Title: Outlandishly overplayed hacking of a masterpiece
Review: The Pirates of Penzance is a masterful piece of work representing Gilbert & Sullivan at their finest. Unfortunately, this Stratford production neglects Sullivan's beautiful music by casting sub-par singers who make little attempt to stay in time with the orchestra, and slaughters Gilbert's brilliant text by throwing in as many outrageous bits of slapstick characterization as possible. Brent Carver's Pirate King barely had a line that wasn't interrupted by an uncomical tendency to get hung up on his words. The dancing dominates the show -- ballet fans may enjoy the Pirates in Tights who dance instead of Act. I am very disappointed by this particular production -- apparently an abberation, as the quality of the other Stratford G&S productions is far superior (particularly the Mikado).
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