One of Gilbert and Sullivan’s best-loved operettas is given a hilarious, sexy and sequin-spangled spin as H.M.S. Pinafore sets sail at Parramatta’s Riverside Theatres for the 2021 Sydney Festival.
Mistaken identity, star-crossed lovers, sisters, sailors and the trickiest of tongue twisters abound in this nautical caper.
Aboard the good ship H.M.S. Pinafore, the captain’s daughter, Josephine has fallen in love with a lowly sailor, Ralph Rackstraw, despite her father’s plan to marry her to the First Lord of the Admiralty, Sir Joseph Porter.
As the lovers lament their predicament and plan their escape, a surprise disclosure from an unlikely quarter shows that not all is as it seems.
Directed by Kate Gaul and first seen at the Hayes Theatre in 2019, this critically acclaimed chamber production of a light opera masterpiece hits the refresh button on its song-strewn mockery of class, British exceptionalism and the rise of unqualified people to positions of power.
Pinafore’s extraordinary popularity in Britain, America and elsewhere was followed by the similar success of a series of Gilbert and Sullivan works, including The Pirates of Penzance and The Mikado.
Overflowing with infectious tunes such as I am the Monarch of the Sea, I’m Called Little Buttercup and He is an Englishman – this nautical caper is a sharp satire of the English social hierarchical system of the Victorian Age.
Don’t miss out on this rollicking farce and get set for some hysterical hi-jinks on the high seas.
H.M.S. Pinafore
Riverside Theatres, Corner Church and Market Streets, Parramatta
Season continues to 23 January 2021
Bookings: www.riversideparramatta.com.au
For more information, visit: www.sydneyfestival.org.au for details.
Image: H.M.S. Pinafore – photo by Harvey House Productions