The Sorcerer

June 18 - 28, 2015

The Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Austin presented The Sorcerer as its summer 2015 grand production. Nine performances were presented at the Worley Barton Theater at Brentwood Christian School, June 18-28. This popular classic was W. S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan’s third comic opera of their fourteen.

Artistic Director Ralph MacPhail, Jr. returned for his 15th summer with the Society, along with Jeffrey Jones-Ragona, enjoying his 19th season as Music Director. Bill Hatcher returned as Production Manager.

The Sorcerer opened in November of 1877 at the Opera Comique in London, where it ran for 178 performances. It was a success by the standards of that time and encouraged the collaborators to write their next opera, H.M.S. Pinafore. The Sorcerer was the first G&S opera to use all the major character types and typical range of songs that would appear in their later collaborations, such as comic duets, a patter song, and novel ensembles. The chorus is essential, taking part in the action and often acting as an important character in its own right.

The setting is a small rural village inhabited by gentry and country folk. A young man, Alexis, is obsessed with idea of love levelling all ranks and social distinctions. To promote his beliefs, he invites the proprietor of J.W. Wells & Co., Family Sorcerers, to brew a love potion. This causes everyone in the village to fall in love with the first person they see and results in the pairing of comically mismatched couples. In the end, Wells must sacrifice his life to break the spell. The satire in the opera is focused on old-fashioned conventions of aristocratic benevolence and grand opera. It’s a magical story, filled with topsy-turvy humor and beautiful music. The Sorcerer sets the stage for the wonderful collaborations that followed during the subsequent two decades of collaboration.


Reviews

Austin Chronicle
CTX Live Theatre


Media

Press release
Press image
Press photo
Poster
Libretto
Vocal Score

Media
Production Team

Ralph MacPhail, Jr.
Artistic Director

Jeffrey Jones-Ragona
Music Director

Bill Hatcher
Production Manager

Monica Kurtz
Stage Manager

Ann Marie Gordon
Set Realization

Jennifer Rogers
Lighting Designer

Pam Fowler
Costumes & Make-up Designer

Cast

David Fontenot
Sir Marmaduke Pointdextre

Holton Johnson
Alexis

Julius Young
Dr. Daly

Russell Gregory
Notary

Arthur DiBianca
John Wellington Wells

Lisa Alexander
Lady Sangazure

Alexandra Reilman
Aline

Janette Jones
Mrs. Partlet

Patricia Combs
Constance

Daniel Kregel
Hercules

Chorus

Daniel Brookshire

Danny Castillo

Andy Fleming

Leann Fryer

Rosa Harris

Evan Kelley

Maurine McLean

Susan Meitz

Gary Preuss

Glenn Russell

Natalya Shelburne

Sarah Steele

Ian Stillwell

Abigail Stokely

Jamieson Taylor

David Treadwell

Brittany Trinité

Michelle Vanecek

Patrick Wright

Jay Young

Venue
Previous Grand Productions

H.M.S. Pinafore – 2014

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Princess Ida – 2013

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Patience – 2012

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