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News flash: The flood waters are rising again! Please forgive Us if we blunder in this Bray - We're distracted
ELECTIONS/ PRINCESS IDA video at the Newton Library: On Sunday, June 28 at 2:00 PM we'll meet at the Newton Library to vote for next year's board. Up for re-election or replacement this year are Patricia Brewer, our current Vice President; Carol Mahoney, our current Secretary; Mark Woodruff and Steve Levine, our current joint Program Chair, and three of the current Members-at-Large (Janice Dallas, Bill Mahoney, and Marion Leeds Carroll). Dame Rumour whispers that Don Smith, another current M-a-L, may run for V.P. - which, if he were elected, would leave another 1/2-term M-a-L position up for grabs. As We reported last month, Rebecca Consentino is standing for election to the post of Program Chair, for which she has Our enthusiastic endorsement. Talk to board members if you’re interested in any of the open positions, and decide which position you’d like next year!
After the elections, we'll relax with a screening of a videotape of the Sudbury Savoyards' 1996 production of IDA - a top-notch production, if We (the director) say so Ourself!. And then, since we can't very well eat in a library, we'll retire to Cabot's, a local ice cream-and-sandwiches emporium, for a cut-orange ball... er... refreshment in the vestry... er... a plate of macaroni and a rusk... er -- a rollicking bun... cold roast lamb... or whatever pleasures you.
HOW TO GET THERE: The Newton Free Library is located at 330 Homer Street, Newton Center, across from City Hall. (The library has its own nice big parking lot!) From Route 128, take Rt. 30 (Commonwealth Ave) to the central Newton intersection of Commonwealth Ave., Lowell St., North St. and Homer, which angles off Comm. Ave to the right. The library will be right in front of you. By T: Steve Levine tells Us: Since it’s Sunday, the #59 bus that runs directly to the library won’t be in service. You’d have to take the Green Line D-Riverside Car to Newton Highlands, exit the station at Walnut Street, turn right and walk up Walnut Street a little over one mile. The library will be on your left. [It’s worth calling a board member (see the masthead for numbers) if you’d like a ride.]
HOW TO GET THERE: Cabot's Ice Cream, 743 Washington St., Newtonville, MA 02160-1701 Phone: (617) 964-9200: Turn right out of the library's parking lot, onto Homer Street, and left at the end of the block (traffic light) onto Walnut Street. Continue on Walnut Street about a mile, until you cross an overpass (passing over the Mass 'Pike). From the overpass, you can see on the left the Star Market that straddles the 'pike. But turn right at the end of the overpass, onto Washington Street, and within a block or two you will see Cabot's on your left.
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PINAFORE/TRIAL Retrospective in Sudbury. One Sunday afternoon in every May, the Sudbury Savoyards gather to enjoy a reunion and to repeat, in concert form, the production they presented in March. By the mystic regulation of the Savoyards’ association, NEGASS is invited to these concerts. The warm camaraderie of the Savoyards, and the existence of a considerable overlap in the memberships of the organizations, makes this a welcome tradition for all concerned.
This spring’s show was a double bill of TRIAL and PINAFORE. As usual, not all of the March principles could attend the May concert, so some very creative casting filled the gaps. Instead of a complete orchestra, we heard Eric Schwartz at the piano and Steve Malionek on clarinet. [Steve has made a point of attending and playing at many such concerts - We hope other instrumentalists will feel free to do so as well! - mlc] Much of the TRIAL cast were there, ready to repeat their roles: Ben Stevens as Edwin, Larry Seiler as the Council, the lovely Ellen Spear as Angelina and even Mary Turner in a silent role as Edwin’s other innamorata. But Stephen Hird was, in a sense, beside himself as both the Usher and the Foreman of the Jury; while the bench upon which the Judge sat turned out to be the one before the piano: Eric Schwartz sang a very fine Judge without missing a note on the keyboard. The bridesmaids (ranks swelled by NEGASS members) sang sweetly, the jurymen (similarly bolstered by NEGASSers) threatened effectively; Angelina married the judge, and we broke for refreshments.
PINAFORE’s announced casting revealed that Eric was not done double-dealing: he filled in as the Carpenter’s Mate. But the great surprise of the afternoon was Kathy Lague, Sudbury’s favorite high soprano, who, with Bill Kuhlman’s help for TRIAL, had been both stage and music director for this year’s show. She stood there conducting with clear beats throughout the afternoon, while filling in equally clearly in the contralto role of Little Buttercup! The rest of the cast revealed no surprises: Lonnie Powell and Amy Allen as Ralph and Josephine; Eric Rubin and Stephen Curtis as Sir Joseph and Captain Corcoran; Walt Howe and Patrick Kinney as Dick Deadeye and the Boatswain’s Mate; and Debra Hanggeli as Cousin Hebe.
High spirits and fun abounded, and plans for Sudbury’s next production, IOLANTHE, were greeted with enthusiasm.
Tentative Meeting Schedule, 1998-99: |
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~ NEXT BRAY COPY DEADLINE: August 2 ~
Next Bray Stuffing: Sunday, August 9 at 3 PM. Call Us at (617) 253-5810 during the day, at (781) 646-9115 evenings and weekends, or email mlcar@mit.edu at any time, for directions to Our newly flooded home. -- mlc
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PICNIC MEETING CHANGES: As We mentioned last month: Since OSLO does not plan a G&S production in late August this year, our annual Picnic at Mrs. Shepherds will not be preceded by the usual show in Providence. Instead, we’ll meet in Bristol in the early afternoon to sing through YEOMEN. More details to follow - but if you want to sing a role at the picnic, get in touch with Dick Freedman (see his contact info on the last page) and he’ll put you on his list.
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NEGASS BUSINESS: As We mentioned last month, the Board is once again considering the possibility of NEGASS becoming a registered Non-Profit Organization, and would appreciate it if one of our legal members would volunteer to work with us on this transformation. Please get in touch with President Dick Freedman (see last page for contact info.) if you would like to discuss this matter. |
A video of Mikado in Hungarian is available from:
Catalog Number: 470; $29.95 plus shipping (or $49.95 if you want English sub-titles) Credit cards accepted.
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The Victorian Lyric Opera Company (of Rockville, MD)’s SECOND G&S SINGOUT will be held August 29-30, 1998 It will begin with a reception on Friday, August 28th, at the mansion of the Rockville Civic Center. Singing starts Saturday morning, 8/29. The festivities will close with a brunch, to be held at a local restaurant on Sunday, 8/30.
Rockville is still welcoming performers - If you want to be considered for a role, call +1 301 879 0220 and leave your name and number. Or write to P.O. Box 10391, Rockville, MD 20849-0391. Or send e-mail to lese@capaccess.org - or visit the VLOC Web Site at http://www.vw.net/users/vloc. However you apply, be prepared to give them a list of roles you've done (and with whom), let them know what roles you're hoping to perform for them, and send them a check covering the $40 registration fee. They're also looking for organizations interested in sponsoring or providing entire shows. Contact them as above if your performing group is interested. -- mlc
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TRAVEL TO THE ROCKVILLE, MD SING-OUT II: As We mentioned last month, several of us, remembering the fun We had traveling to the last Sing-Out in Rockville, MD on a bus full of Sudbury Savoyards SORCERER cast members, singing all the way down and back to the accompaniment of a couple of battery-powered electric keyboards, decided we'd like to try to rent a bus (or at least a large van!) and travel together once more. So far, we’ve had positive responses from Katherine Bryant, Rebecca Consentino, Melissa Hirshson, Sheldon Hochman, Steve Levine and Mark Woodruff, as well as e-mail from Sam Silvers in NYC asking if he can hitch a ride with us. If you’re planning to attend, and would like to chip in for a NEGASS-arranged and subsidized bus, get in touch with Us (Marion Leeds Carroll -- see Our contact information on the back page of this Bray) and We’ll put you on Our list.
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As for where to stay in Rockville: Sam Silvers writes: I am staying at the Sleep Inn, which was highly rated, as motels go, by a recent issue of Consumer Reports. After considerable haggling with the desk clerk, Jessica, I was able to obtain a "one time only promotional rate" of $59.95 per night. The Sleep Inn has a new heated outdoor pool.
The phone number is (301) 948-8000, and Jessica claims that it is only 2-3 miles from the Singout location. From all I could figure out, a person could get a fairly inexpensive taxi cab ride to the Singout. The motel is not near the Metro, apparently.
We think it would be fun - and would make sense, if we end up renting a bus or taking a van together - to take over the Sleep Inn and make it a NEGASS out-post. If others agree with Us, We’ll try to get a block of rooms.
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In case that fails - or if people want to travel individually - here’s info We’ve been sent from SavoyNet:
To answer your questions about what's near what in Rockville, try visiting MapQuest at http://mapquest.com.
You first locate the theater, which is at 503 Edmonston Drive in Rockville. You then ask the program to list the nearest lodging.
In order of proximity, I got (with phone numbers):
| Ramada Inn | 301-881-2300 |
| Doubletree | 301-468-1100 |
| Pavilion Hotel | 301-468-1100 |
| Best Western | 301-424-4940 |
| Park Inn | 301-881-5200 |
You can also ask for nearest transportation points. The program shows that there is a D.C. metro stop (Rockville Station) not too far from the theater -- which means you could stay almost anywhere in the D.C. area, if you were willing to take the metro to Rockville Station and proceed from there.
How far is it from Rockville Station to the theater? The program says 1.5 miles. It will print you both explicit verbal directions from one point to another, and show the route to take on a map.
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ÒÔ INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL NEWS ÒÔ The official dates for the 5th International Gilbert and Sullivan Festival, Buxton, England are July 29 - August 15, 1998. (Due to fund-raising problems, the festival will only be held in England this year) It will feature Festival Productions of RUDDIGORE and TRIAL/PINAFORE (the latter specifically for children); PIRATES, IOLANTHE and MIKADO performed by the new G&S Opera Company; new productions by amateur companies, many pot-luck shows, and a variety of lectures, tours, and other items of interest. For booking forms and information, contact International Gilbert and Sullivan Festival Trust, The Old Vicarage, Haley Hill, Halifax, HX3 6DR England; tel.: 44-1422 323252; FAX: 44-1422 355604 Don Smith tells Us: The 5th International Gilbert and Sullivan Festival now has its Web Site up and running at http://www.gs-events.org/. After viewing the program, bookings can be made directly with the Buxton Opera House at http://www.buxton-opera.co.uk/. Then go to http://www.s-h-systems.co.uk/buxton.html or http://www.theaa.co.uk/Region5/AllHotel.html to book your hotel reservations. Dame Rumor says that hotels are already getting full. Book now or forever hold your peace. |
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Last month We published Ephraim Jones’ announcement (made over SavoyNet) of his new "critical" edition of MIKADO, which is to be published by Dover. Here is Marc Shepherd’s response to that announcement - made available, once more, by Janice Dallas:
It should be pointed out that there are two other major efforts going on that parallel what Ephraim Jones is doing. Both Broude Brothers and Oxford University Press are working on editions of the full G&S canon. Both projects are likely to produce new volumes later this year, and Oxford says that their edition of MIKADO (edited by David Lloyd-Jones) will be out next year.
It is interesting to note that Broude, Oxford, and Mr. Jones all describe their work as "critical editions," but they have widely varying definitions of what that term means. For example, Broude includes a critical apparatus that cites, in detail, all the variants between itself and all relevant pre- and post-production states of the libretto and vocal score.
We haven't seen an Oxford score yet, but the late Arthur Jacobs, who was a contributor to the Oxford Edition before his death, wrote a review of the Broude TRIAL in an academic journal and criticized it for being too detailed. He felt that the Eulenberg GONDOLIERS was a better model of a modern critical edition. (And, the critical apparatus in that score is indeed less detailed.)
Mr. Jones says he has consulted a number of sources for his edition, which is a Good Thing, but there are a number of important sources which he has not consulted, nor did he state that he is including a critical apparatus. Mind you, these omissions do not at all preclude Mr. Jones from producing a highly credible performing edition that many performers will be happy to use, if it is reliable and user-friendly.
Indeed, if all these projects get through the whole canon, we could conceivably have three editions per opera with mutually-consistent full score, vocal score, and band parts--something we don't have today for any G&S opera. This will be great for the consumer (but perhaps not so great for the publishers, who are selling into a limited market as it is).
[Marc replies to other SavoyNet correspondents, and then continues:]
Clearly, there are many things we want from our G&S editions:
So far, we don't have all of these for any opera. Maybe, by the end of this year, we'll be there for at least a couple of operas.
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A SavoyNetter asks for historical help [Who but Janice Dallas gleaned this for Us:] I am a historian based at Manchester Metropolitan University, UK and I am currently embarking on some research on the history of women's participation in the amateur Gilbert and Sullivan tradition. I am keen to interview women and men who have been involved in amateur societies in every capacity, if possible as far back as the 1920s and '30s. I am also very interested in the ways that societies worked in the past and in their relationships with D'Oyly Carte during the copyright period. Also in the ways that G & S might have changed in amateur performance since the copyright expired. Although the research will centre on the UK (at least in its early stages), I'd love to hear about people's different experiences elsewhere, especially in the US.
Ms. D’Cruze can be reached at
Department of Humanities and Applied Social StudiesÒÔÒÒÔÒÔÒÔÒÔÒ
MORE FROM OUR NEGASS CLASSICIST: It is a clear day on a rocky coast. A handsome man, who has been long at sea, in outlandish dress, accosts a group of young ladies. They are innocently playing by the seashore. One is especially forward and offers to take the young man to meet her father…
"PIRATES!", you are all thinking. Ah, but before PIRATES, there was the Odyssey. In the sixth book, Odysseus (wearing, in fact, nothing at all), is woken from an exhausted sleep by a group of silly girls, all playing ball and shouting. They are the princess Nausicaa’s maids.
When Odysseus emerges, all the young ladies run except Nausicaa, who boldly faces him. Instead of requesting her immediate love (required by the plot of PIRATES), Odysseus praises her beauty and sounds envious of her husband-to-be. The help he seeks (as required by the plot of the Odyssey; he is already married), is a ship to sail him home.
Nausicaa’s speech is more like her counterpart’s recitative. She says, "Stand near, my friends. Why flee from looking at a man?" Then (line 206) she calls Odysseus a dustenos alomenos - "wretched wanderer" - or, in Gilbert’s translation, "Poor Wand’ring One." [Oh! - and We have always been so bemused by Sullivan’s musical reference to La Traviata (The One Who Has Strayed) that We never thought of that! - mlc]
MITG&SP is still holding Director/Producer interviews for their fall show, MIKADO. Contact them via e-mail at savoyards-request@mit.edu, call (617) 253-0190, or visit savoyards-request@mit.edu. Their spring ’99 show will be YEOMEN. More news as it breaks!
BAM will perform Pinafore at 3 PM and 8 PM on November 27-29 at the Emerson Majestic Theatre. (Other repertoire for the season includes MIKADO, plus works by Puccini and John Gay.) Tickets are $18, $33, and $47.50. For more info, phone: 617-824-8000; e-mail: majestic@emerson.edu; WWW: www.emerson.edu/majestic.
NYG&SS will hold its next meeting on Saturday, June 20 at CAMI Hall, 165 W. 57th St., NYC. This month's meeting will feature a concert production of PINAFORE. Doors open at 7:30; the meeting starts at 8, and the Inner Brotherhood go out for coffee afterwards.
PIRATES will be performed on the deck of the full-rigged ship Joseph Conrad at Mystic Seaport, in Mystic, Conn, on August 27th, 28th, and 29th at 7:00 PM by Great Britain's Opera Comique, who have also performed the show aboard the HMS Victory. Tickets: $14 for adults ($16 for non-members) and $8 for youths ($10 for non-members) ages 6-18. Boxed dinners are available. For tix & info: Mystic Seaport is at www.mysticseaport.org, and at (860) 572-5315
Valley Light Opera of Amherst, MA is planning Patience for November, 1998. Check their web page for current info: http://www-ims.oit.umass.edu/~dial129/vlo/
This summer, Falmouth’s College Light Opera Co.’s plans include PATIENCE June 30-July 4 and MIKADO July 28-Aug. 1. More news as it breaks!
(If you would like to make a donation to CLOC to help reduce the large deficit at which this beloved institution has been forced to run throughout its nearly 30-year history, write to CLOC at P.O. Drawer F, Falmouth 02541 for more information.)
OSLO (newly named Ocean State Lyric Opera) plans Gondoliers June 19, 20, 21, 26, 27, 28, and Verdi’s Rigoletto Sept 24 and 26. Call (401) 331-6060 for tix & info.
The Academy Playhouse at The Academy of Performing Arts in Orleans, MA apa@capecod.net will present PINAFORE from June 18-July 4, with Thurs-Sun performances at 8:00 PM For tix & info call (508) 255-1963.
Beavertail Opera Productions, Odeum Theater, 11 Main Street, East Greenwich, RI. June 26-27, 8 PM, Gilbert and Sullivan: A Life. $12.
American Stage Festival, Route 13 North, Milford, NH. 603-673-7515. Tues-Sat 8 PM, Sun 7:30 PM, Matinees Wed & Sun at 2 PM. Mikado, August 20-30. $14-26.
Prescott Park Arts Festival, Marcy Street, Portsmouth, NH. 603-436-2848. Aug. 20, 6 PM, Gilbert and Sullivan's Greatest Hits; Aug. 21, 6 PM. Trial; Aug. 22, 2 PM, Pirates. $3 donation.
Opera North, Opera House, City Hall Building, 51 North Park Street, Lebanon, NH, 6030448-0400; Pirates, 8:00 PM, August 22, 23 (6 PM), 25, 28. $10-35.
Auditions for the Savoyard Light Opera Co's fall production, GONDOLIERS, will be held August 24 and 26 at the Carlisle Congregational Church, 147 School Street, Carlisle. Directors: Scott Gagnon, stage, and Philip Lauriat, music. Performances will be Nov. 13-15 and 21-22. For more info, call (878) 371-SLOC, e-mail sloc@tiac.net, or check their web page: http://www.tiac.net/users/sloc.
VLOC’s SECOND G&S SINGOUT will be held August 29-30, 1998 -- see articles above for more info.
The Footlight Club of Jamaica Plain plans Pirates for November, 6-7, 13-14, and 20-21. More news as it breaks!
The Jewish Theatre of New England, 333 Nahanton Street, Newton Center MA 02159 is aiming for a Nov. 1998 production of Yiddish PIRATES. For further information contact producing director David Mladinov at (617)558-6480 or Fax (617) 527-3104.
Harvard-Radcliffe G&S plans Gondoliers (directed by Frank Habit '92-'93 and Logan McCarty '96) in December: 12/3,4,5,11,12 at 8 PM, 12/5,6,12 at 2 PM. For more info, contact tmoore@fas.harvard.edu, or phone 617- 496-4747 - or visit their Web page: http://www.hcs.harvard.edu/~hrgsp/
HUNTINGTON plans MIKADO for next spring or early summer - President Dick promises to get audition info (for small roles only - leads will come from NYC) in time for publication.
The Valley Light Opera plans to present a double bill of TRIAL and The Foundling (libretto by Mary Finn, music by Bob Weingart) in the fall of the year 2000. We’re looking forward to it - it’ll be the first time this very deserving little Finn/Weingart opus will be staged since its debut several years ago.
PO Box 367, Arlington, MA 02174-0004 Send electronic contributions to our new e-mail address: negass@iname.comPresident RICHARD FREEDMAN: Members at Large: NEGASS membership dues are $15 and up. Please send membership inquiries to Bill Mahoney C/O the above address. The NEGASS Web Page is located at |
