The Slave of Duty Frederic was finally out of his Piratical Indentures in 1940, but this Leap Day, he finally hits the Big Four Oh. We should all raise a glass of sherry in his honour!
Here’s good luck to Frederic’s ventures!
Frederic needs a set of dentures!
This is the best best best production of Pirates ever. If you disagree, shut up.
A few years back, I shot a school production of Pirates. They had no budget for set or costumes, so the director had the brilliant idea of updating the 1880s of the original to the 1980s. Thus all the Pirates were Punks and the Major General’s Daughters were Valley Girls.
No more comments?
What production is it? Hard to judge wonderfulness from 2:14…
Nitpick: if Frederic has his 40th birthday in 2016, then he was born in 1852 (Since he did not have a birthday in 1900, that not being a leap year). That would mean the action of Pirates takes place in 1873, 6 years before the first production in 1879. I think it’s more likely that he was bon in 1856 – but I suspect that W.S. Gilbert did’nt give the question much thought.
Isaac Asimov mused on that, actually. He points out that the Major-General mentions HMS Pinafore, which debuted in 1878, and posits that you are correct for that specific reason, on the assumption that it’s much more likely that the “airs” to Pinafore were in whistle-able shape in 1877 than in 1873.
While we’re on the subject: why has the film with Kevin Kline, Linda Ronstadt, Rex Smith and Angela Lansbury effectively vanished? I can’t find a copy anywhere - some of the advertised versions actually contain an entirely different, stage performance. I really liked that one.
I love that movie, it’s so much fun! It got vilified when it was released but my husband and I both think it’s wonderful. We have it on VHS and, I think, laserdisc. It needs to be celebrated. Thanks for bringing it up.
It’s this one.
It seems to be available on Amazon, we have that and love it.
I taped it off Bravo back when they actually were a fine arts network.
I am not advocating it, but it is also bootleggable online in a DVD quality copy(not HD, though).
We had a church production a few years ago where the Major General’s Mustache fell off in the middle of a song and much hilarity ensued. (clip–funny part starts about halfway through)
(I did the set painting, which led to a job with Tacoma Opera, which has been awesome! 
)
It came out on DVD a couple of years back. It desperately needed to, as the original aspect ratio was 2.35:1 and used every bit of it, especially during “When you had left our pirate fold”. The pan and scan on the VHS was just awful.
Sadly, it was one of the movies of that era with a dreadful, cheap synth score (along with The Princess Bride). I wish both could be re-scored with an orchestra, or at least a current, better synth score.
From the great Ray Stevens: I want to sing and dance, I want to sing and dance, I want to be a pirate in the Pirates of Penzance.