Theater review | Life lessons and silliness on the high seas

Theater Review |

Ahoy, matey! Pirates have invaded the Seattle Children's Theatre. But not the kind of pirates you have to protect your children from.

These are the jolly, buffoonish and ultimately not very dangerous hoodlums of the sea in "Bluenose," a lively if preachy comedy for young ones performed in SCT's smaller venue, the Eve Alvord Theatre.

In reality, pirates are no joke. (There are some extremely nasty ones on the high seas today.) But in mythology and literature, from "Peter Pan" to "Pirates of the Caribbean" to this hourlong work by playwright Emil Sher, they often are colorful bumblers.

A dexterous cast of four, under Allison Narver's spirited direction, portray a trio of marauders named Ratt, Spatt and Knat, and their prisoner Ku, a plucky girl (with a bright blue nose) who hails from a different culture.

Ku's differences are the source of some belabored lessons about diversity, mutual respect and finding the gumption to challenge authority, here represented in the form of Timothy Hyland's blowhard pirate king, Ratt.

Though the didactic aspect of "Bluenose" can be ponderous, the script's wordplay and the energetic slapstick bits cooked up by Narver and choreographer Kathryn Van Meter are often entertaining — particularly for the show's target audience of 6-to-10-year-olds.

The actors cavort on Carey Wong's artful mock-up of a rugged ship deck, set on a stylized ocean in which actors can disappear and reappear in the waves.

As Ku, Hana Lass is distinguished from the ragtag swashbucklers by her blue nose, pastel and pantalooned outfit (courtesy of costume designer Scott R. Gray) and her superior intelligence. (She's kind of a smartypants.)

Brandon Simmons as Knat and Emily Chisholm's Spatt are a pair of benign stumblebums who, in the end, break out of their allegiance to the humorously bossy Ratt, a downmarket version of Captain Hook.

Though "Bluenose" has some sluggish moments, the actors snag the interest of kids by singing lighthearted mock sea chanteys, shaking a leg in comical dance routines, engaging in some silly duels and neatly dispatching the sight gags Narver has inserted at every opportunity.

In the end, young patrons will likely remember those theatrical elements of "Bluenose" more than the lessons it means to impart.

Misha Berson: mberson@seattletimes.com