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For me, sadly, not even the glitzy celebrity director
and leading cast member could liven up this production, which felt
muted, particularly in the first half and lacked any real punch.
The set, on board the HMS Pinafore, is traditional
and unremarkable, except that there is a mystifying bit of scenery
at the beginning that no one could quite work out.
Though things improved through the evening, and
heaven knows, the tunes are catchy enough, it felt lacklustre and
in need of a director in-house, to inject some joie de vive into
it.
Scene from HMS Pinafore |
Both Colin Baker and Timothy West are big acting
names not to be trifled with. Colin certainly has the bodily profile
to play the pompous Sir Joseph Porter KCB, the ruler of the Queen's
Navy in need of a wife, and his comic timing is spot on.
With his cocked hat and yards of scrambled egg,
he struts about like a would-be Nelson, invoking patriotism and
a sense of duty, but his singing voice is too weak.
Timothy West, who's directed this production, needs
to catch up with the show from time to time, tweaking it here and
there and keeping the cast on their toes.
The two people who did impress me were Captain
Corcoran - last night played by the wonderful Stephen Page with
a lovely sense of the ridiculous, but beware - that was only for
one night, it's not him from Wednesday to Saturday.
The other was Anne Bourne as his wayward daughter
Josephine, blessed with a soaring voice, being pressed to marry
Sir Joseph, but secretly has already given her heart to Ralph Rackstraw.
The orchestra plays its socks off in the pit, taking
the score at a cracking pace where it can, which is probably a good
idea for G & S.
Unfortunately this show didn't press the right
buttons for me, and having the theatre a third empty didn't help.
A slow burner, which never really fully ignites.
HMS Pinafore runs until Saturday 22 May, 2004.
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