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Richly imagined and delightfully acted, this 70-minute production proves unexpected in almost every way.

You’ll want to bring the kids. Even the beheading talk isn’t serious enough to trouble them, and a risqué line or two will go over their heads. Playing with the balloons is enthusiastically encouraged.

You might consider this the ultimate stand-up comic routine, since most of the audience does just that. And one word of caution: there will be balloons. Lots of them. As for any qualms about tinkering with the text, one has a little list, but they’ll none of them be missed. This production aims not to appease the purists among us, but to appeal in the broadest performing style to the broadest possible audience including children of all ages.

Sean Graney finds the responses from audiences have generally been positive, though there are haters. “We’re lucky that people generally enjoy our show. Real Gilbert and Sullivan purists – those that love, love, love Gilbert and Sullivan – really admire what we do. They’ve seen these shows hundreds of times, but this is a time to see the show a little bit differently…”

“The Mikado,” says Sean Graney, is Gilbert & Sullivan at their best. “The music is beautiful, the songs are wonderful, the story is so convoluted and so crazy and so ridiculous, there’s so much celebration in the way that they look at this world.”

Jeannette Bayardelle plays multiple characters and wrote the text and music for “Shida,’’ about a fledgling writer.

“The Mikado” remains a clever, light-hearted entertainment, and the Hypocrites have given it a high-octane dose of additional zing that even die-hard fans will embrace, while neophytes will finally understand the staying power of Gilbert and Sullivan. 

This 60-minute descent into self-delusion offers a haunting and occasionally humorous window into the lengths people might be willing to go in pursuit of fame.