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Iolanthe

Autumn 2005


Gilbert & Sullivan's Iolanthe, or 'The Peer and the Peri', was our autumn 2005 production.

Act I

As a result of the pleading of several of the fairies, the Queen of the Fairies agrees to pardon the fairy Iolanthe for her past sin - that of having married a mortal.

Iolanthe rises from the stream that has been her home in exile, and is surrounded by her former friends. She tells them of her son, the half-fairy, half-mortal Strephon (he's a fairy down to the waist). When her friends depart, Iolanthe meets Strephon, and hears from him of his love for the Lord Chancellor's current ward, Phyllis. Strephon is despondent, as the Lord Chancellor has forbidden them to marry - partly because he himself wishes to marry Phyllis. Iolanthe promises to help her son, in part by arranging for him to become a Member of Parliament.  Phyllis comes by, and she and Strephon share a moment of tenderness.

As they leave, a cadre of the peers of the realm arrive. They are all, it turns out, in love with Phyllis, and appeal to the Lord Chancellor to settle the matter. They send for Phyllis, who declares that she won't marry anyone but Strephon. The Peers immediately separate the two lovers. Strephon calls on Iolanthe for help; she appears, and in her affection for her son, the Peers see an opportunity. They tell Phyllis that Strephon is being affectionate with an (apparently) young woman, and scoff at claims that Iolanthe is Strephon's mother. Phyllis is convinced, and rejects Strephon for this "infidelity". Strephon calls for help from the fairies and they appear but are mistaken by the Peers for a girls' school on an outing. Enraged, the faries pronounce a curse on the peers: Strephon shall not only join their number, but will be able to get any bill he proposes passed. He is to be the instrument of fairy vengeance, disrupting Parliament and causing trouble.

Act II


The fairies have come to Westminster, where the Queen is somewhat smitten with Private Willis of the Guard there. They meet the peers, who are grumbling about the trouble that Strephon is causing in their ranks. On top of this, Phyllis can't seem to decide which of two peers she'll marry. The Lord Chancellor proposes to settle the question by marrying Phyllis himself, a plan that evokes horror from both Strephon and Iolanthe. To save Strephon from losing his love, Iolanthe reveals to the Lord Chancellor that she, his vanished wife, is still alive and that Strephon is his son.

This revelation triggers a flood of changes of heart. The Lord Chancellor is delighted to find his beloved wife once again. Phyllis finally believes that Iolanthe is Strephon's mother, and is reunited with him. The rejected Peers are impelled look elsewhere for brides. The Fairy Queen, on the other hand, is not happy, and appears to punish Iolanthe for betraying the condition of her pardon by returning to her husband. She is somewhat shocked when the rest of the fairies inform her that they've chosen husbands among the peers themselves. The Lord Chancellor suggests a solution: change the law so that fairies must marry mortals. The Fairy Queen agrees, proposes to her beloved Private Willis, and presumably they all live happily ever after.



CAST

The Lord Chancellor
Earl of Mountararat
Earl Tolloller
Private Willis
Strephon
Queen of the Fairies
Iolanthe
Celia
Leila
Fleta
Phyllis
David Peston
Adrian Gray
Elliot Berman
Alan Roberts
Gary Jervis
Kate Lewis
Karen Harvey
Carol Hobbs
Alison King
Kim Thompson
Clare Shah
Chorus of Dukes, Marquises, Earls, Viscounts, Barons and Fairies
Lynda Bryceland
Roger Dowlen
Emily Elliot
Tom Goulder
Grant Graves
Chris Hubbard
Harry Johns
Ken Johnson
Nigel Kelly
Chris St. John
Emily Taylor
Gillian Tompsett
and Marmaduke the Teddy

ORCHESTRA

Conductor
Violins

Viola

Cello
Flute
Oboe
Ben Wiles
Eleanor Stanford
Laura Stanford
Amy Stanford
Jessica Cox
Sarah Bennington
Katie Bennington
Clarinet
Cornet
French Horn
Percussion
Piano
John Slack
David Quinlan
Jonathan Deacon
Ben Richards
Neil Hatton

PRODUCTION

Director
Musical Director
Set Construction
Scenic Artist
Lighting
Costumes and Props

Janice Edgar
Ben Wiles
Dave Smith
Jill Kelly
Stan Head
Haslemere Wardrobe
Chris Hubbard
Pam Erwood
Emily Elliot
Doris Griffiths
Pat Wildman
Dressing Room Assistants


Make-up Advisers

Stage Manager

Front of House
Box Office
Bar
Pam Erwood
Sue St. John
Doris Griffiths
Maggie Lamb
Linda Dowlen
Dave Smith
Friends of the Society
Doris Griffiths
Friends of the Society
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