LMLO GONDOLIERS, February 25 at 2 PM at Eliot Hall in Jamaica Plain: Patricia Brewer, who's organizing this year's Last Minute Light Opera production, GONDOLIERS, tells Us that many roles are still available for women as well as for men. Let her know if you'd like to be a Gondolier, a Contadina, a member of the Spanish Nobility, or any of the assorted Others appearing in the show. There are parts to fit anyone's ambition and ability, from long and splendid singing roles, to chorus, to little oneliner dialog parts, requiring all types of acting and singing skills or lack thereof. And don't let your feared lack of talent stop you from asking for a part: Patricia's rule is that desire to play a role counts more in this forum than "talent." (On the other hand, if you're talented, and would love a chance to "try out" a role before auditioning for it at some local company or you've performed it once or twice, and would love another go at a favorite part or at a part you didn't get last time use this opportunity!) Call Patricia at (617) 323 3480 to reserve your role.
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HOW TO GET THERE: The Footlight Club, Eliot Hall, Jamaica Plain: Take 128 to Rt. 9. Follow rt. 9 east, past the Chestnut Hill Shopping Center, about 11 miles from 128, to Brook House Apts. in Brookline. Look for the "Jamaicaway South" sign and entrance on the right. Follow Jway past Jamaica Pond to Rt. 1/Rt. 203 rotary. Go around the rotary and back up the Jamaicaway. Turn right onto Eliot Street, which you could not have reached from the southbound lane. Eliot Hall is a few blocks down on the left, near Centre Street.
If Eliot Street has no parking spaces, turn right onto Centre Street, then left and left again just past Dunkin Donuts. Park in the municipal lot, and walk back to Eliot Hall.
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HUNTINGTON'S IOLANTHE: A fair crowd of NEGASSers attended the January 21 Matinee enough so that a WBZ interviewee on the David Brudnoy show reportedly commented on the enthusiasm of the audience that day, while announcing the extended run of the show! Quite a few stayed for Steve Ledbetter's talk on the Melodic Duo and a friendly tablefull tripped thither to the Italian place next door for pizza and conversation after the formal entertainment was over. But it was nonNEGASSer Mary Finn (of the Finn and Weingart pair that brought the world The Foundling a couple of years ago) who provided Us with this review: I watched the Huntington Theatre Company's production of IOLANTHE, and fell in love with G&S all over again. It was funny, fresh, and thoroughly enjoyable. It was also surprisingly small, with a cast of only fourteen. A purist might quibble that a few lines, both of dialog and music, were reassigned, but that gave everyone in the chorus a chance to shine, and did no harm whatsoever to the plot.
And how the minichorus did shine! The fairies were tremendously fun. Every peer was a distinct character. Their voices were strong enough so that the choral numbers didn't sound thin. In fact, the only drawback to using a reduced cast was that the Huntington also used a reduced orchestra. At times, I really missed the brass.
My favorite performance was given by Patti Allison as the Fairy Queen. Her interpretation of the role was unexpected, very funny, broad, but still believable. The same could be said for many of the actors on stage, although Cheryl Martin played a very traditional, porcelaindoll sort of Phyllis. Ed Dixon was wonderful as the Lord Chancellor. His delivery of "Iolanthe, thou livest!" was the best I've ever heard.
The only thing to say about the singing is that it was uniformly superb. If Dixon occasionally spoke his lyrics, that's acceptable in a patter baritone. His diction, in fact, the entire cast's diction, was flawless. What a treat!
The sets were breathtaking. The costumes were good. The staging was effective I particularly liked that at his first entrance, Strephon (Robert Gallagher) expected to find Iolanthe (Ann Kittredge) still in the pond. In short, the Huntington Theatre Company gave us G&S the way it ought to be! MARY A. FINN
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Casting Call: A few weeks ago I attended a folk music performance at Blanchard's Tavern, a pub in Avon, MA. In conversation with one of the trustees, our mutual interest in G&S came out, and I learned that he, a credentialed author/dramatist/actor, had written a biographical twoman show, Gilbert and Sullivan, and wondered if I might be interested in it. Having received it and read it, I agree it's worth staging and am looking for two volunteers. The Gilbert character sings a line here and there, when they consider alternatives for a show, but there is no reason the singer has to have a good voice (although enunciation, of course, must be excellent). Some piano ability would be useful for the Sullivan character. Physical resemblance to the characters portrayed would be welcomed.
If two suitable volunteers can be found, it should be possible to stage it for a NEGASS meeting, perhaps in the fall, at the pub in Avon. Call me if you're interested. DICK FREEDMAN
Tentative 199596 Meeting Schedule:
2/25 LMLO GONDOLIERS (Produced by Patricia Brewer) 4/14 Eyes and No Eyes (Royal Victorian Opera Co, Chuck Berney, Director) 5/5 Sudbury Retrospective (PRINCESS IDA) 6/9 Election/Business meeting AND G&S Collecting (Hosted by J. Donald Smith at the Newton library)
~ NEXT BRAY COPY DEADLINE: March 24 ~
Next BrayStuffing: On Sunday, March 31 at 3 PM we'll meet at 13 Cottage Avenue, Arlington, MA to fold & stuff the Bray and to read through now, of all the world of Gilbert's plays, We wonder what? perhaps Sweethearts. Call Us at (617) 6469115 for directions and further information. mlc ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
We have learned that Gilbert and Sullivan: Interviews and Recollections, edited by Howard Orel, has just been published by the University of Iowa Press. Publishers' Weekly seems to think highly of the book, which consists of "a wealth of observations and personal reminiscences... from friends, musicians, singers, actors and actresses, and journalists and other writers." The book is available in paperback in bookstores for $14.95, or can be ordered directly from UI Press by calling 18002352665. Anyone want to purchase a copy and send Us a review? mlc
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Barataria Books, A quality collection of G&S Ephemera, provides a 12pg catalog crammed full of books, records, programs, and other interesting stuff. They're interested in purchasing as well as selling. For information, contact Mr. Derick Keeton, Barataria, 12 Canford Grove, Allerton, Bradford, West Yorkshire, BD15 7AT, England, or call +44 (0)1275 496424. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Gayden Wren and PRINCESS IDA at Oberlin. Last month We apologized to the creator of A G&S Christmas Carol for leaving his name off the description of the play in a previous issue. We're rewarded by finding out much more about Gayden Wren than We ever thought We'd know! Turns out he's the founder of the Oberlin G&S Players well, in his own words: "I was one of the founders, yes. I directed the group's first five productions, and seven of the first nine. " He's now another quote: "a theatrical director, playwright and editor based in New York City."
And the Meat of the Matter: "He will spend January 1996 in residence at Oberlin College, directing THE THREE PRINCESSES PROJECT, a multidisciplinary production including a reading of Tennyson's poem The Princess, performances of W.S. Gilbert's play THE PRINCESS, and performances of the Gilbert & Sullivan opera, PRINCESS IDA."
How do We know this? "He was interviewed by Jerome C. Culverton during a November visit to the Oberlin campus." And this interview was made available to SavoyNetters on special request to
Ralph MacPhail, Jr. RMacPhai@Bridgewater.edu Box 114 Bridgewater College Bridgewater VA 228121599 USA (540) 8285342 HOME: 8286656 FAX: 8285479
It's worth reading, if you love IDA! Get a copy from Ralph, or email to Us (mlcar@ibm.net) and We'll forward a copy to you Ourself.
Why's he doing IDA? "I have a sort of evangelical feeling about IDA, a strong desire to spread what I see as the gospel about it, so I'm always interested in doing a new production of PRINCESS IDA. "
We'd love to print the whole interview but it's LONG! Here's a key bit:
"WREN: ...the linchpin of my interpretation is the differences between PRINCESS IDA and the Tennyson poem on which it's based. The changes Gilbert makes in the poem provide a virtual road map to his intentions for the opera, a road map which doesn't exist with any of the other operas, which are all based on Gilbert's own stories. By studying the poem and the opera in comparison to one another, you get a tremendous degree of insight into what's going on in the opera itself...
Q: ...what are these key differences... ?
WREN: The most obvious ones are differences in character and differences in story. Not only are the characters in the opera in some ways very different from the ones in the poem, but different things happen to them.
Q: Which characters are different?
WREN: Actually, almost all of them. Blanche has the same personality in the opera as in the poem, and Cyril is fairly similar. But Hilarion is much differentin the poem he's this gentle, poetic epileptic who worships Ida from the beginning; in the opera, he's something of a fop, a quibbling joker who mocks everything Ida stands for, at least at first.
The biggest difference is probably King Gama. In the Tennyson, a twisted trunk does indeed bear goodly fruit Gama is a dwarf, but he's the soul of considerateness. His biggest speech in the poem is an impassioned plea to Ida to be more compassionate... And Hildebrand, in the poem he's a roughandtumble guy who's basically goodhearted, whereas in the opera he's a raging tyrant, Mr. All or Nothingor, in his case, "much more than everything, much less than nothing."
As for Ida herself, Gilbert's princess is vastly more ruthless, more fanatical, more political than Tennyson's. You can see this when she considers the question of whether Hilarion's trespassing should be forgiven because he saved her life. In Tennyson, she lets him go. In "Princess Ida," she sentences him to death. Tennyson's Ida requires her women to swear off marriage for three years, partly so they can marry more as equals to their husbands. Gilbert's Ida makes them swear off marriage forever.
Or how about Arac? In the poem, he, Guron and Scynthius are almost superheroes. Arac is big, handsome, intelligent, goodhearted and very sympathetic to Ida and her cause. Just the kind of brother anybody would want. In the opera...
Q: Whereas in the opera, they're three oafs.
WREN: Three oafs, that's right. No, no, no, not intelligent.
Q: So what's the point to all these changes?
WREN: It turns up the heat, by putting the screws on Ida, and to a lesser extent on Hilarion.
Tennyson's Ida is a strong woman who's just a little bit overzealous, but by no means a fanatic, because she's not from the kind of world where fanaticism is appropriate...
Gilbert's Ida is an extremist, because everything in her world is extreme. She has a nasty, spiteful father who demeans her every chance he gets. She has no mother worth mentioning... She has three ultraviolent brothers who couldn't have anything to say to their highly educated, very intelligent sister. And, of course, she's promised in marriage to the foppish son of a monster like King Hildebrand.
Q: So your interpretation is based on family relationships.
WREN: Yes and no. It's true that Gilbert reshapes the story so that instead of being a light societal comedy told in the fashion of grand drama, the way Tennyson's poem is, it's a dark family drama told in the fashion of light comedy. But that's only part of the point.
Q: The rest of which is...
WREN: The changes in the story that I talked about before... most particularly the ending... Just as in the poem, the entire story boils down to a big battle scene, a confrontation between Arac and Hilarion. In the poem, Arac wins. In the play, Hilarion wins.
Think about that. It's a ridiculously bold decision for Gilbert to make. When you're adapting a popular work to another medium (and The Princess was extraordinarily popular), the line of least resistance is to be faithful to the original. If it doesn't work, people just say, well, it wasn't very easy to make that sort of thing into an opera. Or a play, or a movie, or whatever... But God help you if you change it, and it doesn't work. People will say you committed blasphemy, you personally ruined it...
And look what Gilbert does. It's as if he adapted Homer and had the Trojans win. People must have been astounded. We don't get that, today, because people don't know the poem, but hopefully they'll get some sense of that from THE THREE PRINCESSES.
Q: All right, so that's a fundamental change which Gilbert makes. Why?
WREN: Because, for the story he's telling, it has to be that way. Tennyson's story is set in a world that is basically in good shapeIda isn't wrong, Hildebrand isn't wrong, there's just a misunderstanding. By letting Ida's side win, and having the prince injured so severely in his battle with Arac, Tennyson gives her the chance to soften, to realize her error, which is basically one of excess. The wounded prince brings out her nurturing side, and she comes back into proper balance. And so does the world.
Q: Whereas Gilbert's world...
WREN: It's a hell."
There's much more to the interview, including an excellent explanation of why it's a good thing that Ida and Hilarion get together at the end not a tragedy, as so many postfeminists think. Let Us know if you want Us to publish more of it! THE THREE PRINCESSES PROJECT will be performed again during the Philadelphia period of the International G&S Festival this summer. See below for full schedule mlc
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REVIEWS
OSLO Gala: I recently saw another performance by the Ocean State Light Opera Company. They presented Ballroom Scenes from Grand Operas; oh, yes, and COX & BOX by Burnand and Sullivan .
A great deal of Act II of Die Fledermaus, as well as numbers from The Merry Widow, La Traviata, A Masked Ball, Naughty Marietta and other operas were neatly integrated into a delightful comic and musical creation, and performed very ably by a fine group of musicians. These included Julie Anne Fay (last summer's Rose Maybud), Robert S. Lieberman (Robin Oakapple), and Fredric S. Schiff (who has played The Defendant, Richard Dauntless, Ralph Rackstraw and other tenor roles in recent OSLO productions). In fact, just about all the singers performed very well indeed and I was impressed, once again, by the high quality of their voices and performances.
The high point of the evening for many, including me, was COX & BOX. David Price, who was such a good Sir Joseph last summer, was Cox; and Ron Rathier, who has been in many productions both with OSLO and with the old Cabot Street company, played Box. Mary Beth McGrath, who last summer was a Mad Margaret, and played a raucous Lady Jane two seasons ago, played Madam Bouncer. [What a good way around the problem so many companies have with an allmale show! especially since the original farce did in fact feature a landlady, not a landlord! but We wonder how the "military man" music was handled... mlc] All three performed well and the laughs came often and fast. The pianist, Loren Mitchell, provided a rousing accompaniment.
All in all, it was an evening to remember with great pleasure. With a little luck, maybe they can squeeze in this COX & BOX in with one of their summer shows. This group is certainly worth seeing again.
ALAN HOPFENBERG
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PATIENCE AT LONGY. I was tipped off by a friend at short notice about a performance of PATIENCE at the Longy School of Music January 25th27th. I went on the 26th, expecting, at a school of music, to hear topcaliber voices, even if their understanding of Gilbert and Sullivan might be weak. I was disappointed in several respects, but saw several interesting things too.
One of the disappointments was the sparse audience (fewer than fortyfive in a very pleasant auditorium that would comfortably seat at least four times that number) and the sparse cast (six lovesick maidens, four heavy dragoons). I urge anyone who knows of G&S being planned by a group that is not one of our "regulars", to urge them to get in touch with NEGASS. Our publicity can help their attendance, and with sufficient notice we can frequently turn up additional choristers (if they wish; they certainly have a right to perform with a small chorus of group members only, but many times they would like more and don't know where to recruit).
Another disappointment was that the director, in my judgment, missed several of the jokes, and therefore the audience was forced to as well. On the other hand, there were occasional flashes of brilliance.
When the dragoons entered, I couldn't imagine why one of the lovesick maidens hung back, showing them far more attention than such fleshly men of full habit would seem to deserve, according to the plot, but it turned out she was there to sing "If you want a receipt"! Other music was similarly shared, to my surprise, including the second verse of "When I first put this uniform on" sung with subtitles! (Other dragoons held up a large placard, with the words on it, for the audience. The singer, a Brazilian, as I later learned, had such a heavy accent that his words were not understandable, even to a devotee, without them.) In "Your maiden hearts", the third verse, the one with the high note, was sung by another dragoon who, apparently, had notes the Duke did not.
Another musical decision that seemed questionable to me occurred during the Act I finale. Most of the principals sing "I hear the soft voice" followed by a repeat with chorus. But it looks pretty silly when "most of the principals" means all but two of the cast. They stood around with no apparent reason for not joining in, and then they joined in. It might have made more sense to cut directly to the part where the chorus enters, or maybe to give the two an errand to perform during the first part, or something.
The brilliance I mentioned was in almost every scene among Grosvenor (Paul Tedesco), Bunthorne (Gerhard Tegeder II) and Patience (Nancy McIntire), all good actors as well as fine singers. It's standard, when Grosvenor displays his beauty for Bunthorne ("Very graceful, isn't it?" "Allow me, I haven't seen it.") for Bunthorne to look at himself in the mirror, instead of at Grosvenor. But a wonderful bit I could not recall seeing before: when Grosvenor identified himself to Patience, after she hadn't recognized him by looking at him directly ("Archibald! Is it possible? Why, let me look!"), she recognized him by intently studying his reflection.
The other big laugh was Grosvenor's reappearance after the imposed change: he came back as a nerd! He wore thick glasses, held together by a piece of tape over the middle; in his shirt pocket he had a pocket protector (labeled "MIT") filled with pens; and he spoke in a highpitched whiny voice.
The set was minimal (a few large plants); the accompaniment was provided by a fine pianist, either Teresa or Theresa Boland (it was spelled both ways on the program), and the production would have done credit to an average community theater group. But it fell far short of what one expects from a school of music. DICK FREEDMAN
[We'd like to remind people that productions at schools of music are intended for the benefit of the students, not for the audience for instance, the Brazilian baritone had a good first try at singing in English, and nearly everyone got to sing a solo. Opera workshop performances, among which this must be counted, are usually done on a shoestring budget, with piano accompaniment, minimal sets, and whatever props and costumes the students themselves can find. Even the acting and voices are not dependably excellent in such a production: This is an opportunity for a promising singer to learn, not for a polished singer to show off. This may be why the performance was not heavily advertised, and why the auditorium was so empty. These performances are still worth attending, for the sake of discovering a promising young star but don't go to a performance at a school of music expecting a professional production! mlc]
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As a change from Don Smith's Buxton Diary, here's a snippet from Lee Patterson's Diary shamelessly stolen from the Hancock County G&S Society Newsletter:
August 9: Kenneth Sanford & Roberta Morrell: morning coffee: much reminiscing. He was in London musicals seven years before joining D.C.... If you change a line, keep it within the spirit of the piece; don't go for a belly laugh... all the humor is in the words & music...Afternoon master class (Ken & Roberta): dialog slow; don't drop off at end; emphasize final consonants... with repeated words, say it differently second time. Intense work with a Grosvenor/Angela on dialog preceding Magnet song; also with a Ruth/Frederic pair on "Oh False One." [Lee seems to have focused more on specifics of what was said in each master class We wonder if more of his diary is available for NEGASSers to peek at, by personal request, as Don's is on email. mlc] ___________________________________________________ :o :) ;o :) :o Buxton Nettings :) ;o :) :o :) ;o :)
FULL PHILADELPHIA PROGRAMME (Subject to minor adjustment)
SATURDAY 20TH JULY Opening Ceremony [See below for details] 3.00 pm Auditions for Festival Production, IOLANTHE 7.30 pm PATIENCE The Savoy Company, Philadelphia 10.30 pm Festival Club and Cabaret (IOLANTHE cast announced).
SUNDAY 21ST JULY 10.00 am 5.00 PM Festival Production rehearsals [repeated at the same time every day]. 10.30 am Thanksgiving Service for the life and works of Gilbert and Sullivan 11.30 am Film screening The Gilbert and Sullivan Story introduced by Ian G Smith, Festival Director 3.00 pm PeggyAnn Jones Masterclass 6.30 pm US Friends of the Festival Cocktail Reception 7.30 pm RUDDIGORE with former D'Oyly Carte Principals 10.30 pm Festival Club and Cabaret [repeated at the same time every evening]
MONDAY 22ND JULY 8.00 am Day excursion to New York. 10.30 am Kenneth Sandford informal Coffee and Conversation 3.00 pm Kenneth Sandford Masterclass and Role Play 7.30 pm TRIAL WITHOUT JURY Western Australia G & S Society, Australia H M S PINAFORE G & S Society of Chester County
TUESDAY 23RD JULY 10.30 am Film screeningMIKADO introduced by Peggy Ann Jones. 7.30 pm YEOMEN South Anglia Savoy Players, England
WEDNESDAY 24TH JULY 10.30 am David Turner "Speaking Personally" Theatrical recollections from the Festival Adjudicator and Director of The Mousetrap in London. 2.30 pm SORCERER former D'OC Stars 7.30 pm SORCERER repeat performance
THURSDAY 25TH JULY 8.00 am Day trip to Washington impromptu performances at landmarks around the nation's capital. 10.30 am THE PRINCESS by Alfred Lord Tennyson a recital of the poem, presented by Oberlin College, USA 3.00 pm THE PRINCESS a fully staged production of Gilbert's rarelyperformed play a prelude to this evening's performance. 7.30 pm PRINCESS IDA Oberlin College
FRIDAY 26TH JULY 10.30 am Geoffrey Shovelton Coffee & Conversation 3.00 pm Geoffrey Shovelton A Masterclass 7.30 pm THE GRAND DUKE Washington Savoyards, USA
SATURDAY 27TH JULY 10.30 am 5.00 pm G&S Memorabilia Exhibition and Fair 10.30 am Gillian Knight Coffee & Conversation 3.00 pm Gillian Knight A Masterclass 7.30 pm IOLANTHE The Festival Production
SUNDAY 28TH JULY 14.30 hours RUDDIGORE featuring former D'Oyly Carte Stars 19.00 hours Gala Dinner, to end the Festival in style
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Thank you Philadelphia and New York enthusiasts for making our visit to the States so interesting and hopefully successful.
We have now finalised the Opening Programme in Philadelphia and again societies might like to consider joining us. My target is a minimum of five hundred participants on stage at the Merriam Theatre, dressed in any G & S costume of their choice for a really big sing.
We will begin with a massive parade down the Avenue of the Arts (approx. time scale 1.30pm), and the sing should commence around 2.00pm with a full scale performance of Trial By Jury followed by most of the Act I finales from each of the operas in chronological order, through to the concluding Act II finale of Grand Duke.
Ideally I would like thirteen different societies to provide the principal line up and conductor for each relevant finale.
Societies are also offered the opportunity of registering chorus members to join in this colourful opening ceremony.
Ideally I would like at least one hundred voices to each part!
We are looking for choristers to be without book. If they cannot sing all thirteen, they could in fact go off stage for those that they are unsure of. Preference however will be given to those who could go right the way through.
Registrations will be taken on a firstcome first served basis so please keep us informed.
IAN SMITH, Festival Organizer
[For more information, Email the Festival Organizers at 100665.3250@compuserve.com , or reach them via:
Ian Smith, The Old Vicarage, Haley Hill, Halifax , HX3 6DR England. fax Int +44 1422 355604 or phone Int + 44 1422 539161
[Is anyone planning to attend? We happen to be very excited about the Three Princesses Project, which will be performed at the festival and the Opening Ceremony certainly sounds like fun! mlc]
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~~///////~~~~~~~~~~~~///////~~ CALENDAR:
We've just missed the Hancock County G&S Society's production of GONDOLIERS, alas! It played 2/2 11. Did anyone see it?
We've also missed auditions for The HarvardRadcliffe Gilbert & Sullivan Players production of IDA, which will be performed April 1120, 1996. IDA is being directed by Joel Derfner, with music direction by Bradford Chase, and produced by Ezra Reese and Erica Silverstein. We're told, "The staging will be non traditional, so come with enthusiasm and an open mind." For more info, call HRG&SP at (617) 496HRGS (4747) or Erica Silverstein at (617) 4933082.
We've also missed auditions for MITG&SP's UTOPIA LTD, which will be presented on 4/12, 13, 18, 19 & 20 at 8 PM, and 4/14 at 2 PM, with Music Direction by Jay Lane and Stage Direction by Joe Sweeney. The position of Stage Manager is still available. [You might want to email producer Ruth Jedlinsky at rls@dimins.com to offer your services!] For more information please call (617) 2530190. Or email savoyardsrequest@mit.edu or check out their World Wide Web page: http://www.mit.edu:8001/activities/gsp/home.html
Our Florida correspondent John Ambler writes: Florida visitors may want to see MIKADO, presented by the New York Gilbert and Sullivan Players, directed by company founder Albert Bergeret. This group does G&S in repertory in NYC (at The Symphony Space) each year during January and February. They also make an annual spring tour of Florida, playing in Clearwater, Sarasota, and up the East Coast. There will be one performance only in Clearwater on Tuesday, Feb. 20 at 8 PM. For more info, call the Ruth Eckerd Hall box office, (813) 7917400.
The Gordon College Dept. of Music in Wenham, MA, will present GONDOLIERS at 8 PM on 2/16 & 17. Call (508) 9272306 x 4364 for more info.
Tuesday, 2/27 is the date of the Valley Light Opera annual meeting in Amherst, MA. This year's meeting will feature a singalong with orchestra of PIRATES (in honor of Frederic's birthday). Call Bill Venman at (413) 5491098 for more info.
Beavertail Productions, a new company founded by former D'Oyly Carte baritone Thomas Lawlor, is planning a production of Gilbert and Sullivan, A Life, an original work by Mr. Lawlor, which he describes as "a witty and sophisticated look at the careers and works of these two giants, through readings and the performance of excerpts from all of the operas, by some of the finest voices in New England." It will be presented at the Greenwich Odeum Theatre in East Greenwich, RI, on 3/13 at 8 PM, with a matinee at 2:30 on the 3rd. We'll print more information as We receive it; as of now, try calling Mr. Lawlor at (401) 331 1402 for more info.
OSLO (Ocean State Light Opera) will hold auditions for summer productions of IOLANTHE and SORCERER at the Wheeler School Theater in Providence, RI on March 17, 25 PM and March 18 & 19, 7 10 PM. Call (401) 3316060 for more information.
The Sudbury Savoyards will perform IDA March 21, 22 & 23 at the LincolnSudbury Regional High School (Yes live from Lincoln offCenter!), with all proceeds donated towards the relief of world hunger. Debra Lustiger is the Producer; Ron and Janice Dallas are handling sets, lights and costumes between them; Jim Ravan is the Music Director, and Marion Leeds Carroll is Stage Director. Familiar names in the huge cast include, in part: Laura Gouillart, Bill Kuhlman, Kathy Lague, David Larrick, Larry Seiler, Ellen Spear... (There are many fine unfamiliar performers as well!) Call (508) 4438811, or check out their Web page at http://www.ultranet.com/~savoyard/ for more info.
UMGASS (U Michigan G&S Soc.) plans IOLANTHE 4/1114. In Michigan, call 7617855 for more info.
News from Savoynet: The OHIO LIGHT OPERA are planning a production of THESPIS with a musical score composed by Quaid Winter, paired with Sullivan and Burnand's COX & BOX. Performance dates: July 16, 20, 24, and 27; Aug. 2, 4, and 8. The group also plans SORCERER June 27 Aug 6 and GONDOLIERS July 5 Aug 10. For info call (216) 2632345.
The New England Opera Club plans a Tribute to Renata Tebaldi at 3 PM on February 18 at the Holiday Inn in Brookline (1200 Beacon Street). The club publishes an informative newsletter listing local live performances and broadcasts of classical vocal music, including G&S. Dues are $25/year for monthly meetings and a monthly newsletter Send inquiries to Mr. Samuel Rosen, 63 Clifton Road, Newton Centre, MA 02159.
NEGASS is affiliated with The Gilbert & Sullivan Society, based in London. If NEGASS members plan to visit England and would like to attend a G&SS meeting, they can contact Sue Cross, 8 Seafield Road, Arnos Grove, London N11 2AS for details concerning upcoming meetings, which are planned this season for 2/29, 3/24, 4/17, 5,30, and 6/19.
NEGASS's sister society in NYC is, of course, NYGASS. It holds meetings at CAMI Hall, 165 West 57th Street in Manhattan, starting with a social gettogether at 7:30, going on to the formal meeting at 8:00, and ending with another informal gettogether at a local coffee shop. Their meeting dates for the rest of the year: Wednesday, 2/14; Thursday, 3/14; Tuesday, 4/16; Friday, 5/17; and Saturday, 6/22. Drop by if you're in town!
The North Toronto Players plan PIRATES on 3/1517 & 2123. Call (905)7272209 for tix & info.
St. Pat's Players of Toronto is planning UTOPIA 2/811 and 1417 call them in Toronto at 4456691.
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NEGASS now has its own Web Page, thanks to President Dick and Jim Farron of Springfield, VA, who administers The G&S Archive Web Server. Our URL (Universal Resource Locator, i.e. address) is:
http://www.negass.org
The G&S Archive Web Server's address is:
http://diamond.idbsu.edu/GaS/GaS.html
THE NEW ENGLAND GILBERT AND SULLIVAN SOCIETY PO Box 367, Arlington, MA 021740004
President RICHARD FREEDMAN (617) 6309525 email: rnf@gis.net Vice President PATRICIA BREWER: (617) 3233480 Secretary CAROL MAHONEY: (617) 6481720 Treasurer CARL WEGGEL: (508) 4740396 Program Chair SHELDON HOCHMAN: (508) 8427617 Members at Large: Membership Officer BILL MAHONEY: (617) 6481720 J. DONALD SMITH: (508) 8235110; email: DSMITH@UMASSD.EDU PETER CAMERON: (508) 9750405 JANICE DALLAS: (617) 2757412 The Trumpet Bray Editor MARION LEEDS CARROLL: (617) 6469115; email: mlcar@ibm.net
NEGASS membership dues are $15 and up. Please send membership inquiries to Bill Mahoney at NEGASS, PO. Box 367, Arlington, MA 021740004
Page created 28 Nov 1996