‘Yo ho ho and loads of fun!’
What happens when a queer theatre group gets their hands on the story of an insurgent lady pirate whose story is lost to 18th century history? The answer: an hour of non-stop, high-energy comedy, embellished with original songs, flashy choreography, and enough genderbending to make your head spin.
Pansexual Pregnant Piracy tells the story of the infamous Anne Bonny, who abandoned her life and marriage as a society woman to try her hand at the high seas aboard a pirate ship, dressed as a man. Along the way, there was illicit love affairs, swashbuckling fights, and scandalous pregnancies. And while the company makes clear that they are riffing on Bonny’s story, we can only hope that she experienced half the fun that the company creates for the audience. Original songs by Erin Rydal and Simon McKenzie insert themselves seamlessly into a punchy and self-aware script by Eleanor Colville, Ro Suppa, and Robbie Taylor Hunt. Colville, Suppa, and Taylor Hunt also make up the company, with the addition of Elizabeth Chu.
As an ensemble, they work well with each other and the story, taking on multiroling and the mad-cap theme of the show with ease. Suppa, as Anne (and later, Man) has an incredible talent for comedy, with laugh-a-minute lines and an energy that is infectious. Taylor Hunt switches through his various roles enthusiastically, from Anne’s overbearing husband to the ship’s resident parrot/drag queen Ivana Cracker. When he appears in a tribute number to ‘Maybe This Time’ about his character’s anxieties, he exhibits comedic timing akin to Liza Minnelli herself. Colville commands the stage as the randy and rambunctious Captain Calico Jack, and Chu is equally as notable as Mary Read, another genuine female pirate from history. Chu’s best moments, however, are when the show speaks to more touching themes – of self-discovery, self-acceptance, and seeking out what is best for yourself. Suppa and Chu share a particularly heart-warming scene when their characters discuss their respective understanding of queerness as freedom, and this is a theme that runs through the entire show.
The show’s other embellishments also make for a great presentation – an amazing use of props, simple but effective choreography by Sara Green, and impressive fight sequences by Eric Ortuño. The show feels all but Fringe-ready – so if you want a taste of August in the spring, Pansexual Pregnant Piracy is yo ho ho and loads of fun!