Pirates of Penzance - The Ballet!
Encyclopedia
Pirates of Penzance – The Ballet! (originally called Pirates! The Ballet) is a comic ballet
adapted from Gilbert and Sullivan
's Savoy Opera
The Pirates of Penzance
. The plot remains the same as for the opera, and the music is arrangements of music by Arthur Sullivan
.
The work was created for the Queensland Ballet
. The choreographer was Daryl Gray, with orchestration
by Henry Aronson and design by Christopher Smith. The world première took place at the Suncorp Theatre in Brisbane
, Queensland
, Australia, on 12 April 1991.
Between 1991 and 1995, Gray slightly restructured the ballet and added 4 singers with musical staging to its cast. The Queensland Ballet performed the revised work in 1996, following which the company took it on an extended tour to the United States presented by Columbia Artists Management
. Gray largely re-choreographed the work for Ballet San Jose
for a 2004 revival and retitled Pirates of Penzance – The Ballet!. In 2008, Orlando
Ballet, under the direction of Bruce Marks, toured the ballet in Florida. It was again revived in November 2009 at Ballet San Jose. The San Francisco Chronicle
reviewer wrote of the revival, "the show is a perpetual motion machine. ... Ebullient, athletic, bright as a picture book and blurrily overstuffed, Ballet San Jose's Pirates of Penzance is a crowd pleaser by default. With all that's happening onstage, how can you not be entertained?" However, "the libretto, score and theatrical elements tend to combine without much mutual enrichment." Rita Felciano of San Jose Mercury News called the production "delightfully wacky", writing: "this laugh-out-loud comedy is guaranteed to cure you of the vapors!"
After the music begins, an usher leads four people (who turn out to be opera
singers) on stage as they loudly discuss mundane matters. As the audience begins showing its irritation, the singers are seated as an onstage audience. During the ballet, they sing part of the original score of Pirates, sometimes using new lyrics, as the dancers act out the story. In character as audience members, the singers interact with the pirates and police at times. The San Francisco Chronicle commented that the audience focus is split between the singers and the dancers, and that the ballet "proudly flies under the more-is-more flag. From the steps packed into each dancer's arsenal to dauntingly busy crowd scenes, the show is a perpetual motion machine. Now and then, as if they didn't have enough to do, the dancers break into tap, jazz, Broadway shimmies or moonwalk riffs, as if in tribute to the late Michael Jackson
." The review added, "In the famous "Major General" patter song, for example, the singers offer some of the deliciously impacted wordplay while the character ... runs through a whirling dumb show. Eventually, as if the lyrics were superfluous, the singers leave off". Nevertheless, according to a 2004 review by the same paper, "the audience happily allows itself to be taken prisoner."
Comic ballet
Comic ballet is a subcategory of ballet, and denotes a dramatic work of a light or comic nature.Comic ballets include:* Cinderella* Coppélia* Don Quixote* La Fille Mal Gardée* Pineapple Poll* Pirates of Penzance - The Ballet!...
adapted from Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan refers to the Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the librettist W. S. Gilbert and the composer Arthur Sullivan . The two men collaborated on fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which H.M.S...
's Savoy Opera
Savoy opera
The Savoy Operas denote a style of comic opera that developed in Victorian England in the late 19th century, with W. S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan as the original and most successful practitioners. The name is derived from the Savoy Theatre, which impresario Richard D'Oyly Carte built to house...
The Pirates of Penzance
The Pirates of Penzance
The Pirates of Penzance; or, The Slave of Duty is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. The opera's official premiere was at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York City on 31 December 1879, where the show was well received by both audiences...
. The plot remains the same as for the opera, and the music is arrangements of music by Arthur Sullivan
Arthur Sullivan
Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan MVO was an English composer of Irish and Italian ancestry. He is best known for his series of 14 operatic collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including such enduring works as H.M.S. Pinafore, The Pirates of Penzance and The Mikado...
.
The work was created for the Queensland Ballet
Queensland Ballet
The Queensland Ballet, founded in 1960 by Charles Lisner OBE, is the premier ballet company of Queensland, Australia, and is based in Brisbane.- About Queensland Ballet :...
. The choreographer was Daryl Gray, with orchestration
Orchestration
Orchestration is the study or practice of writing music for an orchestra or of adapting for orchestra music composed for another medium...
by Henry Aronson and design by Christopher Smith. The world première took place at the Suncorp Theatre in Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
, Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, Australia, on 12 April 1991.
Between 1991 and 1995, Gray slightly restructured the ballet and added 4 singers with musical staging to its cast. The Queensland Ballet performed the revised work in 1996, following which the company took it on an extended tour to the United States presented by Columbia Artists Management
Columbia Artists Management
Columbia Artists Management is an international leader in managing the careers and touring activities of the world's most prominent performing artists and institutions.Led by Chairman and CEO Ronald A...
. Gray largely re-choreographed the work for Ballet San Jose
Ballet San Jose
Ballet San Jose in San Jose, California, USA, was founded in 1986 as the "San Jose Cleveland Ballet," a co-venture with the ten-year old Cleveland Ballet which offered to the dancers added performing exposure, and each city a ballet company for a moderate, shared investment...
for a 2004 revival and retitled Pirates of Penzance – The Ballet!. In 2008, Orlando
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
Ballet, under the direction of Bruce Marks, toured the ballet in Florida. It was again revived in November 2009 at Ballet San Jose. The San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
reviewer wrote of the revival, "the show is a perpetual motion machine. ... Ebullient, athletic, bright as a picture book and blurrily overstuffed, Ballet San Jose's Pirates of Penzance is a crowd pleaser by default. With all that's happening onstage, how can you not be entertained?" However, "the libretto, score and theatrical elements tend to combine without much mutual enrichment." Rita Felciano of San Jose Mercury News called the production "delightfully wacky", writing: "this laugh-out-loud comedy is guaranteed to cure you of the vapors!"
After the music begins, an usher leads four people (who turn out to be opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
singers) on stage as they loudly discuss mundane matters. As the audience begins showing its irritation, the singers are seated as an onstage audience. During the ballet, they sing part of the original score of Pirates, sometimes using new lyrics, as the dancers act out the story. In character as audience members, the singers interact with the pirates and police at times. The San Francisco Chronicle commented that the audience focus is split between the singers and the dancers, and that the ballet "proudly flies under the more-is-more flag. From the steps packed into each dancer's arsenal to dauntingly busy crowd scenes, the show is a perpetual motion machine. Now and then, as if they didn't have enough to do, the dancers break into tap, jazz, Broadway shimmies or moonwalk riffs, as if in tribute to the late Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
." The review added, "In the famous "Major General" patter song, for example, the singers offer some of the deliciously impacted wordplay while the character ... runs through a whirling dumb show. Eventually, as if the lyrics were superfluous, the singers leave off". Nevertheless, according to a 2004 review by the same paper, "the audience happily allows itself to be taken prisoner."
External links
- Pirates of Penzance - Ballet San Jose
- Pirates of Penzance - Photos from the Ballet San Jose productions
- "Brave and Jolly Pirates of Queensland" - New York Times review of original Australian production, 1996