The Pirates of Penzance Reviews
Chicago Reader- Recommended
"...When it comes to Victorian operetta, the Hypocrites throw a hell of a party. In director and adapter Sean Graney's promenade-style production, one-third of his Gilbert & Sullivan Rep, you can wander freely around the theater, play with the several dozen beach balls and rubber duckies littering the room, contribute backup choreography, and talk to the characters as much as you'd like."
Chicago Theatre Review- Highly Recommended
"...More madness, mayhem and musical magic occurs in this tropical isle-inspired, lightning-paced, 80-minute production than audiences can even comprehend. Like a three-ring circus, bouncing between scenic designer Tom Burch’s weathered, wooden pier and several swimming pools, audiences will find actors costumed by Alison Siple in colorful, festive beachwear, short shorts and nautical gear. With rubber duckies and beach balls bouncing everywhere and audience members being offered sunglasses to wear during the performance, the G&S purist may find this uniquely inventive production not to his liking. The majority of theatergoers, however, will revel in the manic fun and unexpected frivolity and musicality Sean Graney has brought to the theatre."
NewCity Chicago- Highly Recommended
"...I’m not the first to say this, and I certainly won’t be the last: Go to The Hypocrites’ revival of their 2010 staging of “The Pirates of Penzance.” Don’t be put off by their unprepossessing new location. Yes, the unfinished theater still looks like what it was: a furniture-store showroom. Yes, to a first-time customer, casualness and laissez-faire seem to be the order of the day. But don’t be fooled by the atmosphere of whimsy, friendliness, anarchy and chaos that envelops you at the theater entrance. It’s all been carefully calculated to sweep your mind clean of stale preconceptions about Gilbert and Sullivan and Victorian theater."