Ruddigore

Ruddigore, this satire of Victorian melodrama has everything, excellent  music, and a very amusing story line.  It centres around a heroine, a villain, a hero who woos the maiden  only for a sailor to return to confuse everything, claiming to follow his heart, and ghosts coming to life to enforce a curse. But Gilbert turns the moral absolutes of melodrama upside down. Hero becomes evil, villain becomes good, the maiden changes her fiancé, ghosts come back to life, foiling the curse and it all ends happily. The society did a first-class job with this production.  There was excellent singing,  particularly from the very strong chorus, for which the society is well known.

There were many outstanding performances. As Rose Maybud (the village maiden) Samantha Holden was excellent, playing a very good part.  Robin Oakapple, who is really Sir Ruthven Murgatroyd, enters and tries to woo Rose, was excellently played by Adam Hegarty, only to be done out of winning Rose’s hand by Richard Dauntless, really excellently performed by David Beall, again very well known for his strong singing voice.  The comedy came from Sir Despard  Murgatroyd, the wicked Baronet, excellently played by Alistair Bolton, and Mad Margaret, very well played by Anna-Maria Jackson, who were really excellent.  Despard claims to be the rightful heir to the Baronetcy of Ruddigore and to claim the hand of Rose, but  keeps his vow to  Margaret.  

The second act begins with all the Ghosts of the Baronetcy down the ages, and it was quite scary to see them all.  Richard and Rose are quite happy until Sir Ruthven arrives and threatens to put them in a dungeon when all the portraits of the forbears come to life, and Sir Roderick Murgatroyd, very well played by Gordon Smyrell, sings that eerie song ‘The Ghost’s High Noon’.  Old Adam Goodheart (Robin’s faithful servant) was really very well played by David Cadman, particularly when Dame Hannah was explaining the situation and he was trying to give her a cup of tea without any luck, ending up drinking the tea himself.  Dame Hannah (Rose’s Aunt) was really majestically played by Frances Cook. The Bridesmaids played a large part at the beginning when they were anticipating an early marriage, and the Chief Bridesmaid, Zora, was played by Catherine Williamson with a lovely singing voice. Her assistant was played by Louise  Pope.  It all ends up with Rose returning to her first love, Sir Ruthven, and Richard has to take Zora, and it all ends with the Chorus “When a man has been a naughty Baronet”  This was Gilbert and Sullivan at its best, and the Society put everything into the show you would expect. Very well done Tees Valley for a really excellent  show.

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