This spring’s musical comedy follows a group of misfit pirates with a soft spot for orphans who continuously loot their buccaneer benefactors.
The Pirates of Penzance, originally written by Gilbert and Sullivan in 1879, will be performed at Fulks Theatre in the Williams Performing Arts Center on Friday, Saturday and April 14-16 at 7:30 p.m.
Kari Hatfield, assistant professor in the Department of Theatre, is directing the production.
“It’s a very ridiculous plotline with very fun music and a lot of comedic elements,” Hatfield said. “We’re using the whole space. Audience members need to be OK with possibly having their personal space invaded at times.”
Amy Simpson, administrative coordinator of the Department of Theatre, said the actors will move in and out of the audience throughout the production. Simpson also said the department is building an entire pirate ship to sit onstage for the production.
In addition the ship, the production is using a new line of technology that allows the music conductor to conduct recorded tracks using a Wii remote.
“Normally, when you’re using recorded music, you’re kind of tied to what they record,” Hatfield said. “The system that we’re using is called Right On Cue Systems. They created these performance tracks that were conduct-able and sound like you’re singing with an actual live orchestra.”
Hatfield said she chose this specific production for its capacity to further train the department’s students in more classical elements of theatre.
“We wanted to do it because it’s really an iconic piece of musical theatre. I wanted it to be a technical challenge for (the students),” Hatfield said. “It has a huge cast, and that is also a bonus for us. It’s a very fun family show.”
Hatfield said the play has a focus on different types of beauty in life, including art and poetry.
“We find out that’s why the pirates go into this line anyway; it’s more about the poetry of it than the piracy of it,” Hatfield said. “That’s something that really resonates with us – the importance of beauty and art and how that enhances quality of life and relationships.”
