Music Video Concerts : Gilbert & Sullivan - The Mikado, The Pirates of Penzance, Iolanthe (Stratford Festival, Canada)
Gilbert & Sullivan - The Mikado, The Pirates of Penzance, Iolanthe (Stratford Festival, Canada)

Gilbert & Sullivan - The Mikado, The Pirates of Penzance, Iolanthe (Stratford Festival, Canada)



A set of three stage performances taped in the theater by Canada s Stratford Festival in the 1980s, these productions of the Gilbert & Sullivan favorites The Mikado,The Pirates of Penzance, and Iolanthe (each is also available separately) offer the virtues and pitfalls of live-performance video. The staging is on the modest side, visual and sound quality are not flawless. But the high spirits shared by actors and audience are a delight. Unfortunately, ambitious editing undercuts that sense of immediacy. Many of the singing voices have been dubbed, and applause is unnaturally deleted at some key moments. Now and then the actors turn and address the camera. The result isn t really convincing as either a stage production or a film. The Mikado alone avoids that sort of identity crisis and is by far the most satisfying of the three. Purists will flinch at the many updated lines, but modernizing isn t a bad way to approximate Gilbert s very topical humor. For U.S. viewers, though, the Canadian jokes (about Pierre Trudeau, Wayne Gretzky, or Canadian TV) won t entirely hit home. One advantage to the collection is the fun of seeing members of Stratford s company in multiple roles. There s also the occasional Canadian star: Maureen Forrester, Brent Carver. Despite mixed results, this set is a useful introduction to the pleasures of G&S and proof of how well these pieces still play before an audience--and sustain having their jokes brought into another era. --David Olivenbaum

Very worthwhile. - Filmed in Canada in the early 1980s,with very high production values, THE MIKADO being the most extraordinary. Much more polished than the English productions of G&S available, these are Broadway Standard mountings. I think these are essential for any G&S fans.Gilbert & Sullivan - The Pirates of Penzance / Kline, Ronstadt, Smith, Routledge, Delacorte Theater (Broadway Theatre Archive)Gilbert and Sullivan: A Dual BiographyGilbert & Sullivan: Lost Chords and Discords

Pirates - This is by far the best version of Pirates I ve seen on film, energetic and engaging.

Pure Fun and Frolic - Having participated in community and semi-professional theatre groups the past 25 years, I must say that this rendition of Mikado pulls all the stops out and is truly a feel good production. I have seen some of the BBC renditions of Gilbert & Sullivan and feel they fall short as their particular humor can only be appreciated on the stage. The actors in Mikado are vibrant, funny and talented. I would recommend this DVD as the perfect introduction to the Gilbert & Sullivan genre.

Quality performances of classics - This 3 DVD set is an excellent addition to the library of those who enjoy films of live stage performances. Presented by the Stratford Festival in Canada, these productions do feature updated lyrics by music director Berthold Carriere. Some find these offensive, personally I think they are true to the spirit of Gilbert and Sullivan. They cleverly skewer current (at the time) social and political mores of both Canada and America, which is the intention of Gilbert s lyrics anyway. The Mikado is by far the strongest of the three- charmingly acted and well-sung. Pooh-bah steals the show, but musicians will enjoy the quality singing from Nanki-Poo, Yum-Yum and Katisha- sung surprisingly sensitively. Pirates features Broadway vet Brent Carver as the Pirate King and Jeff Hyslop as Fredric, both of whom are good. Personally, I find the Mable wanting in the vocal department, having been spoiled by Valerie Masterson of D oyly Carte. Iolanthe is the least compelling, and the show within a show stagehands distract from the work. All of the productions are very strong physically- beautiful sets and costumes. This is the best Mikado out there, go with the DVD of the Broadway revival of Pirates from Central Park for sheer exuberance.

Pirates of Pansies - I just watched this version of Pirates of Penzance and I think it awful! I love the musical itself and I like the movie, and I was looking forward to seeing it on the stage. But this was terrible. This cast killed the show. The Pirate King, while a good actor, could not sing and couldn t hold a note longer than his finger. Frederic was so homosexual and it clearly showed in the performance. His tone was so nasally I wanted him to blow his nose or something. And his acting [was bad]. He killed the performance. Mabel was okay but her vibrato was so annoying sometimes-it was so forced. The Major General was quite gay too and his dancing just ruined the whole thing. I could go on but I won t. Don t waste your time on this video like I did.



Gilbert & Sullivan - The Mikado, The Pirates of Penzance, Iolanthe (Stratford Festival, Canada)