Review from the Cambridge Evening News 21/11/00

ON STAGE

Great . . . ask the audience

The Cambridge Operatic Society presents "The Mikado" at the Cambridge Arts Theatre until Saturday. Review by JOANNE RILEY. "IS THAT your final answer?" the Lord High Executioner of Titipu, Ko-Ko, asked Nanki-Poo as the music faded, the spotlight fell on the Mikado's son and he agreed to die. Who Wants to be a Millionaire was not the only topical item to appear in the Cambridge Operatic Society's updated version of Gilbert and Sullivan's The Mikado. An attack on Cambridge's rising bollards, the continuing saga of the US elections, annoying watches which bleep and people who eat garlic all appeared on Ko-Ko's "little execution list" and were warmly applauded by the audience. The jokes continued as Ko-Ko bribed Lord High Everything Else, Pooh-Bah, with his American Express card and the chorus welcomed the Mikado of Japan to Titipu with an operatic list of Japanese cars. But these modern additions did not overshadow the charm of the original. And Cambridge Operatic Society proved that in its 90th year the company is still going strong. Nanki-Poo's search for love in the town of Titipu is expertly told through a subtle blend of opera and comedy, which keeps its pace until the final curtain. The main singers are backed by the "giggling" Chorus of Schoolgirls and the Chorus of Nobles, who frantically fan themselves throughout the production. I soon found myself humming along to those well-loved songs Three Little Maids from School, A Wand'ring Minstrel and Tit Willow and I certainly was not the only one. Graham Gemmell is excellent in Pooh-Bah's "many" roles and Richard Braithwaite breathes comedy into the character Ko-Ko. The singing was a little quiet at the beginning, but it rapidly improved and coupled with lavish costumes and a delicate stage set, modelled on the original D'Oyly Carte set, made for a great birthday performance.