The local G&S Society took this innovative take on the G&S corpus to the Grove Theatre on Saturday 9th June 2024 (I saw the matinee). After a short introduction, each operetta was introduced, in chronological order, from Thespis to The Grand Duke, with one of the characters from that work explaining the plot and other soloists and chorus members singing one or two of the songs. The songs were well performed: some of the female soloists had exceptionally good voices; age had weakened one or two of the male voices. There was less success with the narrations. A couple of actors forgot their lines and one narrator disappeared to the back of the stage before being summoned back to the front with cries of ‘Trevor!’. But the audience were very forgiving and this became more a charming feature of the performance than an embarrassment.
It was, presumably, a treat for aficionados in that many of the numbers performed were relatively obscure but it might have been even better if they had been better known. For me the highlights were the show-stomping ‘With Cat-Like Tread’ from the ‘Pirates of Penzance’ and the plaintive duet ‘I Have a Song to Sing-O’ from the ‘Yeomen of the Guard’. One of the reasons that these are better known is that they are better.
Easily the most charismatic narrator was Margot Miller as Little Buttercup from ‘HMS Pinafore’; she stole the show with her comic timing, and was unphased when other cast members forced ad libs on her. The younger ladies - Rowan Stanfield and Sarah Lakshman in particular - were superb. But the highlight was Rowan Stanfield as Elsie and Nigel Lawton as Jack Point with their duet.
It was, presumably, a treat for aficionados in that many of the numbers performed were relatively obscure but it might have been even better if they had been better known. For me the highlights were the show-stomping ‘With Cat-Like Tread’ from the ‘Pirates of Penzance’ and the plaintive duet ‘I Have a Song to Sing-O’ from the ‘Yeomen of the Guard’. One of the reasons that these are better known is that they are better.
Easily the most charismatic narrator was Margot Miller as Little Buttercup from ‘HMS Pinafore’; she stole the show with her comic timing, and was unphased when other cast members forced ad libs on her. The younger ladies - Rowan Stanfield and Sarah Lakshman in particular - were superb. But the highlight was Rowan Stanfield as Elsie and Nigel Lawton as Jack Point with their duet.
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