Tim Curry and the cast of the 1982 Drury Lane production of 'The Pirates Of Penzance' perform 'I Am The Pirate King' during the Royal Variety Performance.
Tim Curry is an absolute phonomenon! His voice is astonishing, he's drop dead gorgeous and a huge stage presence. Not many have all of his talents. He's just amazing to watch!
I was devastated when he had that massive stroke. Such an intelligent, vibrant, talented, and versatile actor, singer, and dancer to have to suffer this was incomprehensible to me. We just never know what life will deal to us. But I'm so grateful for all the shows and movies he left us with to watch and remember. I hope somehow he can get better with each day and know that he is still greatly loved by the world.
@@miriamgreen3973 OHHHHH you need to check out some of the Con Meet and Greet videos on RU-vid from the last couple of weeks. Aside from still being wheelchair bound his facial paralysis is almost entirely gone! Sense of humor, mental faculties and everything else we love about him is SO still in play. 💕💕💕
It's almost painful to see Tim in his prime like this and see what that stroke robbed us of. Damn, a world without a Tim Curry laugh or smile is a poorer one, that's for sure.
Mr. Curry is a treasured artist and man, we all slow down and face challenges in life. He once again shows what a man he is today with poise and determination! I salute you Dr.
Tim's speech is almost restored as of Sept. 2021. He has done a lot of work to gain his voice back and movement. Strokes are a tricky business, but the brain is so amazing at repair work!!!
He is great no doubt but this can't be classed as light opera. It's been reorchestrated and they are singing with microphones. It was written to be performed with a large orchestra (with only acoustic instruments) and no amplification. This version is essentially musical theatre.
@@multitrackjake8698 There was a time, not terribly long ago when musical theatre was performed without amplification. Some of us are still around who miss it.
@@kennethwayne6857 I hear you! I don't mind amplification in repertoire that requires it. The emergence of the big band musical in the 1960s was when it became necessary. Gilbert and Sullivan is opera though so I dislike it being amplified.
I actually got to see Tim Curry in this production in London in the early 80's. Such a treat to see this video! I remember how wonderful he was on stage. He stole the show!
I saw this production in July of 82. I was visiting London and was lucky enough to have my cousin take me to see this. I was 19, fresh off the Canadian farm and this was my very first theater experience. Never has there ever been a better pirate king that Tim Curry. Love ya forever. :)
@@kongfeet81 It won't be for long. Sooner or later, there will be cures to make sure nobody becomes wheelchair bound. The Peter Pan Potion will be no exception. Tim Curry will revert back to walking again.
@@reneastle8447 Could you send me a source for this? We've been trying to find a cure for 16 years, but we're not even close. If you have a source I would be grateful, even more grateful if the source explained the science behind it, so we can make further work on it. Unfortunately my team hasn't found a way to even fully revive dead nerves, so your sources could help a lot.
@@FriendlyHomie I'll have to make appointments to scientists, doctors and chemists of the idea. I'm not gonna do it alone. I'll need all the help I can get.
He’s such an amazing actor and person. It breaks my heart seeing him move around so easily here but he’s getting stronger and thank the lord he can still talk. He’s one of my idols ❤️
As a child, I saw this production in Drury Lane twice. It was BRILLIANT. I was so excited because the pirates came into the audience and one of them spoke to me!! He told me not to tell anyone they were there. Never forgot it and never will. Tim Curry, was and is a LEGEND. The actor playing Frederick, was none other than Michael Praed (Dynasty and Robin Hood fame) who you can see in this clip as well. Incredible memories of this, just wonderful. This is a production I would dearly LOVE to see again!!
I watched the Royal Variety in 1982 just to see Tim, but turned on a bit late and missed him. We didn't have a VCR, so that was that. So pleased to see it, 34 years later!
OH MY! You have no idea how happy this makes me! I saw this production at the Drury Lane Theater in June of 1982 in London and was floored! I love Tim Curry and we had no idea he was in it until we got there and he came on stage! Thank you so much for posting this!
I saw it as well while on a school trip in 1982, George Cole, Tim Curry and Alistair McCoy were the actors I remembered most, it was my first ever theater experience and I loved it.
Same orchestration and structure as Kevin Kline's version, but with that patented Tim Curry craziness as an added bonus. I like it! It's much more dynamic than sticking to the old operetta style of some versions.
I think he is the most talented man who has ever walked this earth, i want to thank him from the bottom of my heart for all the enterrainment he has given us. LORD BLESS HIM. It would have been great to see him on stage like he is in this clip.
Such a wonderful actor and talented singer! My favorite role is that doctor on the Russian submarine in Hunt for Red October. It’s a secondary role, but he really made it memorable. Anything he does you can’t take your eyes off him.
Oh, gods, such a studmuffin! The look, the voice, his sheer Presence....Tim Curry is such a remarkable man with so much talent; what the stroke did to him was such a horrible blow, but he's still got the heart and drive he's always had. Goddess Bless and watch over him ❤️🙏
I am ashamed of myself. I loved Tim in “that odd movie” from the mid 70’s and had no clue what an amazing talent he possessed in SO MANY areas of media!! A magnificent voice, speaking as well as singing and that “R” roll-good heavens!! And I couldn’t stop this thought from entering my head. Imagine what a phenomenal performance had Tim and Freddie collaborated!! It would have been a once-in-a-century shindig! I can’t help but believe they would both have made musical history! Ah, an opportunity there and gone. Tim, thank you so very much for sharing yourself with the world and thanks to all who shared the performances here on RU-vid.
Just a superlative performance..... such a fine voice, impeccable tuning but with all the dramatic licence required of the character. Tim Curry is a treasure of our time!
i am a huge fan of Tim, I loved everything this man has been in. I personally hate clowns, but Tim Curry for me will be the one and only Pennywise. .. He a treasure that for sure and I had a huge crush on him when I was younger.. :)
hands down still my favourite Pirate King. Curry sings this role like perfection. what i wouldn't give to have been able to see him in this role in the play's entirety
Interesting how Captain Blood (Errol Flynn) set the look for the "heroic pirate" for decades--"The Princess Bride," "Cutthroat Island," this and the Kevin Kline version of "Pirates of Penzance;" all the lead pirates had to look like Errol Flynn, with the white blouse and short ponytail (unless the pirate was the villain, in which case he looked like Captain Hook)...and then Jacksparrow completely changed it up, so now all the pirates have guy-liner and rock-star looks (Hook from "Once Upon a Time" and Eddie Izzard in "Treasure Island.") Both looks are great for a pirate; it's just something I find interesting.
Captain Blood and Treasure Island will still be more timeless for pirates then the "rock star" thing and whatever that stays true in the swashbuckling genre until an bigger thing come along then it will changes again.
I often think about that, too. For ages the stereotypical pirate was Long John Silver or Captain Hook. Now Purates look like Jack Sparrow. It is interesting to see how media influences this pictures.
Even more interesting because the descriptions of Capt. Blood's clothes in the book sound very much like what we see when we think of Capt. Hook. Captain Blood is a bit like Percy Blakeney when it comes to clothes.
When I was in highschool my mom and I vacationed in England to visit a friend and saw Tim Curry as the Pirate King at the Drury Lane Theatre. I think it was 1982. Michael Praed was Frderick. It was awesome. I have lkved Tim Curry since then.
The most animated performer of the late 20th century this man was a gift from God... it was a sad day when he had his stroke and is now confined to a wheelchair. We lost his ability to perform like this you know what it's okay he earned his rest and we have some amazing memories
From what I've read (okay, mostly here from posters on other TC posts) he has continued PT since his stroke and has returned to voice over work as well as convention appearances, so we may all be fortunate enough to encounter this magical man again. ❤
This song lives in my head rent free ! I absolutely love the growl in his voice in this version ! I think this tops all other versions I’ve seen ! Brava !
Have you heard him sing Toxic Love from Fern Gully - The Last Rainforest? There is a video on RU-vid that shows him in the studio recording it. It will blow you away.
Tim's mother was there watching him perform, it was the Queen mother's birthday and he was the one presenting the cake to her, his mum kept waving and caught his attention and he dropped the cake
Tim Curry as a pirate is aesthetic. Tallying it up now it appears that he has been a pirate on three occasions, one being this, and the others being his roles in Muppet Treasure Island and the other being Pirates of the Plain. In my heart, it seems Tim Curry always plays a pirate though so the math does not add up between reality and my imagination. Tim Curry exudes pirate energy.
Oh wow! This is my all-time favorite role Kevin Kline ever played and Kevin Kline is still my favorite Pirate King, but Tim Curry is stellar in this piece and I wish there'd been a full production with him! Although this song perhaps ought to be transposed up a tiny bit for him, and also he deserves an audience that isn't so proper they miss laughing at all the jokes XD
SincevI associate his voice from Frankenfurter and King Arthur that having suchva beautiful baritone never really occurred to me. What an amazing set of pipes!! 🥰
Manly if he wanted to be, flamboyant and at least somewhat feminine in the role of Frankie... The voice of a god and the grin of a demon. Love this guy ☠💋
someone needs to produce some soon, I would if he would of let me ( I may be fixed but I'm sure he hold the power to fix that and produce offspring lol )
