Lamplighters Music Theatre
Encyclopedia
Lamplighters Music Theatre is a semi-professional theatrical company based in San Francisco, California
. Founded in 1952 by Orva Hoskinson and Ann Pool MacNab, the Lamplighters specialize in light opera, particularly the works of Gilbert and Sullivan
, as well as such works as The Merry Widow
, Die Fledermaus
, Of Thee I Sing
, My Fair Lady
, Candide
, and A Little Night Music
.
The company's season usually comprises four productions: a fully staged production in January/February; a staged concert in the spring; a fully staged production in July/August; and a full-length original musical comedy
, presented as a champagne gala fundraiser and silent auction, in November. The company also creates educational programs for schools. The Lamplighters' artistic director is Barbara Heroux, and its musical director is Baker Peeples.
The Lamplighters performed at Harding Theater
from 1961 to 1968 and then at the University of San Francisco
's Presentation Theater until 1995. Since then, it has performed at San Francisco's Novellus Theater at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
, Lesher Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek and several other Bay Area theaters.
The San Francisco Chronicle
review called the company's 2010 production of Gilbert and Sullivan's Patience
, "a splendid and loving production", commenting that the performance "used the company's long experience of the Savoy operettas
to fine effect. At their best, the Lamplighters' productions take an approach to this material that is mindful of tradition without ever seeming musty or warmed over." Talkin' Broadway called the company's Princess Ida
"a gorgeous production". .... "The singing of the principals is superior". ... "The chorus work as usual is superb, and the full orchestra is brilliant. The sets and costumes are breathtaking".
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
. Founded in 1952 by Orva Hoskinson and Ann Pool MacNab, the Lamplighters specialize in light opera, particularly the works of Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan refers to the Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the librettist W. S. Gilbert and the composer Arthur Sullivan . The two men collaborated on fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which H.M.S...
, as well as such works as The Merry Widow
The Merry Widow
The Merry Widow is an operetta by the Austro–Hungarian composer Franz Lehár. The librettists, Viktor Léon and Leo Stein, based the story – concerning a rich widow, and her countrymen's attempt to keep her money in the principality by finding her the right husband – on an 1861 comedy play,...
, Die Fledermaus
Die Fledermaus
Die Fledermaus is an operetta composed by Johann Strauss II to a German libretto by Karl Haffner and Richard Genée.- Literary sources :...
, Of Thee I Sing
Of Thee I Sing
Of Thee I Sing is a musical with a score by George Gershwin, lyrics by Ira Gershwin and a book by George S. Kaufman and Morrie Ryskind. The musical lampoons American politics; the story concerns John P. Wintergreen, who runs for President of the United States on the "love" platform...
, My Fair Lady
My Fair Lady
My Fair Lady is a musical based upon George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion and with book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe...
, Candide
Candide (operetta)
Candide is an operetta with music composed by Leonard Bernstein, based on the novella of the same name by Voltaire. The operetta was first performed in 1956 with a libretto by Lillian Hellman; but since 1974 it has been generally performed with a book by Hugh Wheeler which is more faithful to...
, and A Little Night Music
A Little Night Music
A Little Night Music is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Hugh Wheeler. Inspired by the Ingmar Bergman film Smiles of a Summer Night, it involves the romantic lives of several couples. Its title is a literal English translation of the German name for Mozart's Serenade...
.
The company's season usually comprises four productions: a fully staged production in January/February; a staged concert in the spring; a fully staged production in July/August; and a full-length original musical comedy
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
, presented as a champagne gala fundraiser and silent auction, in November. The company also creates educational programs for schools. The Lamplighters' artistic director is Barbara Heroux, and its musical director is Baker Peeples.
The Lamplighters performed at Harding Theater
Harding Theater
The Harding Theater is a historic movie theater located at 616 Divisadero Street in San Francisco, California.-History:The Harding Theater was built in 1926 by local theater owner Samuel H. Levin who hired Reid Brothers architects...
from 1961 to 1968 and then at the University of San Francisco
University of San Francisco
The University of San Francisco , is a private, Jesuit/Catholic university located in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1855, USF was established as the first university in San Francisco. It is the second oldest institution for higher learning in California and the tenth-oldest university of...
's Presentation Theater until 1995. Since then, it has performed at San Francisco's Novellus Theater at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts is a multi-disiplinary contemporary arts center in San Francisco, California, United States. Located in Yerba Buena Gardens, YBCA features visual art, performance, and film/video that celebrates local, national, and international artists and the Bay Area's diverse...
, Lesher Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek and several other Bay Area theaters.
The San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
review called the company's 2010 production of Gilbert and Sullivan's Patience
Patience (opera)
Patience; or, Bunthorne's Bride, is a comic opera in two acts with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. First performed at the Opera Comique, London, on 23 April 1881, it moved to the 1,292-seat Savoy Theatre on 10 October 1881, where it was the first theatrical production in the...
, "a splendid and loving production", commenting that the performance "used the company's long experience of the Savoy operettas
Savoy opera
The Savoy Operas denote a style of comic opera that developed in Victorian England in the late 19th century, with W. S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan as the original and most successful practitioners. The name is derived from the Savoy Theatre, which impresario Richard D'Oyly Carte built to house...
to fine effect. At their best, the Lamplighters' productions take an approach to this material that is mindful of tradition without ever seeming musty or warmed over." Talkin' Broadway called the company's Princess Ida
Princess Ida
Princess Ida; or, Castle Adamant is a comic opera with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It was their eighth operatic collaboration of fourteen. Princess Ida opened at the Savoy Theatre on January 5, 1884, for a run of 246 performances...
"a gorgeous production". .... "The singing of the principals is superior". ... "The chorus work as usual is superb, and the full orchestra is brilliant. The sets and costumes are breathtaking".