The Conical Glass: William and Arthur

Sunday, May 18, 2008

William and Arthur

I swear I wasn't thinking about it when I wrote yesterday's post, but last night, Joe and I had tickets to see the Lamplighters' current production, "Gilbert & Sullivan, Straight Up, With A Twist!" I armed myself with some lozenges and felt well enough to go see it. The musical tells the story of the G&S partnership and features at least one number from every single G&S operetta, thus condensing 13 shows into approximately two and a half hours.

The main problem with the chronological approach is that it makes the show awfully front-loaded. The first act covers the period 1875-1885 and includes "H.M.S. Pinafore," "Pirates of Penzance" and "The Mikado," the equivalent of G&S's greatest hits. The second act goes through 1896 (as well as covering the men's later years -- Sullivan died in 1900, Gilbert in 1911) and features songs from "Utopia, Ltd.," "The Grand Duke" and "The Yeomen of the Guard," among other shows that aren't nearly as well-known and loved.

The sometimes contentious relationship between G&S will be familiar to anyone who saw the film "Topsy-Turvy." The show's book, by Barbara Heroux, strives for accuracy, taking much of the dialogue between the two men from their letters and diary entries. Of the two, Sullivan seems to have been the most ambitious; he felt hampered by having to write the score to Gilbert's humorous and wordy lyrics. Many critics felt that Sullivan was slumming by writing operettas instead of grand operas. Of course, over a century since his death, Sullivan's work with Gilbert lives on and his more serious work is much less well known. (He did write a lot of songs and hymns that are still familiar, though, including "Onward Christian Soldiers" and "Nearer, my God, to Thee.")

It was a lot of fun to revisit some of the songs from last summer's "H.M.S. Pinafore," sung by the same exceedingly talented performers, albeit in a much more stripped-down setting. I'm going to try to catch some of the more famous G&S shows -- "Pirates of Penzance" is coming up in San Jose next month, and Lamplighters' next season features "The Mikado" and "Iolanthe" -- and who knows, maybe eventually I'll move on to stuff like "Patience" and "The Sorcerer." The Lamplighters have produced every G&S show during their 56-year history, and with only 13 to choose from, there are by necessity a lot of repeats. (Most G&S companies mix it up a bit with other shows, too.)

What is it about these 19th century shows that continues to appeal to a 21st century audience? A lot of their themes, from bureaucratic foolishness to romantic rivalries, are still relevant, and the songs are a lot of fun. Chances are that there's a Gilbert & Sullivan company near you!

posted by 125records @ 3:34 PM

0 Comments: