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Opera Review

Hot on the heels of last season’s sell out success, HMS Pinafore, Charles Court Opera open their mini festival of Gilbert & Sullivan with The Mikado, a hilarious satire on the establishment, masquerading as a Japanese comic opera. When the opera was first performed at the Savoy Theatre in 1885, it was a runaway success, running for 672 performances. Gilbert wrote the opera during a period when England was fascinated by Japan, and capitalized on the public interest to produce one of the most enduring and best loved operas.

Wandering musician, Nanki-poo (Kevin Kyle) arrives in the fictitious, Japanese town of Titipu, in search of his love, Yum Yum (Catrine Kirkman). Here he meets the foppish, Pish-tush (Ian Beadle) and haughty aristocrat, Pooh-bah (John Savournin), who inform him that she is betrothed to the Lord High Executioner, Ko-Ko (Philip Lee), a tailor who couldn't hurt a fly. However, The Mikado (Simon Masterton Smith) has decreed an execution must take place and the most obvious victim is Nanki-poo. On the advice of Chief Justice, State Prosecutor, Head of Treasury and all round corrupt official, Pooh-bah, Ko-Ko convinces Nanki-poo to have the chop, in return, he requests that he is able to marry Yum Yum for one month. Ko-Ko agrees but things take a turn for the worse when the Mikado arrives on an impromptu visit.

Kevin Kyle's indefatigable optimism as Nanki-poo is truly endearing, as he bursts into cheerful song from under the brim of his baker's hat. His strong tenor combines with Catrine Kirkman's soprano forms a rich, joyful sound. Kirkman appears first as a sniggering school girl in red dungarees with her friends, Pitti-sing (Susan Moore), an excellent character mezzo and Peep-Bo (Caroline Kennedy). Their first, famous medley, Three Little Maids is entertainingly embarrassing, full of high school silliness and saccharine tittering. Susan Moore is highly convincing, with her restless, finger twiddling and wide eyed excitement.

The three little maids enjoyably rub John Savournin's Pooh-bah, a pin striped, lanky, aristocrat, whose strong baritone contrasts well with the maids high pitched twittering, the wrong way. Savournin is an excellent snob, whose snooty expressions and arched eyebrows convey a great sense of his imperial self importance. In conversation with Ko-Ko, he brilliantly personifies the corrupt official, able to advise him from both sides of the fence, as his lawyer and as the Chief Justice.

Philip Lee in his bowler hat and bow tie is excellent as Ko-Ko, the bumbling High Executioner who prefers to soliloquise rather than lop off heads. Only worried about his own skin, he is a nervous wreck at the feet of the imposing Mikado, as he attempts to extricate himself from the events. It is only when he comes face to face with the demonic, Katisha (Rosie Strobel), that we see just how pathetic he is. “Shrink not from me” he exclaims to Katisha as Strobel in corset and red cape towers over him. Her impassioned voice sends shock waves through the audience; Strobel gives a power- house performance as the spurned lover of Nanki-poo.

The Charles Court Opera at Rosemary Branch Theatre and Opera Up Close at The Kings Head are proving that operatic offerings in intimate spaces are a winning combination. Not only does the size of the space at the Rosemary Branch increase the intensity and energy of their performance but it makes their production of The Mikado feel vibrant and fresh. On Donnelly's simple black box set, the cast employs only nine red boxes, to create each setting from walls, to benches, chopping blocks and thrones, Donnelly's abstract set is deployed with admirable simplicity. The presence of the Eaton-Young piano duo really brings Sullivan's exuberant, oriental score to life and adds a cosy informality to a riotous performance.

Gilbert and Sullivan's The Mikado still conveys the institutionalised hypocrisy and bureaucratic frustrations of the English establishment through the vehicle of a Japanese town, with wit and style. The Charles Court Theatre does great justice to resurrecting this satirical opera and the ensemble gives a belting performance with exceptional energy. Their voices complement each other with hilarious medleys and amusing duets, creating a polyphonic quilt of sonic textures upon the passionate rambling of the piano keys.

We may not inhabit a world where the executioner has to cut off his own head before he can cut off anyone else's, but the sentiment still echoes in our own bureaucratic system.