The Pirate Queen

The Hilton Theater

I expected dreadful for this. My expectations were dismally low and what I got was average, so I don’t know what all the fuss has been about, but I’ve given it some thought and I think I have a hunch why it’s been perceived as dreadful by some and a great gift to the Broadway theater world by others. Like I said, though, it’s average Broadway fare. There are a ton of shows currently playing that are better and most of the awful ones close fairly quickly (read Coram Boy here).

I think the negative reaction is partly in the timing of this opening. We seem to be at a crossroads with our musicals right now with shows like Spring Awakening and Passing Strange pushing ahead and the rest of the new releases borrowing very old musical tricks like The Drowsy Chaperone, Martin Short: Fame Becomes Me or even Hairspray. We are currently in a reaction phase against the big 80s/90s Broadway musical imported from Europe, except in cases where they never left like Phantom. Even Les Mis has been scaled back to a minimalism version of itself for its “revival” this season.

So, here we have this great big musical which borrows from a time that isn’t enough in the past to draw out the fond memories and isn’t forging ahead into new territory. This is certainly a fault of its creators—all artists should push ahead, grow and build on what they’ve done in the past, not recycle it.

However, except for the entire Irish folk dancing and all of the costumes for the lead actress being a proverbial green, which Michael Flatley (and, yes, I did see it live not on video) has pretty much eternally turned me off on, there isn’t a tremendous amount wrong with the skeleton of the show. The book is pretty good. The duets and solos are strong. The original cast recording won’t be making it into my library, but it will certainly be worth its price and repetitious listening for those interested in a decent Broadway musical.

The story line was not even half bad. It was about the nature of female leadership and a woman’s role in society, written by, from what I could tell, four men. And, four men did a pretty decent job jabbering at this subject. What they did especially well is juxtapose Queen Elizabeth (inherited rule) with the Pirate Queen (partially inherited, but fought for, rule), two women who were both leaders in their own way. And, even in 2007, there is a place for conversation about female leadership. This may not be that place, but it did not feel as trite or overworked as it could have.

The production had some issues. The sets were a little bit heavy on the flags and drapes. I hated the digital back drop. And, the costumes weren’t memorable, however probably appropriate. The Queen’s costumes were quite nice and pleasantly got larger as her power increased.

My advice would be to not seek the musical out, nor avoid it. It’s almost retro, but not quite. In 20 years no one will remember the time frame and it might be hip again, in a revival sort of way. It certainly might be good enough to revive from being released at the wrong time and in the wrong place.