Pirates take over at the Grand
The Grand Theatre's High School Project is back for its fall season and this year it was all about PIRATES!
The group of students who were hand picked for the Pirates of Penzance took over the stage with an air of confidence that one wouldn't have a chance to appreciate in a regular high school performance.
The men were dressed in ragged pirate outfits that looked as if they've seen a few setting suns and the women wore beautiful lace embroidered gowns. The contrast between the rugged, multicolored pirates and the all white feminine apparel of the general's daughters was nice to see.
After nearly three months of rehearsing, it was a delight to see how wonderfully the play came together. The whole cast knew their lines and for the most part, didn't hold back.
AJ MacDonald as the Major General was refreshing; his lines carried over the crowd and took in more laughs than anything else in the play.
What I found to be rather creative on the part of the high school team was bringing Gilbert and Sullivan's play, which was first performed in 1880, to a modern level.
AJ MacDonald's rendition of the song “I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General” was a homage and parody to modern day technology. He sings “My daily blog is all the rage/ Wait 'til you see my Facebook page,” he continues to harp about his iPod, Blackberry and looking for weapons in Iraq on Google Earth.
The Pirate King is played by Micah Richardson, who conveys an aura of authority over the rest of the students —with his height alone. His performance was impressive, and he took his role as Pirate King to the appropriate level, however on a few songs I felt like he was holding back. I had the chance to see the group rehearse the afternoon before the play and Richardson seemed more comfortable with less people around. He projected his voice more and wasn't afraid to lose himself in the pirate world.
The love affair between Federic (Jordan Campbell) and Mabel (Alexandra Smither) was innocent, and convincing. It was true romance without all of the “yucky” stuff. The two sang a number of duets, in sync with one another. However, I found it a little distracting that Smither has the ability to take her voice to a level that most high school students and modern day pop stars can't, which at times left Campbell in the dust.
The police officers were clumsily hilarious —running around the stage with rubber batons and purposely off tempo choreography. It was a funny mockery of the police academy.
The set design during the first act was a regular pirate scene, sailboats and rocks and water included. I was mesmerized by the second act when the curtain lifted and unveiled a beautiful, dark, whimsical midnight scene. At one point I was afraid for the actors and audience because one of the set designs looked as if it was about to fall over after one of the police officers in the play accidentally knocked it too hard.
What: The High School Project's Pirates of Penzance, by W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan.
Where: The Grand Theatre, 471 Richmond St.
When: Until Saturday, October 4
Tickets: $18 and $35; call 519-672-8800; visit www.grandtheatre.com or the box office.
