DVD : Gilbert & Sullivan - The Mikado / Eric Idle, Lesley Garrett, Richard Van Allan, Felicity Palmer, Richard Angas, Bonaventura Bottone, Susan Bullock, English National Opera

Rating: - Here's a Title for Review
Just picture this:

Pooh-Bah sings in recititive "Here he comes, equipped as fits his station. He'll give you any further information" The Chorus enters and sings the stately "Behold the Lord High Executioner" then, enter Ko-Ko, the Lord High Executioner (marvelously played by Monty Python's Eric Idle), dressed for tennis.

I doubt this joke was in Sir William Gilbert's mind, but even to the purist it works. The revised "List Song" is even a breath of fresh air, as Gilbert's lyric had become obsolete and, therefore, unfunny. However, this new lyric will leave you laughing (unless you're from Austrailia, that is).

All other performances were wonderful at worst, although Nanki-Poo could have enunciated a little better. Those few dialogue cuts are not missed.

I cannot say enough about this production. It is, undoubtably, the best "Mikado" I've seen!

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Rating: - Must have been great on stage
The best sung and most intelligently staged Mikado available on video is marred by obtrusively lame direction for television that makes some bits almost unwatchable. But let's dwell instead on the production's many virtues. Jonathan Miller's resetting is brilliant. Gilbert needed an an exotic location (Japan) to parody contemporary Victorian England, but in our era a 1920s British seaside resort affords all the distance in time and manners that parody requires. Not having to act in an "artless Japanese way" (apologies to Yum-Yum) seems to have freed the performers to take over the characters body and soul, to speak, move, and sing as if effortlessly yet very expressively. Van Allan (Pooh-Bah), Palmer (Katisha), and Garrett (Yum-Yum) put the lie to the notion that opera singers can't do G&S. Bonaventure Bottone is the only convincing Nanki-Poo I've seen. Eric Idle, the name draw of the production, blows hot and cold as Ko-Ko. In Act 1 he can't seem to get ahold of the character and goes for empty gags as if it were a 30-second Python sketch, but in Act 2 he buys into the role and brings off his big scenes with the Mikado and Katisha beautifully. The splendid choreography with the chorus--the Busby Berkeleyish tap dancing in the finales is a hoot--makes good use of the period sets which, even though mainly black and white, are pure eye candy. But I missed the kind of imaginative blocking-out of trios and quartets that you get in some other productions (like the Act 2 madrigal in the Stratford production); Miller has the performers huddled together as if against a stiff ocean breeze. It was a relief, though, to be spared the frantic cliched gesturing with which G&S performers typically accompany their songs (the gestures are meant to tell the story in lieu of the often unintelligible lyrics), as it allows them to do more natural and unexpected things with their hands. As to the TV direction, the less said the better. Just close your eyes when headless dancers appear in a thought bubble above Ko-Ko's still-attached head.

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Rating: - An absolute classic
The only time I have seen this musical was on a TV station with a terrible reception quality and during a thunder storm. Even so, I recorded it and played it over and over until my brother recorded over the top of it. Needless to say, I was not happy and I've been looking for a copy now for about the last ten years, so it's brilliant that it's about to be released for sale. I thought the production was incredibly original -Jonathon Miller is so inventive - although obviously if you're a lover of the traditional Mikado then it may not be what you're looking for. Eric Idle of Monty Python was great - he really brought the musical to life with his humour, and his voice was great as well. In fact, my drama school was so impressed with this version that they used some of the subtle humour for their production. I definitely recommend this video for anyone with a sense of fun. Go on, give it a try!

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Rating: - Move over Pirot
Shades of Busby Berkley's inovative style,,,,,, The Mikado, in this version, was stunning, deliberate, and well cast,,,,,, I have just viewed it on Ovation, with commercial breaks, and can't wait to get my hands on the VHS,,,,, Much of the tongue in cheek humour was updated to reflect the 30's resetting of the scenes,,,,, Purists may bark and howl, "Unfair" "Unreal", but most folk should find this flight of fancy great fare,,,,,,,

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Rating: - a brilliant musical and visual treat
This Johnathon Miller production is an absolute must-see for lovers of Gilbert and Sullivan who are not die-hards about period costumes. If you have any interest in art and staging of the 20th century, you will enjoy this up-date immensly. I was desolate when my brother-in-law lost my tape of this, and am ecstatic to find that it is still available.