By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
There’s the understandable mixup of Frederic signing on to be a “pirate” instead of a “pilot.”
And the hesitancy of a particular band of pirates to attack boats containing orphans.
But the biggest plot twist – and a joke shared by the crew and cast of “The Pirates of Penzance” – is around Leap Year.
“Doing the show on Frederic’s birthday was too good of an opportunity to pass up,” said Rhiannon Guevin, musical director of the Young Performers Theater production of “Pirates of Penzance.”
The show opens Friday, with four performances scheduled over the weekend. The older cast (“skull” cast) will stage the full Gilbert and Sullivan operetta 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday. The younger cast (“crossbones” cast) will perform a shortened version of the show 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Both shows are at Odess Theater.
Before dress rehearsal Monday for the “skull” cast, the student tech crew was busy in Odess, outfitting a number of cast members with new headset microphones, to improve sound in the old Allen Hall theater space. Tech director Elle Campbell ran a sound check, with each actor saying or singing pieces from the show, or telling Campbell about their day at school.
It’s a show with a lot of difficult music, Guevin and director Zeke Blackwell said. But both felt the actors were ready for such a challenge.
“I felt like our students were at a point vocally where it would be a good experience, for them to develop in that realm,” Guevin said. “It’s one of my favorite shows. We’re also looking for ensemble-based shows with large choruses that have a lot to do. This show is exactly that.”
Fiona Raasch sings as a modern major general in the Young Performers Theater rehearsal of “The Pirates of Penzance” Tuesday night in Odess Theater. Pictured in foreground are, from left, Isabel Carter, Stephanie Eakin, Raasch, Zia Allen and Mina Brooks-Schmidt. (Sentinel Photo by James Poulson)
“The music has been really central to this show, and the music has been fun in this challenge,” Blackwell said. “There’s a good amount of harmony, and we tried our best to keep as much harmony as we could.”
He agreed with Guevin that the show “hit all the marks.”
Gilbert and Sullivan shows are famous not only for their music, but the ridiculous plot twists, witty dialogue and clever lyrics. Pirates is among the most performed of their shows, along with “H.M.S. Pinafore.”
The story of “Pirates of Penzance” revolves around Frederic, who apprenticed with pirates, and is due to be released from his servitude on his 21st birthday, which happens to be February 29. (Anyone see any problems with this?)
Other characters are his faithful Ruth, the only woman Frederic has ever seen; the Major-General on a quest to stop pirates; his daughters, Mabel and her sisters. Choruses of police and pirates round out the cast.
“Gilbert and Sullivan do a good job of telling the story through the music, and connecting the music to the storytelling,” Blackwell said.
“The Pirate King” “Poor Wand’ring One,” “With Cat-Like Tread,” and “Modern Major-General” are among the songs that have become standards in musical theater.
Classical pianist Chris Staknys will provide the accompaniment for the show, Melissa Hantke is the choreographer, and Rebecca Poulson designed the set.
Many of the cast members have performed in shows since the YPT program began in 2013, with the musical “The Adventures of Beatrix Potter and her Friends.” Others are appearing for the first time. Six schools are represented in the cast.
“It’s a lot of singing, which is fun, but it’s also challenging at the same time,” said Zia Allen, 17, who plays Frederic, one of the main characters. She said she doesn’t really respect the character she plays – “he only sees beauty and youth.”
“I would honestly say being not a good person – that’s been hard to grasp,” she said.
Aitana Gluth, 16, says she’s enjoying taking on a new kind of character, after playing the minstrel in last year’s “Once Upon a Mattress.” In “Pirates,” she plays the sergeant, whose songs with a police chorus include “When a felon’s not engaged in his employment.”
“I really like the set this year, and how it’s these different levels ... I really like the archways,” Gluth said.
Aitana and Zia count “Hail Poetry” as a standout for this cast, with all harmonies converging into a perfect sound. Zia said the sisters chorus singing “Climbing over Rocky Mountain” is a highlight for her as well.
“Their reaction to (Frederic), I like their reaction to me and I like playing with them (in the scene),” Zia said.
Mina Brooks-Schmidt, who plays Mabel, describes both her character and Frederic as “a lot.”
“She likes the shiny things, and Frederic is like the shiny thing of the moment,” she said.
Mina has dug into the role, working both on her own and with vocal teacher Guevin.
“It’s been a really fun challenge,” she said. This is her 20th or 21st appearance in Young Performers Theater plays.
Eliot Holloway, 13, is one of the younger members of the “crossbones” cast, which is mostly high schoolers. As a Blatchley student, he was eager to take on the whole show, work with older kids and not feel like he needed to wrangle younger cast members, he said.
In the past few years, he has appeared in Aesop’s Fables (his first), “Alice in Wonderland,” “Seussical,” and “Once Upon a Mattress.”
As a policeman in “Pirates,” he said he still needs to work on the lyrics to “Sighing Softly to the River,” he said. “It’s not an energetic song - it’s a troubling song for the pirates and police.”
Tickets for the shows are $10 general admission, $5 for youths, and are available at Old Harbor Books, online at fineartscamp.org and at the door.
