![\"Tina](\"http:\/\/itsnotaboutme.tv\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/2018_Pirates_0072.jpg\")
<\/a>Tina Mu\u00f1oz Pandya, Amanda Raquel Martinez, and Leslie Ann Sheppard. Photo by Jenny Graham.<\/p><\/div>\n
But for me personally, I have to paraphrase Lou Grant when he hired Mary Richards, and told her, \u201cYou\u2019ve got spunk!…I hate spunk!,\u201d by saying this show is zany…and I hate zany!!! Yes, I am<\/em> aware that one of the main descriptions of my former television show, and of me<\/em> when I was doing it, was \u201czany,\u201d but that\u2019s not what I was going for; it\u2019s just how it turned-out. And I\u2019m really a traditionalist. So this particular presentation of Gilbert and Sullivan\u2019s classic operetta was not my cup of tea.<\/p>\n All that being said, I can see why everyone else liked the show. So, let\u2019s examine the production, from top to bottom.<\/p>\n The pre-show hubbub. Photo by Karen Salkin, as is the big one at the top of the page.<\/p><\/div>\n First of all, the Pasadena Playhouse was reconfigured into an unrecognizable venue, which had to be an absolutely gargantuan undertaking, so I applaud them for that incredible creativity. Everyone oohed and ahhed as they entered the new arena, so the effort paid off. There was a party buzz in there all night. (More on the seating later.)<\/p>\n The absolute number one positive to me, though, is not the atmosphere, but rather the incredible talent of every single member of the cast! They\u2019re a troupe of comic musicians from Chicago called The Hypocrites. And let me tell you, these people all sing beautifully and<\/em> play multiple musical instruments. The lead girl plays the accordion, the ukulele, and the flute, which are such diverse instruments. And one girl even plays the saw<\/em>!!! I don\u2019t think I\u2019ve ever seen that before except in cartoons<\/em>! I love witnessing that much talent.<\/p>\n Photo by Jenny Graham.<\/p><\/div>\n And they do all that while walking around on wooden benches. I was too far up to see the floor of the actual stage<\/em>, but even from that far away, I could tell that it\u2019s not a big area. A major part of their schtick is to keep moving around amongst the audience who surrounds their feet. Again, not my cup of tea. (But you have choices of where to sit; more on that in a second, as well.)<\/p>\n Back to the many more positives: The show is just about eighty minutes long, with an amusing one minute<\/em> intermission. And you can wear anything<\/em> there, even your pajamas; there\u2019s no need to dress nicely (as everyone should always<\/em> do otherwise to attend theatre!) And you can even check your phones during this one, (which is an absolute no-no at all other theatre, including movies,) because it\u2019s not as dark in there as usual, and there\u2019s so much going on at all times that you won\u2019t be bothering anybody.<\/p>\n Another plus is that you can even leave in the middle of the show with no one realizing that you\u2019re walking-out because movement is encouraged for the duration! I did see a few people sneak out, but only because I<\/em> notice everything. (But for such a short show, I suggest you stay for the whole thing, no matter what<\/em> you think of it.)<\/p>\n Photo by Jenny Graham.<\/p><\/div>\n And I was very impressed with the acoustics. I was sitting almost as far back as possible, but the sound never wavered. The voices were clear the whole time, even though their actual words were not.<\/p>\n Which brings us to the negatives. First of all, despite the great music and singing voices, I had absolutely no idea what was going on the entire time, or who was what character. I had not researched the show before, (which I never do, so that I can experience the journey as it unfolds,) and I promise you, there is no way anyone in that audience could have understood the story. It was presented way too–shall we say \u201ccreatively\u201d–for total comprehension.<\/p>\n Then there\u2019s the seating issue. There are folding chairs on risers on three sides of the \u201cstage.\u201d Despite the provided small cushion on top, they\u2019re extremely uncomfortable. My back was killing me the whole time.<\/p>\n Even worse, though, for people who have back issues, is to sit in what they\u2019re calling \u201cthe promenade.\u201d That area features benches with no backs, and little unfilled kiddie pools. And you can even park your bottom right on the edges of the stage. But the whole seating issue is a conundrum–if you sit in one of the chairs on a riser, you should be a tad more physically<\/em> comfortable, but then you don\u2019t really feel a part of the action that is the hallmark of this kind of production. But if you\u2019re in the promenade<\/em>, you have to keep moving the whole time. (The actors politely ask you to move when they need that space, which they explain at the top of the show. It\u2019s nutty.) And, if you sit down there, you have to make sure that you can jump up at a moment\u2019s notice. That means no coats or accessories or big purses that you\u2019d have to gather up each time, and you can never get comfortable with your seat. But the opening night audience down there did<\/em> seem to enjoy the movement, which I<\/em> would have hated.<\/p>\n Photo by Jenny Graham.<\/p><\/div>\n I sat almost as far up on a riser as you could go, but since I don\u2019t like people moving around even at basketball games<\/em>, this show was torture for me. I like everyone to sit down and not move when I\u2019m trying to watch something live. (But I have a feeling that\u2019s just me<\/em>. When I was a VIP guest at a recent Rams football game, I had to sit right up front with National Anthem singer Brian McKnight, with just the field in front of us, because the other guests behind me were constantly socializing instead of just staying put and watching the game, as I<\/em> was doing.)<\/p>\n Also, and I\u2019m very serious about this, this is not<\/em> the show for you if you have any kind of seizure disorder because there are constant twinkling lights. You cannot get away from them.<\/p>\n I\u2019m also serious about this<\/em>–no one will know if there\u2019s someone who needs help in the theater at any time because people kept screaming in the middle of the show on opening night, for no apparent reason. (Maybe something was happening closer to the action that I couldn\u2019t see from where I was.)<\/p>\n Many patrons will see this one as a positive<\/em>, but to me, it\u2019s a major<\/em> negative: there\u2019s a bar on one side of the floor area, where you can purchase drinks all night. So, first of all, I was not happy that I was about to be on the road with a bunch of people who had just been imbibing for the past hour and a half, which gives them no time to sober-up before getting behind a wheel. And, since no food is served, it\u2019s very irresponsible to serve booze. I had never even thought of that before this year, when it was pointed-out to me by several party-goers.<\/p>\n Doug Pawlik. Photo by Jenny Graham.<\/p><\/div>\n But if you are<\/em> a drinker, and have ADD, this is definitely the show for you!<\/p>\n And then we come to the category of \u201cneither here nor there.\u201d For some reason they\u2019re calling this a \u201cbeach party,\u201d and to go with that theme, the characters are wearing shorts, and they throw beach balls around every now and then. And there are those kiddie pools on stage. Maybe that\u2019s part of what makes it interesting to sit down there.<\/p>\n Also, they added bits and pieces of pop music tunes to the classic music, which is partly weird and partly amusing. For example, the show opens with the Beach Boys\u2019 Sloop John B<\/em>, to which my friend said, \u201cGilbert and Sullivan never heard this song.\u201d Duh.<\/p>\n On a personal note, I hate being interacted with, so I\u2019m glad that I was seated in the far riser, even though that section is so far away from the action. (But the actors do<\/em> manage to get over there a time or two.)<\/p>\n Dana Omar. Photo by Jenny Graham.<\/p><\/div>\n And on an even more personal note, I love that they pronounce the lead female character\u2019s name, which is \u201cMabel,\u201d as \u201cMay-belle,\u201d because that was my mother\u2019s nickname in later years. So, every time they invoked that moniker in the show, I had a good feeling.<\/p>\n Speaking of my little mo, when I was growing-up, my parents took me to more theatre than the rest of my pals have ever seen in their entire lifetimes, but I missed the boat with Pirates of Penzance. (See what I did there? Boat\u2014pirates? I guess the goony show rubbed off on me a bit.) I would have liked to see the usual<\/em> type of production of it the first time, but oh well. Since I have no idea what was going on, I may still have that opportunity in life.<\/p>\n And speaking of being a kid and seeing this show, there was a little girl sitting in one of the tubs down front on opening night. Watching her face during the proceedings was three-quarters of the enjoyment of the evening for me. I kept trying to see the show through her unjaded eyes. (So if you bring children with you, I think they\u2019d love sitting in the promenade.)<\/p>\n Also special to me was that the theatre\u2019s lovely usherettes appeared to having the time of their lives, which I loved seeing.<\/p>\n The actual scenario seems to be unimportant in this production; it\u2019s all about the wonderful Gilbert and Sullivan music, the fabulous voices, and the wackiness of the experience. But, if you do<\/em> care about the storyline, (as you should<\/em>,) I suggest researching the operetta before you go (because, unlike every other theatre critic out there, I never ruin the story of a show for you just so I can prove that I know what it\u2019s about!)<\/p>\n But I recommend that you definitely do<\/em> see this Pirates of Penzance<\/em> because it\u2019s such an offbeat theater experience. I just wanted to make you aware of what you\u2019re getting into.<\/p>\n Pirates of Penzance<\/em>\u00a0running through February 25, 2018<\/strong> PIRATES OF PENZANCE There is so much to say about this new production of Pirates of Penzance at the Pasadena Playhouse! I took more notes during the show than I ever have before in all my years of reviewing theatre! So first of all, I say to go see this very different version of the<\/p>\n<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a>
\n Pasadena Playhouse \u00a039 South El Molino Avenue \u00a0Pasadena \u00a0626-356-7529\u00a0\u00a0www.PasadenaPlayhouse.org<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"