West Yorkshire Savoyards bring G&S classic Iolanthe to Scarborough’s YMCA stage
Celebrating their 50th anniversary, Yorkshire-based touring company, the West Yorkshire Savoyards makes a welcome return to Scarborough's YMCA Theatre this weekend.
The troupe will be performing Gilbert and Sullivan comic opera Iolanthe at the theatre in St Thomas Street on Sunday October 5 at 3pm.
Actor and director Graham Weston directs the show and plays the hapless Lord Chancellor.
“We love coming to the YMCA Theatre” said Graham. “It is a fabulous community theatre with a very dedicated team who always make us feel welcome.”
One of the most popular of the Gilbert & Sullivan comic operas, Iolanthe was the first opera to be staged by the West Yorkshire Savoyards 50 years ago.
It has been described as a ‘magical musical fantasy’, which sees Gilbert & Sullivan at their sublime and satirical best.
The world of politics and the world of the fairy realm collide in the topical and irreverent send-up of Parliament set to some of the most beautiful music ever written by Sir Arthur Sullivan.
In its topsy-turvy way, the House of Lords is gently lampooned as a bastion of the ineffective, privileged and dim-witted.
Be prepared for laughs, thrills and fabulous music in the touring production directed by Graham Weston with professional orchestra, conducted by Oliver Longstaff. Playing opposite Graham is Manchester soprano, Helen Fieldsend who takes the role of Phyllis, the object of the Lords’ admiration.
The touring company which was begun in 1975 by a small group of Gilbert and Sullivan enthusiasts in Halifax has performed as far afield as Florida in the USA, Majorca, Scotland and Ireland and attracts hand-picked singers and musicians from across the north of England.
Tickets for Iolanthe are £6 for accompanied young people under 16, and £18 for adults.
They are available from Scarborough YMCA Theatre box office on 01723 506750 or online at https://ymcatheatre.ticketsolve.com/ticketbooth/shows/1173668851