"We Love Our Queen!" - QPAC's "The Pirates of Penzance."

(Left) Queen Victoria: 1837 - 1901. Queen Gardens, The Treasury, downtown Brisbane, Queensland.


Queensland Performing Arts Center (QPAC), in conjunction with Opera Australia, staged "The Pirates of Penzance" in Brisbane.

A flyer indicated that Opera Australia, which has a demanding touring and performance schedule, has not played in Brisbane in 18 years. How could that be? Brisbane is Australia's 3rd-largest city! There are only six large cities on the entire continent! Was it - ARTISTIC DIFFERENCES? Or was it (in keeping with the paradoxical nature of the show) just four and a half leap years?

Anthony Warlow, who played the Pirate King, entirely adopted Johnny Depp's manner and dress from "Pirates of the Caribbean."

At intermission, I overheard a patron say, referring to Taryn Fiebig's (Mabel's) voice, "what coloratura!" I agree!

Three encores of that big rousing number in Act II, "With Cat Like Tread, Upon Our Prey We Steal"!

Very interesting use of light bulbs for the title and end title of the show. Setting the stage for Act 2 got big applause for the physical comedy.

The Constable had an amazing voice. And everyone had nothing but the highest praise for John Bolton Wood's "I Am The Very Model Of A Modern Major General."

After the show, I stumbled across one of Australia's own common ringtail possums. The shy possum (looks less alien than the common Sacramento possum) was mistaken in thinking all the people had disappeared from the pedestrian areas....