If I had been taken to The Hackney Empire to see only Robin Bailey as Marco (in English Touring Opera’s The Gondoliers) sing ‘Take a pair of sparkling eyes’ I should have left a happy man.
Thankfully, I was there to experience the whole of this exquisite production, and left on what can only be described as a cloud of euphoria.
This is a show that fizzes and (there’s no other word for it) sparkles like a new designer outfit on an old friend.
And WHAT designer outfits. Laura Jane Stanfield’s costumes are a marvel, capturing as they do every level of class and status in this comedy of mis-identification that delves deep into how best to structure a society.
The costumes of the gondoliers of the title, and their female admirers, are suitably retrained, to begin with at least, but I’m happy to say no such niceties apply to the rest of the cast.
The Duke and Duchess of Plaza-Toro, and their daughter Casilda (Phil Wilcox, Lauren Young, and Kelli-Ann Masterson respectively) are outrageously camply dressed. The fact that they are allowed to use their costumes to illuminate character is joyous to watch. Wilcox in particular relishes strutting around in his gold platform boots, and the skirts of both his tail-coat, and his wife’s dress, in Act One are deliciously over the top
Young’s magnificent wig in Act Two would give Marge Simpson a run for her money. They are nouveau riches incarnate and for the first time I found myself wondering who Casilda’s real father was…
Of course, you can’t have drama without an antagonist, and though Matthew Siveter’s, cape-swirling, Don Alhambra del Bolero looks and sings the part with aplomb, he is more the loveable than truly demonic kind. Having said that, in a number of tableau he has only to arch an eyebrow to show where he thinks the centre of attention should be.
Not that this is a static production by any stretch of the imagination. The movement is athletic, illuminating, joyous, noisy, percussive… oh, Liam Steel, what have you done? Your direction and choreography is revelatory. Bravo!
Of course this would be as nothing were the whole performed on an empty stage. Michael Pavelka all-purpose sets prove clever in Act One, with a series of steps and bridges being balletically manoeuvred around the stage into differing combinations.
The Act Two set might best be described as opulent, with a huge gilded bed centre-stage though this being The Gondoliers it’s not one that our titular pair get to use. I couldn’t identify the frescos, but they put me in mind of The Kings staircase at Hampton Court, so they certainly did their job.
It’s often far easier, when writing a review, to expound on what’s wrong with a particular evening in the theatre, but try as I might the only thing I have been able to fault about this stunning production of Gilbert and Sullivan’s late masterpiece for is that it was only at The Hackney Empire for one performance in a pretty extensive tour, meaning I’m not going to get the chance to see it again in London…
However, if you’re within easy reach of Buxton, Norwich, Chester, Canterbury, Cambridge, Truro, Exeter, Durham, or York go and buy your ticket NOW.
Music: Arthur Sullivan
Book & Lyrics: W S Gilbert
Director: Liam Steel
Cast: Robin Bailey, Samuel Pantcheff, Natasha Agarwal, Beth Moxon, Isabella Atkinson, Phil Wilcox, Lauren Young, George Robarts, Kelli-Ann Masterson, Matthew Siveter, and full chorus.
Dates: Touring in rep until 21st May 2026
Running time: 90 min
Date Seen: Saturday 11th April 2026
Photo credit: Richard Hubert Smith