What’s with the Pirate obsession lately? I mean, Johnnie Depp is hot and all, don’t get me wrong. But don’t you agree that lately pirates seem to be the latest “big thing”? There’s nothing wrong with them, I suppose. Certainly they’re better than Torture-Me-El... ahem… I mean, Tickle-Me-Elmo. In any case, it was fortunate that Virginia Opera’s latest production was Pirates of Penzance, not Annoying Little Red Monsters of Penzance. Because gosh, wouldn’t that have been weird?

For once in my life, tunnel traffic did not make me late in getting to the Harrison Opera House. I actually had time to glace around at the house and my program before the lights began to go down. For the non-initiated, Harrison is not what may come to mind when one first thinks of an “opera house”. There aren’t a whole lot of grand sweeping staircases or precariously pendulous chandeliers. Actually it is a rather modern building that could house a bunch of different kinds of performances (not just opera).

The program for the show, of course, touts the prowess and many accomplishments of the singers and of the Virginia Opera itself. “Hmph,” I said in my inner monologue, “We’ll just see about that.” Ever the skeptical reviewer, I am. Of special interest to me however, was note from Paul Stuhlreyer, General Director and CEO of Virginia Opera. In this, he lists several of the reasons why I was seeing such a full house for this performance: fuller than the houses for other operas in the recent past. It made me realize that operettas, Gilbert and Sullivan in particular, are sort of a “gateway drug” into opera. It’s funny, it’s fast-paced, and it’s (gasp) in English. All in all, a good way to bring newbies into the fold.

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A quick synopsis of the story… Frederic has been apprenticed to pirates but he’s about to turn 21, so his internship is ending. As soon as get gets to shore, he falls in love with Mabel, one of the numerous wards of the Major General. The pirates come ashore, see the pretty girls, and want to marry them. The Major General begs the pirates to not take them because he’s an orphan (total lie). The pirates want to get Fredric to rejoin them, so the Pirate King and Ruth (Fred’s nurse) tell him that since he was born on leap day (February 29^th), he’s actually only had five birthdays and still has a duty to the pirates. Since this is a comedy, it all gets sorted out and everyone has a happy ending.

As always, Virginia Opera’s chorus sounds fabulous. Sounds fabulous, I say. I know that this is opera, but dude… blank stares just don’t do it for me. The worst culprits were in the male chorus, the policemen in particular. Not all of them, of course. A few of the policemen did actual seem to be thinking about what they were singing, but definitely not all of them. As the pirates, the boys were better at playing over-the-top. Pirates are pretty over-the-top kind of people, you know. Arrgh. The female chorus was delightfully giddy as the group of sisters. Playing a ditz is easy and fun, just ask any cheerleader.

Now for the leads. Frederic was sung (and acted!) by William Ferguson. Oh, my God, that tenor voice just floats. Just as lovely was Alicia Berneche as Mabel. She has the kind of soprano that cuts straight over the chorus and rings around on the ceiling for a while. It’s a good thing there weren’t any crystal wine glasses nearby.

These two actually had the most surprising moment of the evening. I’ve mentioned that this is a comedy, right? Well, in the middle of Act Two was a tender, poignant love duet that truly moved me. Somehow, it the midst of wit and slapstick, I was really touched. And not in the dirty way. Kudos to singer/actors, director, orchestra, composer, and lyricist for

a wonderfully constructed diamond in the fluff.

Dominic M. Aquilino was just fine as the Pirate King. I would’ve liked him to have a few more slapstick moments (for example, pulling out his sword in a moment of excitement and not noticing he nearly decapitated a crew member), but that’s more directed toward Stage Director William Theisen than Mr. Aquilino. While the Pirate King’s acting was all the script called for, his singing was, well… not my favorite. His voice seemed to be caught in the back of his throat for the entire show. I got used to it in time, I guess. Or maybe I was just able to ignore it in favor of the fun show going on.

Myrna Paris as Ruth was obviously an old hand at the role. She simply was Ruth. Of course, since the character is described rather less than kindly, I guess that could be taken the wrong way. Please don’t be offended Ms. Paris, what I am trying to say is that you were pretty darn awesome.

When Jonathan Kimple began singing as the Sergeant of Police, I instantly began to wish that he had a larger role. Ladies, you know those deep bass voices that are simply dead sexy? Oh, yeah. That’s what I’m talkin’ about. In my notes, I labeled him “Sergeant Hot Voice”. Don’t tell him though, I’d feel a little silly if he knew.

The obvious star of the evening however, was Gary Briggle as the Major General. Every once in a while, you are able to witness a true virtuoso in a role. He obviously loves the part and enjoys every performance. I can’t actually tell you how his voice was because, honestly, his character was so engaging that I just didn’t pay attention to whether or not his vowels were shaped correctly. He had fun up there, and let the audience have fun with him.

Chris Clapp’s first act set of a rocky clearing was nice but fairly basic. There were a lot of levels and hiding places for the actors to play around in. The second act set though, actually drew a bit of applause when the curtain opened. A romantic, dark, almost Gothic ruin, well lit by Kenneth Steadman. It was a lovely backdrop that again, had lots of entrances and hiding places. Both sets managed to help, not distract from, the action.

And now the costumes. In the beginning, I have to admit that I really didn’t like the costumes much at all. The girls had too much fabric, too many flounces. The pirates also wore a bunch of layers, and of fabric that looked way too expensive. After all, they say they “can’t seem to make piracy pay”, right? That was the first act. Then the second act came. Then Ruth came on stage. And finally, I got it. Ladies and gentlemen, the pure ridiculousness of the costume concept finally shined through. Good gracious, it was silly. This, of course, make the costumes I previously disliked to make SO much more sense. Yes, the girls and pirates both looked really silly. But thanks to Ruth’s way overdone uniform, I realized that they were meant to. Plus the epaulets on top of the Major General’s night robe were just plain funny.

I really enjoyed the show. Yes, there were moments I didn’t think were as good as the rest, but so what? I still had a good time and that’s what really counts. Oh, and even though I found the use of supertitles for an English show amusing, darned if they weren’t fricking useful. Those patter songs are killer.