FOUR STARS

 

An opening chorus of three (one man, two ladies), an orchestra of two (a piano and a flute), a female Nanki-Poo - it sounds like the recipe for disaster. But Opera Anywhere is a company that could stage the telephone directory and make a decent fist of it, and this production of The Mikado, set against the unlikeliest of backdrops, is possibly one of their greatest triumphs.

Originally designed and directed by Paula Chitty for the Sunningwell Festival, it has been cleverly adapted for the Norrington Room by Helen Winter, who made imaginative use of the space. The novelty of seeing these assorted characters from the town of Titipu strutting their stuff among the bookshelves - and at one point, scarily, on top of some bookshelves - was both charming and captivating. It was a bit like opening a magic box and watching the characters come gradually to life, before putting them all away again and closing the lid.

Among an exceptionally strong cast it seems unfair to single anyone out, but I particularly loved Fred Broom’s jolly Mikado and Matthew Kellett’s strongly-sung, suitably sneering Pooh-Bah. Paloma Bruce, Sian Millett and Nikki Bagshaw made a sprightly trio of little maids, while Nia Williams and Nick Planas did sterling work as the ‘orchestra’. This was a bright, lively, energetic production, with laughs a-plenty and a cast that was clearly having a ball. It bodes well for this week’s production of The Pirates of Penzance, which runs from Thursday to Saturday, and brings Opera Anywhere’s two-week G&S Festival to a magnificent finale. Expect lots more fun and mayhem as the Norrington Room becomes home to a band of swashbuckling pirates.

The Pirates of Penzance runs Until June 1. For tickets, tel. 01865 766266 or visit www.OperaAnywhere.com.