Patience or Bunthorne’s Bride

Patience is one of the lesser known Gilbert and Sullivan productions but this was still a strong choice for Tees Valley Gilbert and Sullivan Society’s latest production which played to a good-sized audience for a Thursday night performance.

The plot of this comedy opera is based upon the concept of aestheticism as it was known in the 1870s (vanity or superficiality in modern day language).  This concept was very well portrayed from the outset by the ladies of the village being dressed in vibrant 1970s costumes and through stylised choreography which gave an air of superiority to the villagers.  It was a joy to see chorus members of all ages who sang ably throughout with nice harmonies.  There were some very good solos from Catherine Williamson (Lady Angela), Debbie Hodgson (Lady Ella), Meike Wanjek (Lady Saphir) and Gillian Sild (Lady Jane). Gillian in particular had excellent projection and diction throughout.

We were soon introduced to Patience, the simple village milkmaid, played with outstanding vocals and comedy expression by Samantha Holden.  In contrast to the ladies of the village, Samantha was dressed in jeans and a gingham blouse which indicated that she was not part of the aesthetic movement even before she started to speak in her broad accent.

Alistair Bolton gave an excellent portrayal of poet Reginald Bunthorne who is in love with Patience.  He moved and danced around the stage with a god-like presence wearing full 1970s clothing and a blonde wig.  Alistair was followed around by the ladies with some great comedic moments, particularly when the ladies adorned him with floral garlands!

Adam Hegarty gave a fabulous performance as Archibald Grosvenor, another aesthetic poet who is in love with Patience.  Adam’s accent, posture and appearance were all dramatically changed when he returned to his simple self at the end (and of course won the heart of Patience once again).  One of Archibald’s poems was especially written for the modern day – Brexit Boris!  This was a nice touch that had the audience in hysterics.

The male chorus of Dragoon Guards wore brightly coloured coats and had good vocals, especially from Neil Harland (Colonel Calverley), Paul Dixon (the Duke of Dunstable) and Mike Harbisher (Major Murgatroyd).  I particularly liked their comedy trio number when they attempted to keep up with the 1970s fashion in order to attract wives.

The band was nicely balanced and very well conducted by Stephen Sild.  The set was simple and well designed with a series of pillars and a central pile of scatter cushions for the villagers to lounge upon.  I applaud the fact that the entire performance was done without the use of microphones, although on occasions some of the sound was lost when the cast were sitting on the cushions in the middle of the stage.

Well done to Tees Valley Gilbert and Sullivan Society and thank you for a very enjoyable evening.

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