Iolanthe

The subject matter of Gilbert and Sullivan's Iolanthe, of course, makes it a target for innuendo which is to be expected but, in this production, a modern camp sensibility is all-pervasive. I think this wink, wink, aren't-we-naughty approach is all wrong here even if it leads to a few easy laughs.

I was less bothered by the anachronistic tap-dancing numbers than the rearrangements of Sullivan's music as well as Gilbert's words. On the DVD, they were obliged to put in a glossary of the topical changed references and I, for one, miss dear old Captain Shaw and Ovidius Naso. ("O CBC" isn't funny unless you're Canadian.)

The harp is usually thought of as a celestial instrument but most of the time, the harp interpolations were not my idea of heaven. I enjoyed Maureen Forrester but she was really over the top a good part of the time and the business with the stagehands didn't do much for me either.

Again, a total lack of trust in the material is evident in this production.