I’ve known about Gilbert and Sullivan’s “Pirates of Penzance” since high school but had never seen it. Premiering in New York City in 1879, it is a comic opera that in many ways, was the forerunner of modern musical theater. It is about a band of pirates, a young man, and a major general with many beautiful maiden daughters. The story is interesting but the production at Quintessence is more than interesting- it will blow your socks off.
It is Frederic’s 21st birthday and he is about to complete his apprenticeship to the pirates he’s been with. But we learn early that Ruth, his caretaker all these years, and the only female he has ever met, had heard wrong regarding her instructions. Frederic’s parents wanted him to serve an apprenticeship not as a pirate, but as a pilot. As Frederic prepares to leave his apprenticeship, he tells the King of Pirates that he will be obliged to kill him if he doesn’t renounce his life of piracy and reenter society. The other thing that Frederic craves is to meet women to see if Ruth, 47 years old, is as beautiful as she says she is.
When Major-General Stanley’s many beautiful maiden daughters arrive, chaos ensues. Frederic falls in love with one of them, Mabel. The pirates discover the girls and want to marry them.
And there is a problem for Frederic. Since he was born on February 29, is he really 21 (if he had one birthday every four years, he is only 5 years old), and if not, who does he owe his allegiance to? The themes of love and loyalty are ever present but so is the theme of being an orphan. There is a lot of substance in “Pirates of Penzance.”
I can go on about the evolving story, and I do recommend you read a summary of it before you go because of the spitfire conversations done in couplets and other rhyming sequences. But that’s not what makes this production so remarkable. There are 12 actors portraying over 30 roles. Four of the women play pirates, and four of the pirates play maidens. And it works!!! Stunning costumes designed by Risa Ando and the rapid off-stage costume changes by the actors as they move between characters are flawless. And the dancing and other movements were exquisitely choreographed by Shannon Murphy. I could have watched the show with no dialogue at all, it was so visually entertaining. Then there were the duals and the passions. Fight director (Ian Rose) and an intimacy director (K. O’Rourke)- what jobs they did! And I appreciated the accent coach, Melanie Julian, who didn’t force me to understand British accents like I do at home- with the subtitles turned on.
I got a chance to listen to the music of Arthur Sullivan and realized that I knew some of the tunes- the funny Major-General song as well as “Hail, Hail, the Gang’s All Here.” And the four-piece orchestra, led by pianist/conductor Luke McGinnis was spot on. I know because I went with my musician friend, who is also a pianist and conductor. That leads me to the performers- singers, dancers, actors who did it all.
Brandon Walters is outstanding as Frederic, the young man who wants to move on with his life. Kamaluoalani Matthias as Mabel and Christina Stroup as Ruth are amazing
singers. And I can’t say enough about the depth and the humor that Christopher Patrick Mullin bring to the Major-General. He is remarkable. They all are. There is not one dull moment in this Gilbert and Sullivan classic. Director Alex Burns has put together this masterpiece and it is brilliant!
“‘The Pirates of Penzance” by Gilbert and Sullivan at Quintessence Theatre, 7137 Germantown Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19119, 215-987-4450, quintessencetheatre.org Thru January 4, 2026
Philadelphia Theater Reviews by Frank Burd 