Pirates? - A Swashbuckling Escapade

One of the 14 onsite shows at Granville Island, Pirates? features a lively cast of seven performers from Quimera Collective. Their program includes helpful instructions on how to fold the paper into a sailor hat... which should tell you a great deal about the tenor of this performance which takes place at the Kids Tugboat near the Kids Market.

With an enthusiastic audience seated nearby, the show started with two young people just hanging out on Granville Island. Then as more people arrived, they began to transform into a kind of live game-playing at being sailors, pirates, cowboys, wizards, superheros and sidekicks, CEOs and unicorns. Oddly enough, it reminded me a lot of watching a live session of D & D (Dungeons & Dragons)... or possibly a live Munchkin board game mash-up (with original fantasy Munchkin mixed in with Pirates, Cowboy, Zombies, Cthulhu and even Star Munchkin). All the characters are merrily hanging out on the Tug-a-lug boat and questing for (what else?) treasure. And just like most good board games, I suspect it may be more enjoyable for those playing than for those watching.

Overall, it is a fun romp though without much substance. Visually, the directors do an excellent job of using the unique space and have added enough lighting so the audience can easily see the performance. The performers struggle a bit to be heard in the outdoor setting – perhaps they need to give up some of the naturalistic acting style and indulge in some straight-up cheating to the audience (as I could hear a lot better when they were facing me rather than away). I hope the actors settle into the show and try to have more fun with it – I think that they need to fully embrace the silliness and invite us to come along on the journey. If you have 30 minutes between shows about 8 pm and you are looking for a fun little performance, consider checking out Pirates? at the Kids Tugboat.