Hot Mikado Hits Thurles

Phoenix The Hot Mikado is a show that should be familiar to every respective musical romancer in Thurles, even to those of you who only fleetingly flirt with the odd show here and there.

Established traditions of changing The Mikado by theatre land

Adapted from the original 1885 The Mikado, the Swing Mikado, the Cool Mikado, the Hot Mikado and even the Condensed Mikado have all, at one stage or another flown the flag for The Mikado in theatres across the world. However, in a bizarre fusion and synthesis of cultural stereotypes and trans-pacific taboos, an almost 125-year-old light opera was merged with 1940s swing music to create probably the most famous contemporary version to spawn from the throngs of the original Mikado’s primordial soup. The result, David H. Bells and Rob Bowman’s collective brainchild, the Hot Mikado, a jazzed-up version of Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Mikado. This is the version which will flex its musical muscle before you, between August 5th-8th (four nights only showing) here in the Premier Hall, Thurles, Co.Tipperary.

The miracle that is The Mikado

Despite its constant re-invention and adaptation, it’s nothing short of a miracle that the original story which beats at the heart of Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Mikado has remained intact and unscathed over the years. Ostensibly set in Japan, The Mikado was originally intended to poke some fun at the England’s Victorian bourgeoisie, many of whom had seized on a fad for all things Japanese. With the Hot Mikado, Bowman and Bell created a spoof upon a spoof, playing broadly on Gilbert & Sullivan’s story of the minstrel Nanki-Poo, who, so desperate and keen to marry the girl of his dreams, Yum-Yum, agrees to be beheaded, after only a month of wedded bliss so that Yum-Yum’s guardian, Ko-Ko can claim her as his bride and please the bloodthirsty and unruly ‘ruler’ of the land, the Mikado. Despite its modern gloss, the story of the Mikado essentially remains as it was originally conditioned in our hotter rendition, as do most aspects of Sullivan’s score as well as Gilbert’s original humorous satirical twang.

The first chapter is surely the most important in any book, setting the tone for every laugh, every celebration, every scandal, every disaster, every tear shed, every joyous shout and every ringing cheer that lies ahead. That in mind, this Thurles’ Hot Mikado’ production have achieved just that, setting a precedent for the rest of their second decade as show stoppers. So why not come along and meet, first hand, the ladies and gentlemen of Phoenix Productions.

This show has all the qualities of mainstream professional theatre, portraying West End quality with not a hint of amateur production in sight.