Iolanthe

Iolanthe brought back memories for me, having participated in it as one of the peers at school – yes, what a memory I have! It is the story of Iolanthe, a fairy, who commits the ultimate crime by marrying a mortal. Fast forward 25 years, and her half-human, half-fairy son now wishes to marry a mortal – but it’s a crime punishable by death. Left with no choice, Iolanthe sets out to challenge this law…

A new venue for Walsall G & S this time gave the society much more room to display their theatrical talents. There is no doubt that the company are well rehearsed in harmony singing which was obvious from the opening ladies chorus of Tripping Hither. The gentlemen of the chorus did not disappoint either, with powerful harmonies resounding through the hall as they performed Loudly let the trumpets bray.

Indraroop Chakraborty played the role of Strephon, Iolanthe’s son, half fairy, half mortal, and captivated the audience from his opening number with his lyrical tenor voice. He was confident as he moved around stage and looked very comfortable. Ruth Shelley as Phyllis sang well, demonstrating her powerful soprano voice and looked at ease working with Indy. As we know, it would not be G & S without a patter song or two, and this time they fell to Mick Branaghan, as The Lord Chancellor, to deliver…I’m pleased to say that he did not disappoint. Sue Rogers played the title role of Iolanthe and demonstrated her experience of many years in G & S, singing well and showing great presence on stage.  This was not the first time that many of the cast had performed in Iolanthe, and this came through in their performances, Bethan Harris, Caroline Hammond and Nina Branaghan all showed confidence as fairies, overseen by Jill Hatton as Queen of the Fairies, as did Gary Gentle and Mac Hammond as Lord Tolloller and Mountararat respectively.  I must also make mention of Adrian Davies-Ratcliffe, who was reprising the role of Private Willis, it is a part he obviously enjoys, and this came through in his performance of the opening number of the second half.

The set was very effective and well lit, with some lovely effects on stage….I particularly liked the illuminated Big Ben! The costumes were also very appropriate, oh to be a Peer again in those wonderful gowns!  Also, mention must be made of the orchestra, under the direction of Garry Bailey.  It was nice for G & S to be accompanied by an ensemble but it may be worth thinking about using individual microphones if you continue with this route as there were times when the solo voices were lost against the music.

All in all, it was a most enjoyable performance - at a new venue, with a new Director/Musical Director and I look forward to seeing your next production.

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