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Gilbert & Sullivan - The Mikado, The Pirates of Penzance, Iolanthe [VHS]

Norman Campbell

Acorn Media

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sheer joy

Over thirty years ago I saw the D'Oyly Carte company perform "The Mikado" in London. Sadly, the production was old and tired and lifeless and more suited to a dusty old museum attic than the stage. The D'Oyly Carte company died soon thereafter.
A few years later I saw the Stratford Festival productions of "The Mikado" and "Pirates" recorded here. They were wonderful, and had me on my feet for well-deserved standing ovations. Yes, they took liberties with the material; they made the operettas living theatrical entertainment full of joy and laughter. Unless you think comic operettas are sacred texts, you will enjoy the fun-filled spirit of these performances.

No Accounting for Taste

I've seen, but don't own, all three of these CBC productions and they're all very imaginative and very much in the spirit of G & S. That lyrics have been contemporized (and localized), that the performances are broad, that the sets are spare and the music edited are, it seems to me, legitimate complaints for reviewers to lodge. But these are reviewers with whom I doubt I'd enjoy watching any G & S production. There's a parsimony to their vision of what can and cannot be forborne in mounting G & S. Within the bounds of faithfulness, I think much can be tolerated, and here much is attempted. These productions are, in direct descent from G & S, satirical, literate and great good fun. No, they're not D'Oyly Carte, but then that's the point, isn't it? They are a rambunctious spin on a timeless critique of stuffed-shirtism and I do believe that G & S on reading these narrow and somewhat bloodless one-star reviews would have created a new ditty to lampoon them too! In the end they're fun to hear and watch, AND THEY ARE GILBERT AND SULLIVAN!

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.

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.