Thespis
or "The Gods Grown Old", by W.S. Gilbert and A. Sullivan
Directed by Lynda Barrett-Mercer
Musical Director: Ian Stone
7-10th November Betchworth Memorial Hall
The 'lost' G&S opera
This is a unique production of the earliest G & S work, for which no musical score survives. First staged in 1871 as a Christmas entertainment, it ran for 63 performances, but Sullivan's score was then lost, and the work largely forgotten during the writers' lifetimes - although Sullivan certainly reused at least two of the tunes. The story concerns a group of actors in ancient Greece - the original Thespians - who take over the role of Gods on Mount Olympus so the decrepit deities can take a holiday on earth, with predictably chaotic consequences
Thespis has only occasionally been revived, from the 1950s onwards, sometimes with a score specially composed 'in the style of Sullivan'. Lynda and Ian however have painstakingly created their own score using familiar tunes in Sullivan's later repertoire, but incorporating 'Climbing over Rocky Mountains' (Pirates of Penzance) and 'Little maid of Arcadee' which are known to have been in the original.
Cast
Jupiter | Patrick Gallagher |
Mars | Matt Stainer |
Apollo | Colin Bousfield |
Diana | Pam Patch |
Mercury | Jane Khan |
Thespis | David Longes |
Daphne | Jane Johnson |
Nicemis | Margaret Longes |
Sparkeion | Carolyn Burnley |
Tipseion | Jane Seymour |
Preposteros | Julian Warner-Edney |
Prettiea | Julie Bickerdike |
Timidon | Stephen Tickell |
Production
Sound & Lighting | David Ames |
Set Design | Lynda Barrett-Mercer |
Set Construction | the Company |
Costumes | Lynda Barrett-Mercer |
Video recording | Jonathan Bickerdike |
Front of House |
John Bryant, Sally Coleman, Alison Cooper, Kate Cottrell, Jane Flanders, Fiona Garner, Selena Hegarty, Linda King, Jane Sillett, Ann Staddon, Sheila Staples, Shirley Trower, Neil Williams |
Rehearsal photos by Mick Mercer and Lynda Barrett-Mercer