The Good Ship H.M.S. Pinafore Has Docked At UW – Milwaukee!

I have never seen a Gilbert and Sullivan operetta and I think that is still true. But I do remember way back in the late 1950s and early 1960s, show casts appearing on variety shows and doing a number or two. Or comedy variety shows exaggerating the pomp and circumstance and having a bit of fun. And of course serious or comic, they always performed a portion of “When I Was A Lad” and drove deeply into our memories: “He polished up that handle so carefullee, That now he is the ruler of the Queen’s Navee!”

UWM’s Mainstage Theater’s thrust stage is the ideal venue for Pinafore, and scenic specialist Christopher Kurtz has made the most of every square inch. What an amazing deign of ship’s rigging, from fo’c’sle, to poop deck, to bridge, strewn cargo crates, coiled rope, and such give us the impression of a 19th Century British Royal Navy frigate. And there is plenty of room throughout of lively dance and chorus numbers plus the varieties of songs and interactions between the lead characters.

And very carefully nestled just to the rear of the main deck is the quartet of musicians who are supporting the cast. Here we have a string bass, accordion, a guitar, and a woodwind switching time between a clarinet and a horn pipe. What a marvelous nautical H.M.S. Pinafore musical touch is the horn pipe. Over the course of the play other cast members add a second clarinet and a violin…plus a supportive ukulele for/by Little Buttercup and a mournful English horn for/by Capt. Corcoran. And a bell choir!

But this isn’t just any presentation of Pinafore…instead a modern local adaptation created by Co-directors Jill Anna Ponasik, Milwaukee Opera Theatre Artistic Director, and Jeffrey Mosser, UWM Lecturer, in collaboration with the student cast and crew. A very popular and successful way to make contemporary theater. But what does this mean? From the background info from UWM’s website:

Originally set in the late 1870s, H.M.S. Pinafore explores timeless themes of love, status, and class. This new version reimagines the story in 2025 and relocates the action to Milwaukee, allowing the cast to connect the work directly to their own community. 

“For me, the most exciting, delightful aspect of this adaptation is working on a team that includes Jeff Mosser, Dana Rochester, James Zager, and 17 UWM students to devise this together,” Ponasik said. “The collaborative spirit of the project is what gets me out of bed in the morning.” 

That collaborative spirit extends directly to the student cast. As young adults living in the 21st century, their perspectives helped ground the adaptation in the realities of today. 

“We were asking for their collaboration throughout the entire process,” explained Mosser. “This play wouldn’t have been the same without the collaboration of the actors and their contributions to the play itself”. 

On stage that means we get date checked when the cast mentions that it is 2025! And then we do get local identifications with mentions of the Packers, Kopps, Door County, and other local contemporary landmarks. One crew member wants to retire to Door County and have goats on the roof. All the more amusing given we are hearing these words from an antique sailing vessel.

One of the key ‘characters’ is the ensemble. but which I am going to call the chorus…since they play a role very akin to the Greek chorus. At times being of one mind and voice, at others advancing the story, and others supporting the leads or opposing the leads depending on the which way the wind is blowing. And this is a marvelous chorus of full throated voices in boisterous and wondrous song. All the while moving about stage in some pretty intricate choreography interacting with each other or a variety of props. Wonderful visuals here. But the highlight is the adult sized and adult entangled cat’s cradle that they weave to start the second act…until it just devolves into a web! So Kudos to choreographer James Zager.

But we mustn’t forget that this is essentially a love story. As classic a love story as you could expect. So let’s get on with it.

Austin Franz is Captain Corcoran, the captain of the Pinafore. He is a calm and solid captain, empathetic with his crew and the doting father of daughter, Josephine. He thinks he has a match made in the admiralty when Sir Joseph Porter proposes to Josephine. But as you could guess Josephine is in love with another. Franz stands tall and sings with a full rich voice that is perfect for Corcoran.

Josephine is played by Serena Vasquez. And she’s perfect in this demanding role as she moves from weeping over her fate to acquiescing to marrying Porter for love of her father, to deciding to elope with the sailor of her dreams. Vasquez dwells in this role and even when not the focus of a scene, she remains in character and is just a pleasure to watch. She also puts the opera in operetta here (I originally typed hear, but that might work too) with a clear ringing voice that fills the room. I think that we will see her on professional Milwaukee stages after she completes her studies at UWM.

And who is Sir Joseph Porter? Well he is the “the ruler of the Queen’s Navee!” So you might expect him to be a pompous self-important ass. Well as Nathaniel Contreras plays him he certainly is self important but he is more buffoon, depicted as a stumbling character in loud clothing, Contreras presents the precise comic relief that the story demands. One delightful Porter shortcoming is his inability to remember Captain Corcoran’s name, calling him Capt. Carrot, Capt. Canary, and such until the final Capt. Crunch which got a big laugh. And a very appropriate sobriquet given that Captains Corcoran and Crunch, the cold cereal pitchman, wear the same style hat.

Oh, I haven’t forgotten Josephine’s love interest. He is Ralph Rackstraw, an ‘able seaman’, ably played by Josh Thone. A very agile young adult, Thone easily moves across stage in and out of the chorus and moves from emotion to emotion without effort. Part of his appeal here is he has one of the most expressive faces that I have seen on a Milwaukee stage this year.

And one last quick mention, is Ryder Ruck, a loose limbed dancer portraying Dick Deadeye. Some of Ruck’s dance moves incorporated Irish dance, the jigs often used in depictions of English sailors, and of course, a bit of modern dance. Ruck is also listed as assistant choreographer so should share in the praise for the overall choreography here.

But how does it end? Most like a Shakespearean comedy as secrets are revealed, mistaken identities come to light, and love triumphs.

And one small quibble. Once again, despite being miked, some of the actors were hard to hear. Partly a technical issue but also from often speaking too quickly.

Extra Credit Reading: The Playbill and the announcement on the UWM site.

This is a short short run and ends Sunday October 12 but ticket info is here but tickets are generally available at the box office at show time.

H.M.S. Pinafore is being presented on UWM’s mainstage theater in the Fine Arts Building just off Kenwood Boulevard behind Mellencamp Hall.