January 15-24, 2010 in the Drury Theatre

Presented by Madison Savoyards in cooperation with MTG

By Ian Taylor

Directed by Joan Brooks

David Sytkowski, Music Director

Terry Kiss Frank, Choreographer

Tarantara! Tarantara! will run in repertory with Hot l Baltimore.

Synopsis

From L to R - Jim Chiolino as Arthur Sullivan, Catherine Schweitzer as Rose Hervey, and Stuart Brooks as W.S. Gilbert. Photo Credit: Marie SchulteThe story of the famous Gilbert & Sullivan partnership; the meeting, the association with D’Oyly Carte, the mounting success, the divergences of temperament, the conflicting ambitions and the trouble caused by Gilbert's obsession with his lozenge story.

Sullivan’s lavish social life and its disruptive consequences, his ill-health, the famous tragi-comic quarrel over a new carpet for the theatre—these and many other episodes are covered.

Musical excerpts from the operas are threaded into the story. The entire cast, including Carte, Gilbert and Sullivan, participate in these interludes, singing the various parts, and they also take on numerous supernumerary characters such as critics, friends, acquaintances etc.

Performances

This project is supported by the Dane County Cultural Affairs Commission.

Friday, January 15, 2010 at 7:30 pm
Sunday, January 17 at 3:00 pm

Saturday, January 23 at 7:30 pm
Sunday, January 24 at 3:00 pm

 

 

 

 

Press

Populated by smiling choristers singing with gusto, the latest effort of the Madison Savoyards and Madison Theatre Guild is community theater in its most earnest form.

- Lindsay Christians, 77 Square

For those not well versed in the Victorian duo's oeuvre, the approximately two-hour show should serve as a solid primer. And seasoned fans of comic operas like The Pirates of Penzance and The Mikado will not only hear classic tunes but get a deeper look at the often stormy relationship between librettist Gilbert and composer Sullivan.

-Josh Wimmer, The Isthmus: Tarantara! Tarantara! examines a stormy musical alliance

Cast

From left to right - Stuart Brooks as W.S. GIlbert, Catherine Schweitzer as Rose Hervey, Eddie Gray as George Grossmith, Kelly Jetzer as Bridget and Jim Chiolino as Arthur Sullivan. Photo Credit: Marie Schulte

  • Sir Arthur Sullivan: Jim Chiolino
  • W.S. Gilbert: Stuart Brooks
  • Richard D’Oyly Carte: James Romney
  • George Grossmith: Edward Gray
  • Joe: Robert Arnold
  • Jessie Bond: Molly Spivey
  • Rose Hervey: Catherine Schweitzer
  • Geraldine Ulmar: Fiona Cahill
  • Ensemble:
    • Jason Atkins
    • Greer DuBois
    • Kelly Jetzer
    • Ilona Pinzke