Pirates of Penzance swings into Manchester’s Opera House, 11 June

Gilbert and Sullivan’s operetta The Pirates of Penzance will play at the Manchester Opera House next month when the D’Oyly Carte Opera Company return to the stage after a 10 year absence with a historic collaboration with Scottish Opera.

The production combines Scottish Opera’s world class reputation for high quality, touring opera with D’Oyly Carte’s century-long association with Gilbert and Sullivan.

Featuring the Orchestra of Scottish Opera and a 39 strong cast and chorus, the show promises to be a vibrant, stylish and hilarious romp through one of the famous duo’s finest scores.

Having turned 21, Frederic should be contractually released from his apprenticeship to a band of pirates, but discovers his birthday is the 29th of February, a leap year. Taking his duty a little too literally, he decides it will be another 63 years before he’s really 21 and only Mabel’s promise to wait sustains him…
 
The Pirates of Penzance features some of Gilbert’s wittiest lyrics, not least the famous patter song ‘I am the very model of a Modern Major-General’ while Sullivan brilliantly mixes his signature catchy melodies with fine parodies of other opera composers, notably Verdi’s Il Trovotore in ‘Come, friends, who plough the sea’ and ‘You triumph now’.

Martin Lloyd-Evans – a regular with Opera Holland Park and Classical Opera Company – directs while D’Oyly Carte Music Director and G&S aficionado John Owen Edwards and Scottish Opera Head of Music Derek Clark share conducting duties.

The Pirates of Penzance is at Manchester’s Opera House from 11 – 15 June.