Gilbert And Sullivan Revue Comes To Drama Guild Stage

Get ready for a night of song and laughter as the Chatham Drama Guild presents “I Have a Song to Sing, O! A Gilbert and Sullivan Musical Revue,” onstage from Aug. 3 to 18.

Directed by Robert Grady and Pam Banas with musical direction by Geraldine Boles, the revue will feature 24 of the Victorian-era duo’s best songs from five of their 14 comic operettas: “H.M.S. Pinafore,” “The Pirates of Penzance,” “Iolanthe,” “The Mikado” and “Yeoman Of The Guard.” The cast includes Laura Barabe, Suzanne Fecteau, Alison Hyder, Lizzy Smythe, Pam Banas, Alex Lucchesi, Scott Hamilton, Joseph So, Joe Theroux, James Batzer and Robert Grady.

Chatham Drama Guild board president Pam Banas said that when she approached Robert Grady to ask if he would be interested in joining the directorial team along with herself and Geraldine Boles, Grady was enthusiastic about the idea.

“He said he would love to do it, and he had very interesting ideas about what to do with the project,” Banas said. “There has to be some kind of storyline or something to connect the songs in the revue. Robert suggested — and I thought it was a great idea — four teams, each representing one of the operettas. That said, because there are only 12 of us, we deviate from team to team depending on gender and who is singing the solo. It’s complicated, but I think it’s really great because some are solo numbers, some are group numbers without a solo — there really is something for everybody.”

Banas said that musical director Geraldine Boles’ background makes her the perfect accompanist for “I Have a Song to Sing, O!”

“Her parents played Gilbert and Sullivan in their home everyday,” Banas said. “It speaks to her soul in a way that a regular musical doesn’t. It’s close to her heart, and you can hear that in her playing for this project. It makes it so much nicer for us, because she’s not just tapping out melodies. She’s truly invested. That's why this is such a great project for her.”

Banas, too, is well-versed in the works of Gilbert and Sullivan; however one of the operettas represented in the revue was less than familiar to her.

“It was ‘Iolanthe,’ I wasn’t really familiar with it, and now I am,” Banas said. “I had never heard it, and as it turns out I am singing one of the songs from it and it gives me chills. It’s so beautiful. It really touches my heart. I am thrilled Robert Grady brought in something many of us are unfamiliar with, which adds a different flavor and more of a current story than ‘The Pirates of Penzance’ and ‘H.M.S. Pinafore.’”

Banas said if there’s one thing she’d like audience members who are less familiar with Gilbert and Sullivan to know, it would be that their operettas are very different from opera.

It’s not ‘Carmen,’” Banas said. “It’s satirical fun, and the political weirdness of Britain at that time. For anyone who has never seen it they might want to take a taste. We would love to have people who have never experienced Gilbert and Sullivan try it, and see how it tastes. It’s a nice evening out.”

Details:

“I Have a Song to Sing, O! A Gilbert and Sullivan Musical Revue”

Chatham Drama Guild, Crowell Road

Aug. 3 to 18

Information and reservations: 508-945-0510, chatdramaguild.org