Things are seldom what they seem

Things are seldom what they seem,
Skim milk masquerades as cream;
Highlows pass as patent leathers;
Jackdaws strut in peacock's feathers.

Very true,
So they do.

Black sheep dwell in every fold;
All that glitters is not gold;
Storks turn out to be but logs;
Bulls are but inflated frogs.

So they be,
Frequentlee.

Many a true word said in jest - as yesterday we took The Mother to the legendary Wilton's Music Hall yesterday for a matinee performance of the all-male cast version of HMS Pinafore; or, The Lass That Loved a Sailor.

From the opening macho below-decks scenes of hunky sailors trying to overcome their boredom through exercise and military discipline, we were (of course) hooked - but when those same sailors (with the merest of theatrical props, involving lifejackets, scarves and paper headresses) transformed along with the plot to portray the entourage of "sisters and cousins and aunts" who board the ship with the First Lord of the Admiralty, the fun really began! And we loved it.

The review by Stefan Kyriazis in The Express said it all:

What utter, complete bliss. I could not stop smiling from start to finish. Sasha Regan's inspired direction and the fabulously talented cast bring vital, visceral life to Gilbert & Sullivan's romantic comedy and make the music more accessible and even more beautiful. I'd take this over any number of overblown and underpowered West End shows any day. It's an absolute joy.

Although the uber-camp concept of "Sweet Little Buttercup" being played by a strapping six-foot Scotsman [Scott Armstrong], the giggling, pirouetting company of "ladies" possessing - ahem - rather obvious male attributes, and the lovelorn teenage "Josephine" beautifully sung falsetto/soprano by a boy [the magnificent Sam Kipling] might well have invited thoughts of drag shows or panto, the fact that the entire cast [with the notable deliberate comic turn of Richard Russell Edwards' "Cousin Hebe"] played it completely - ahem - "straight" was a master-stroke that really engaged the audience in the satirical genius of WS Gilbert's convoluted plot, rather than make a mockery of it.

For satire it truly is. The plot is summed up quite neatly by Simon J Webb at "Jack the Lad" blog:

Originally conceived to shine a spotlight on the British obsession with social status, H.M.S. Pinafore tells the story of Josephine [Sam Kipling], the daughter of Captain Corcoran [Juan Jackson], who is in love with lower-class sailor Ralph Rackstraw, [Danny Becker]. Despite her father’s intentions for her to marry the First Lord of the Admiralty, Sir Joseph Porter [David McKechnie], all is not as it may seem, and through an unexpected twist of fate this already complicated situation finds itself turned on its head.

[all photographs: Mark Senior. Click to embiggen]

This was, remarkably, the first Gilbert & Sullivan production of any variety any of us had ever seen, yet it was surprising how many of the songs were familiar, including We Sail The Ocean Blue, Now Give Three Cheers ... I Am The Monarch Of The Sea, When I Was A Lad, Sorry Her Lot Who Loves Too Well, Never Mind The Why And Wherefore, the hilarious Carefully On Tiptoe Stealing [aka "It was the cat!"] and the rousing finale For He Is An Englishman!.

Full kudos must go to the entire cast; every one of them was brilliant in turn (although the contrast between "opera-trained" voices such as that of the hunky Mr Jackson, the masterful Mr McKechnie, Jazz Evans as "Dick Deadeye" and the sublime Mr Kipling and the more "West End" styling of Mr Becker was obvious). The staging, too, was impressive - who needs huge set-pieces and pyrotechnics when one can make full use of two bunk-beds, some rope and hand-torches (and the quirky Wiltons istelf) to make a statement?

Here, for your delectation, is a full-length behind-the-scenes feature on the production, with rehearsal footage and interviews with the cast and crew:

Stagey Blog - The Cast of HMS Pinafore at Wilton’s Music Hall: Danny Becker, Juan Jackson, Scott Armstrong, Jazz Evans

It was simply divine; I'd recommend it to anyone. And our Mother loved it, and that's what really matters!

The show continues at Wilton's Music Hall until 9th April 2022, so be quick!