most popular of William S. Gilbert and Sir Arthur Sullivan’s musicals and has been performed frequently by opera and repertory companies worldwide.

The Victoria Gilbert & Sullivan Society presents the beloved operetta with musical direction by Peter Butterfield and staging by Heather Lee. The semi-staged concert includes the complete cast of characters, a choir of 30 voices, and all the dialogue, accompanied by piano

. Pirates is a delightful representation of theatre of its time, and its silliness and send-up of the British class structure make it as entertaining now as it was at the turn of the last century. Gilbert’s wit and Sullivan’s memorable score have ensured its enduring popularity. The show is endowed with Victorian hit after hit: “For I am a Pirate King,” the policemen’s “When the foeman bares his steel” and Mabel’s coloratura aria “Poor wand’ring one.” Patter songs are a Gilbert and Sullivan trademark, and The Pirates of Penzance features the most famous of them all, “I am the very model of a modern Major-General.”

The musical is set in 1880 and the plot centers on the dilemma of young Frederic who, as a child, was mistakenly apprenticed to pirates until his twenty-first birthday. Since he was born in leap year on February 29, he is honor bound to remain a pirate until the distant date of 1940, despite his moral objection to piracy. Helping Frederic to deal with this unusual predicament are the brash Pirate King, Ruth (the pirates' maid), romantic Mabel, and the delightfully dotty Major-General Stanley.

Soprano Hannah Nickel makes her Society debut as Mabel in this production. Originally from Alberta, Hannah has a Master’s in Voice from Western University, and was a finalist in the Marista Brookes Concerto Competition. She has performed in numerous concerts and operas throughout her singing career, most recently with Pacific Opera in Ainadamar. Hannah has also performed the titular role in Suor Angelica, as Pitti-Sing in The Mikado (Western Opera), Marianne in Tartuffe (Opera NUOVA), Cathleen in Riders to the Sea, and Lucy Lockit in The Beggar’s Opera (University of Lethbridge).

Joining Hannah Nickel in the cast of Pirates is another newcomer, Joe Scheubel as Frederic. They share the stage with G&S Society veterans -- Inge Illman in her role debut as Ruth, Adrian Sly as the charismatic Pirate King, and Peter Houghton as the muddled Major-General. Ron Skelton takes on the role of the Sergeant of Police and Dale Sakayama plays Samuel. Mary Irwin, Megan Maher, and Eliza Sorenson play Edith, Kate, and Isabel, respectively.

Pianist Robert Jan Dukarm ably performs Sullivan’s beautiful score.