Joseph Papp’s famous Broadway version of The Pirates of Penzance is on at the Oxford Playhouse, in a lively, exuberant staging by Oxfordshire Youth Music Theatre.

Directed by Ashley Harvey, with musical direction by Debbie Rose and choreography by Joanne Cook, this promises to be a worthy follow-up to previous OYMT G&S productions such as Hot Mikado.

The story of Frederic, mistakenly apprenticed as a child to a band of pirates instead of to a pilot, was famously given a make-over in 1980 by Joseph Papp to celebrate the opera’s centenary. The show opened in Central Park, New York, before being transferred to Broadway, where it ran for just over 800 performances, with Kevin Kline as the Pirate King, Rex Smith as Frederic and Linda Ronstadt as Mabel. A successful run in London’s West End followed, notching up 601 performances, and starring Pamela Stephenson as Mabel, Bonnie Langford as Kate and George Cole as the Major General, while Tim Curry, Oliver Tobias and Paul Nicholas all had a go at the Pirate King.

With its swashbuckling band of pirates, modernised orchestration and a few liberties taken with the libretto — including the interpolation of Sorry her lot from HMS Pinafore and My eyes are fully open from Ruddigore — the show caused controversy among G&S purists, but was hailed by others for bringing freshness and vitality to one of the best-loved operas in the Savoy canon.

Now OYMT’s cast of 35, their ages ranging from 14 to19, are bringing that exuberance to the Playhouse stage, in what is sure to be a lively and energetic show.

Musical director Debbie Rose said: “The company have really enjoyed working on Pirates, and have shown a high level of energy and commitment throughout the rehearsal period. The show promises to be both entertaining and memorable.”

The show is on at the Playhouse until Saturday. Box office: 01865 305305 (www.oxfordplayhouse.com).