Word: mikados
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...Madame Butterfly, the story of an American naval officer, Benjamin Franklin (B.F.) Pinkerton, who abandons his Japanese wife, Cio-Cio San (Butterfly). The story, based on John Luther Longs novella, has been retold, again and again, in such productions as Broadways Miss Saigon and Gilbert and Sullivan's The Mikado. Most recently, BSO takes on a fully staged concert version of Puccini's opera at Symphony Hall, with the last and final performance this coming Saturday...
...this hemisphere. With Seven-Eleven, KFC and bowling around, who needs sleepy Chestnut Ridge, N.Y.? And as for Japanese culture in America, I certainly remember watching kabuki as child--on an episode of "Alvin and the Chipmunks." And who can forget the educating Gilbert and Sullivan production of "The Mikado" at Harvard this fall...
...this "updating" cleverly defuses the touchiest issue inherent in The Mikado: Gilbert and Sullivan's mythicized Japan is based in large part on condescending and underinformed Victorian colonialist views of the Far East--and, while nobody really wants to point the finger of accusation at the most beloved of English musical comedians, the fact is that the authors' presentation of other nations and peoples were often less than politically correct. (After all, some of the original lyrics to "I've Got a Little List" would make modern audiences' ears burn). Contemporary productions of the play often transfer the setting...
...Agassiz production is strongly bolstered by the work that has gone on behind the scenes; set designer Daniel O. Scully '99 has worked wonders in creating a thoroughly convincing corporate lobby on-stage--tiled walls, frosted windows, revolving door and all--whose startling multi-utility reveals itself in the Mikado's impressive entrance. The orchestra, under music director Bradford Chase and concertmaster Christina J. Hodge '98, is in good alignment with the stage performance, and handles the swift, tripping rhythms of the music with effortless precision. And for the sheer amount of continual clowning and motion on stage, choreographer Lorraine...
...quality and enthusiasm of the players and the staff add up, in the end, to one thoroughly satisfying show. Theater-goers should in fairness be warned that this uncut version of The Mikado runs close to three hours, longer than some people are willing to sit still. But those who don't make the effort will regret it; and those who do will find that, with rare exceptions, every moment of the show is worth it. In the hands of these skillful performers, The Mikado comes up as funny as it was a century ago, and looking rosier than ever