Pirates of Penzance
Files
Playwright
Gilbert and Sullivan
Performance Dates
July 7-10, 14-16, 2022
Creative Team
Directed by Lenny Leibowitz
Music Direction by Dennis Davenport
Choreography by Stella Hiatt Kane
Scenic Design by Stephanie R. Gerckens
Costume Design by Glenn Breed, Wardrobe Witchery
Lighting Design by T.J. Gerckens
Sound Design/A1 by Ethan Brown
Stage Managed by Han Coffman
Synopsis
Set sail with this classic comedy that boasts one of the most famous patter songs in musical theatre history. A fresh take on one of Gilbert and Sullivan's most popular comic operas, this updated version of The Pirates of Penzance took New York by storm when it premiered in Central Park in 1980, leading to a subsequent smash-hit Broadway run.
Gilbert and Sullivan's hilarious, hopeful farce follows young Frederic, an orphan who has mistakenly been apprenticed to an ineffectual but raucous band of pirates. He disavows the pirates' way of life and falls for the beautiful Mabel. Frederic's melodious tones win over the heart of Major-General Stanley's songbird daughter, Mabel, but when the Pirate King discovers that General Stanley has lied about being an orphan to keep the pirates from stealing all of his belongings and carrying off his bevy of beautiful daughters, an "ingenious paradox" may prevent the budding romance and lead to the death of "The very model of a modern Major-General."
Recommended Citation
Otterbein Theatre and Dance Department, "Pirates of Penzance" (2022). 2022 Summer Theatre. 1.
https://digitalcommons.otterbein.edu/summer_production_2022/1