THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE Begins 5/9 in Folsom

With a band of swashbuckling buccaneers, bumbling British bobbies, frolicsome Victorian maidens, and the delightfully dotty "model of a modern Major-General," Three Stages at Folsom Lake College presents the classic romp over the rocky coast of Cornwall. America's pre-eminent Gilbert & Sullivan repertory ensemble performs The Pirates of Penzance to a full orchestra and chorus.

This exuberant piece of musical theater, directed and conducted by Albert Bergeret with choreography by Bill Fabris, is performed in its original format. The New YorK Gilbert & Sullivan Player's vibrancy, energy and contemporary sense of humor keep the show alive and exciting to a modern audience. "Spirited... delightful... meticulous direction..." (New York Post).

"The Pirates of Penzance" will be performed on Thursday, May 9, 2013, 7:30 pm and Friday, May 10, 2013, 3 pm & 8 pm. Tickets are $29-$49 with Premium tickets available for $59; 10% discount on Friday afternoon. Tickets are available online at www.threestages.net or from Three Stages Ticket Office at 916-608-6888 from 10 am to 6 pm, Monday through Saturday, and two hours before show time. Three Stages is located on the west side of Folsom Lake College campus in Folsom, CA, facing East Bidwell Street.

"The Pirates of Penzance hardly needs an introduction," says Conductor/Director Albert Bergeret. "Long before Joe Papp's Broadway production and major motion picture added renewed popularity, this engaging operetta had established itself as one of the best loved pieces of musical theatre in the English speaking world." Bergeret continued by saying that "I'm sure that will remain a staple of the G&S cannon for a long as these classic operettas continue to enthrall the child in all of us!"

The plot of Pirates centers on the dilemma of young Frederic who, as a child, was mistakenly apprenticed to the pirates until his twenty-first birthday. Since he was born in leap year on February 29, he is honor bound to remain a pirate until the distant date of 1940, despite his moral objection to piracy. Helping Frederic to deal with this unusual predicament is the brash Pirate King, Ruth - the pirate maid-of-all-work, romantic Mabel, and the delightfully stuffy Major-General Stanley.