Preview: EUSOG in The Pirates of Penzance

AFTER the success of their productions of Little Shop of Horrors and The Addams Family, EUSOG, the Edinburgh University Savoy Opera Group, are back on more familiar territory at the Pleasance this week, where they present Gilbert and Sullivan's much-loved savoy opera, Pirates of Penzance.

EUSOG 'The Pirates of Penzance'

The Pirates of Penzance tells the story of orphan pirates as sensitive as they are fierce; police officers as cowardly as they are handsome; and a particularly deceptive Major-General.

Absurd, heart-rending and very funny, the opera is peopled with colourful characters, from Frederic, the hapless boy pulled on all sides by nefarious masters, to Ruth, a handmaiden desperate to become a pirate.

When Frederic is forced to choose between his pirate brothers and the family of the woman he loves, he must, for the first time in his life, make a decision of his very own.

A 22-strong cast, directed by Charlie Ralph, will bring the EUSOG production to life at the Pleasance.

The Pirates of Penzance (or The Slave of Duty), Pleasance Theatre, The Pleasance, today-Saturday, 7.30pm (matinee 2.30pm), £10, www.eusog.org/pirates/