The Pirates of Penzance
has opened to stellar reviews!
Read on to hear what the critics have to say about MTW's Pirates...
Los Angeles Times
CRITIC'S CHOICE!
June 2, 2007
STAGE REVIEW
'Pirates of Penzance' still rocks
The Gilbert & Sullivan opera receives an enjoyable production in Long Beach.
By Daryl H. Miller, Times Staff Writer
The moral of the story is: Don't judge a pirate by his skull and crossbones. How daffy. How instructive. How sweet. Such a message could be delivered by only one show. No, not "Pirates of the Caribbean." Think back a tad further, to "The Pirates of Penzance," the 1879 operetta by W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan. Though perennially popular, the show had grown dusty and fey until a 1980 New York Shakespeare Festival production gave it a rock 'n' roll edge by casting pop stars Rex Smith and Linda Ronstadt and actor-on-the-rise Kevin Kline. A just-opened staging in Long Beach by Musical Theatre West swaggers with a similar rock-concert attitude and once again casts Smith in a leading role, though this time not as the angel-faced juvenile but as the Steven Tyler-sexy Pirate King. To read more click HERE...
Long Beach Press Telegram
July 3, 2007
A lively, comical crew of pirates
by John Farrell
Special to the Press Telegram
The hilarious, bright and sparkling production of "The Pirates of Penzance" that Musical Theatre West opened Saturday is clearly modeled, in many instances, on the Joseph Papp production on Broadway a quarter century ago. It has one of the same stars, Rex Smith, the same style and broad humor and the original 1879 New York finale, instead of a different and more familiar British ending), but this isn't the Papp version, for it uses a pit band instead of a rock combo and restores cut verses from important songs. Click HERE to read more...
Orange County Register
Friday, July 6, 2007
This 'Pirates' is sea-worthy
Review: The Long Beach staging of the Gilbert and Sullivan classic has great casting and a playful heart.
By ERIC MARCHESE
Special to the Orange County Register
Mention of the words "pirates" and "theater" in the same sentence will, for most, connote the names Johnny Depp and Disney Studios. But for 128 years, the "Pirates" that ruled live theater was created by W.S. Gilbert and Sir Arthur Sullivan. The duo's comic operetta "The Pirates of Penzance" received its world premiere in New York in 1879, was a resounding hit and has endured ever since. And just as it surpassed the century mark, Joseph Papp and his Public Theater of New York revived it on Broadway for audiences of more cynical tastes. Teen idol Rex Smith and rock star Linda Ronstadt were the young lovers, Frederic and Mabel, of that 1981 production – casting that proved not merely novel but, rather, inThe Pirate King's bravado, though, is of the tongue-in-cheek variety. In his low-cut white blouse, tight black pants, high boots and cummerbund, Smith is part blackguard, part rock star. Few "Pirates" characters escape without making themselves look foolish. For Smith, that includes mistiming a leap that lands him in the sea and hopping offstage with his belt around his ankles. Were Smith the only story here, his casting would rate little more than a footnote. MTW, however, has assembled something not just seaworthy but Broadway-worthy, from Steven Glaudini's expansive direction to Jamie Torcellini's engaging choreography and the musical direction of Daniel Thomas, who seamlessly blends Sullivan's score, one of his most durable, with the cast's vocals. Click HERE to read more...
Gazette Newspapers
July 5, 2007
Pirates Perambulate To Pinnacle In “Penzance”
by James Scarborough
Who needs celluloid Jack Sparrow when you have the live rip-roaring, outlandish performances and Empire-majestic, Monty Python-witty story and songs that you do in Gilbert and Sullivan’s “The Pirates of Penzance,” directed by Steven Glaudini for Musical Theatre West at the Carpenter Center? This deft, energetic production captivates you with memorable songs (an unforgettable rendition of “I Am the Very Model of the Modern Major-General”), with death-defying choreography and a sumptuous set. Click HERE to read more...
Backstage West
The Pirates of Penzance
July 05, 2007
By Les Spindle
During the heyday of librettist William S. Gilbert and composer Arthur Sullivan in the 1870s, the pair churned out enormously popular British operettas, introducing what might be considered early forerunners to camp entertainment. How else could one categorize such G&S ingredients as the so-bad-they're-good patter songs, such as "I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General"? Joseph Papp's smash-hit Public Theater staging in the 1980s of The Pirates of Penzance upped the camp quotient in spades, and director Steven Glaudini's melodic and gloriously giddy revival for Musical Theatre West adheres to the same approach. Click HERE to read more...
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