The Mikado - November 2014

THE MIKADO is a perennial favourite which has been delighting audiences since it was first produced in 1885. It is by far the most popular of Gilbert and Sullivan’s works and shows each of them at their creative best. Gilbert’s dialogue is clever and witty and Sullivan’s music is superb. The plot is simple and as topsy-turvy as any originating from Mr Gilbert: a piece of political satire set in the fictional Japanese town of Titipu, with love triangles thrown in. The setting in Japan was used by Gilbert and Sullivan to satirise the ridiculousness of British politics. The production revolves around a law, where flirting is a crime punishable by beheading and if a married man is caught, his wife must be buried alive. They also used characters such as Pooh Bah, whose title is the ‘Lord High Everything Else’, to poke fun at the British political system.Intertwined with this is a love story, with all of the ridiculous drama and fun that we love about the Savoy operas.