The Murray State University Department of Music and Department of Theatre and Global Languages presents the hastily written, but nonetheless carefully crafted, two-act Gilbert and Sullivan operetta, The Pirates of Penzance. The director of the show and several cast members visit the Sounds Good studio to discuss the upcoming production.
The Pirates of Penzance, or The Slave of Duty, follows the story of a young man, Frederic, who was indentured to a band of ineffective-but-raucous pirates in his youth. On his 21st birthday, the term of indenture is lifted, and he leaves the pirates, declaring he "loathes piracy." A leap-year birthday on February 29th and discrepancy between '21st birthday' and '21st year' throws a wrench in Frederic's quest for a beautiful woman to wed and a life void of piracy to follow.
Pirates is one of the best-known works from collaborative duo, W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan. The operetta premiered in New York City on December 31, 1879. It was also turned into a 1983 feature filmwith, among others, Angela Lansbury, Linda Ronstadt, and Kevin Cline. Cline performed the role of the Pirate King, which has served as an inspiration for Wayne Hogue, the MSU student playing the same role in the local production, who says "[Cline] is my favorite actor, so it was really kind of cool to step into a role that he has played."
Maribeth Crawford, Ph.D., Murray State professor of voice and director of the operetta, also has personal experience with this wacky and whimsical show. "My first experience with Pirates of Penzance was with Cleveland Opera Theatre. I sang Mabel in the Pirates of Penzance...six years ago. I did a lot of Gilbert and Sullivan with that company in the spring. We usually had a show at a small theatre, and I just really fell in love with that collaborative duo."
"I think when people think opera, they get a little nervous about [it]. So maybe the best way to put this is it's a good gateway to get into opera if you've never been to an opera. I use that term really lightly because Gilbert and Sullivan is not to be taken seriously. It is very, very much a farce. They make fun of grand opera conventions. I think all the students have had a lot of fun poking fun at high society arty form. If you really, really like Broadway, you like musicals, you will really enjoy this because it is not elitist in any shape or form...I really encouraged the performers to kind of go down the path of acting badly," Crawford laughs. "They're not supposed to take themselves seriously at all, so we really kind of played on that. If you've ever seen a Mel Brooks movie or Monty Python, it's kind of in that vein."
Pirates of Penzance features several tunes that "are recognizable in this show...people might not realize that they know [it], but when they hear them, they will sound familiar," says Emma Whitt, Murray State student who plays Ruth in Pirates. "A lot of these tunes have been featured in cartoons, in commercials," Crawford adds.
"The theatre and music departments...collaborate each fall to do a show, and we usually have it on rotation. So we'll do a modern musical, we'll do something kind of like a Golden Era musical or warhorse," Crawford explains. "This slot was slighted to be an operetta, and I thought, you know, I just want to do something fun and something audiences will enjoy and not anything super long because sometimes, operettas tend to be long. The run time for this show - with a 15-minute intermission - is about an hour and 45 minutes. So it will be very entertaining for all audiences. [You can bring] family. I'm bringing my children."
Whitt encourages those who haven't heard of this operetta, or perhaps have and haven't enjoyed it, to approach the upcoming production with an open mind. "I was not as big of a fan of Pirates of Penzance before this experience. I have seen the film adaptation, and I had kind of had a bad attitude about it. I thought it was kind of boring. I realized it's all about the interpretation and the way you choose to communicate all the jokes and everything. The actors...just make a world of difference. I think we have such a wonderful group of people putting this show on that have incredible comedic timing and really know who their characters are and what they want to communicate. We have had a ball. We just crack up every night to ourselves because we think we're so funny, and we hope everyone else does too," Whitt says. "If you have any [preconceived notions], throw them out the window because this is truly such a fun show, and it really has something for everybody. We poke fun at many-a topic."
Not only do the spoofs and fantastical musical numbers provide entertainment to audiences of all types, those interested in visual effects, costuming, and set design are also sure to enjoy this production. "We've got some really incredibly grand sets," says Liam Coursey, who plays Major General Stanley. "We may not have all of the hoity-toity attitudes that you would associate with operas, but we definitely have the massive sets that you would think. We've got just enormous sets...a pirate ship on the stage, enormous stained glass windows, costumes that you just wouldn't believe. Incredibly beautiful costumes. It's an entire spectacle."
"I think it's going to be a blast to come see. I think anyone who has a good sense of humor and who is just ready to come and have a good time and see a great show will be thoroughly satisfied with what we've done here," Andrew Bittenbender, who plays Sergeant of Police.
"Something I would like to make sure the audience knows [is] we encourage laughter. This is not one of those shows where you go and you have to worry about being proper or socially appropriate audience etiquette. It's not like that at all," Crawford concludes.
Showtimes for the Murray State production of Pirates of Penzance are November 21-23 (this Thursday-Saturday) at 7:30 p.m. and November 24th at 2:00 p.m. All performances take place at the Robert E. Johnson Theatre on campus.
To reserve tickets, visit the Murray State website or call the theatre department box office at 270-809-4421.
