The Vicar of Bray (opera) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Vicar of Bray is a comic opera

Comic opera

Comic opera denotes a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending.Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a new operatic genre, opera buffa, emerged as an alternative to opera seria...

by Edward Solomon

Edward Solomon

Edward Solomon was a prolific English composer, as well as a conductor, orchestrator and pianist. Though he died before his fortieth birthday, he wrote dozens of works produced for the stage, including several for the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, such as The Nautch Girl, among others.-Early...

with a libretto by Sydney Grundy

Sydney Grundy

Sydney Grundy was an English dramatist. Most of his works were adaptations of European plays, and many became successful enough to tour throughout the English-speaking world...

which opened at the Globe Theatre

Globe Theatre (Newcastle Street)

The Globe was a Victorian theatre built in 1868 and demolished in 1902. It was the third of five London theatres to bear the name. It was also known at various times as the Royal Globe Theatre or Globe Theatre Royal. Its repertoire consisted mainly of comedies and musical shows...

, in London, on 22 July 1882, for a run of only 69 performances. The public was not amused at a clergyman's being made the subject of ridicule, and the opera was regarded by some as scandalous. An 1892 revival at the Savoy Theatre

Savoy Theatre

The Savoy Theatre is a West End theatre located in the Strand in the City of Westminster, London, England. The theatre opened on 10 October 1881 and was built by Richard D'Oyly Carte on the site of the old Savoy Palace as a showcase for the popular series of comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan,...

was more successful, lasting for 143 performances, after public perceptions had changed.

The opera is based on the character described in a satirical 18th century English folk song "The Vicar of Bray

The Vicar of Bray (song)

"The Vicar of Bray" is a satirical songrecounting the career of the Vicar of Bray and his contortions of principle in order to retain his ecclesiastic office despite the changes in the Established Church through the course of several English monarchs...

", as well as on The History of Sandford and Merton
The History of Sandford and Merton
The History of Sandford and Merton was a bestselling children's book written by Thomas Day. He began his book as a contribution to Richard Lovell and Honora Edgeworth’s Harry and Lucy, a collection of short stories for children that Maria Edgeworth continued some years after Honora died...

, a series of 18th century moral tales. In the parlour song, the eponymous vicar

Vicar

In the broadest sense, a vicar is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior . In this sense, the title is comparable to lieutenant...

was the clergyman of the parish of Bray-on-Thames, Berkshire

Bray, Berkshire

Bray, sometimes known as Bray on Thames, is a village and civil parish in the English county of Berkshire. It stands on the banks of the River Thames, just south-east of Maidenhead. It is famous as the village mentioned in the song The Vicar of Bray...

. The most familiar version of the lyrics recounts his adaptability (some would say amorality) over half a century, from the reigns of Charles II

Charles II of England

Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...

to George I. Over this period he embraced whichever form of liturgy, Protestant

Protestantism

Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...

or Catholic

Catholicism

Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....

, that was favoured by the monarch of the day in order to retain his position as vicar of Bray. See the annotated lyrics to "The Vicar of Bray"

The Vicar of Bray (song)

.

The earliest version of the song's lyrics may have been written by "an officer in Colonel Fuller's regiment," according to one source. The lyrics exist in various forms. However, the story of the vicar's cheerful reversals of principle remains the same in all circumstances. In the opera, the vicar switches between "High" and "Low" Church, that is, from ritualistic Anglo-Catholic ceremonies to austere evangelical

Evangelicalism

Evangelicalism is a Protestant Christian movement which began in Great Britain in the 1730s and gained popularity in the United States during the series of Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century.Its key commitments are:...

forms of worship.

Original production

The première was moderately well received by the press. Reynolds's Newspaper said, "The music is light and tuneful, the plot is clever, and the dialogue can boast to be of the Gilbertian order of writing." The influential theatrical newspaper The Era
The Era (newspaper)
The Era was a British weekly paper, published from 1838 to 1939. Originally a general newspaper, it became noted for its sports coverage, and later for its theatrical content.-History:...

found the plot "singularly deficient" in interest, but praised "the smartness of the dialogue" and the "easy and fluent" music, though judging it as having "but little originality." The Manchester Guardian reported, "The entire work is a close imitation of Messrs. 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...

's method. This is to be regretted, for the peculiar humour of The Sorcerer
The Sorcerer
The Sorcerer is a two-act comic opera, with a libretto by W. S. Gilbert and music by Arthur Sullivan. It was the British duo's third operatic collaboration. The plot of The Sorcerer is based on a Christmas story, An Elixir of Love, that Gilbert wrote for The Graphic magazine in 1876...

and 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...

cannot be successfully copied." The cast, including W. J. Hill, Walter H. Fisher

Walter H. Fisher

Walter Henry Fisher was an English singer and actor of the Victorian era best known as a member of the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company and the creator of the role of the Defendant in Gilbert and Sullivan's 1875 opera Trial by Jury...

and W. S. Penley

W. S. Penley

William Sydney Penley was an English actor, singer and comedian best remembered as producer and star of the phenomenally successful 1892 Brandon Thomas farce, Charley's Aunt and as the Reverend Robert Spalding in many productions of The Private Secretary.-Life and career:Penley was born at...

, received generally excellent notices. The work was produced in New York in October 1882, under Solomon's direction, but was a failure.

1892 Savoy Theatre revival

When the Gilbert and Sullivan

Gilbert and Sullivan

partnership disbanded after the production of The Gondoliers
The Gondoliers
The Gondoliers; or, The King of Barataria is a Savoy Opera, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It premiered at the Savoy Theatre on 7 December 1889 and ran for a very successful 554 performances , closing on 30 June 1891...

in 1889, impresario Richard D'Oyly Carte

Richard D'Oyly Carte

Richard D'Oyly Carte was an English talent agent, theatrical impresario, composer and hotelier during the latter half of the Victorian era...

was forced to find new works to present at the Savoy Theatre

Savoy Theatre

. Solomon's The Nautch Girl
The Nautch Girl
thumb|right|250px|Solomon , with Gilbert and Sullivan irate at his success at the SavoyThe Nautch Girl, or, The Rajah of Chutneypore is a comic opera in two acts, with a book by George Dance, lyrics by Dance and Frank Desprez and music by Edward Solomon...

was the first non-Gilbert and Sullivan

Gilbert and Sullivan

"Savoy Opera

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...

" in 1891. Sullivan was writing a new opera for the Savoy that would become Haddon Hall
Haddon Hall
Haddon Hall is an English country house on the River Wye at Bakewell, Derbyshire, one of the seats of the Duke of Rutland, occupied by Lord Edward Manners and his family. In form a medieval manor house, it has been described as "the most complete and most interesting house of [its]...

, but this was delayed because of Sullivan's ill health. In the meantime, when The Nautch Girl closed after a modestly successful run, Carte revived The Vicar of Bray at the Savoy in 1892.

During the decade since the piece had been first presented, the public had come to accept clergymen as comic characters. As The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...

wrote, "The run of [Grundy's] The Private Secretary changed the views even of the most serious playgoers, and it may be remarked in passing that the clerical functions of the Rev. Robert Spalding were judiciously kept altogether out of sight, as indeed they were in the case of [Dr. Daly in] The Sorcerer.... [The piece] was warmly received." The revival ran for a respectable 143 performances, with a cast that included Rutland Barrington

Rutland Barrington

Rutland Barrington was an English singer, actor, comedian, and Edwardian musical comedy star. Best remembered for originating the lyric baritone roles in the Gilbert and Sullivan operas from 1877 to 1896, his performing career spanned more than four decades...

, Courtice Pounds

Courtice Pounds

Charles Courtice Pounds , better known by the stage name Courtice Pounds, was an English singer and actor known for his performances in the tenor roles of the Savoy Operas with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company and his later roles in Shakespeare plays and Edwardian musical comedies.As a young member...

, W. H. Denny

W. H. Denny

W. H. Denny was an English singer and actor best remembered for his portrayal of baritone roles in the Savoy Operas.-Early years:...

, and Rosina Brandram

Rosina Brandram

Rosina Brandram was an English opera singer and actress primarily known for creating many of the contralto roles in the Savoy operas with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company....

. The opera was then played by several D'Oyly Carte companies on provincial tours in 1893–96 and 1898–99. The title role was played by Henry Lytton

Henry Lytton

Sir Henry Lytton was an English actor and singer who was the leading exponent of the comic patter-baritone roles in Gilbert and Sullivan operas in the early part of the twentieth century...

in the 1893–96 tours, with Courtice Pounds repeating his role of the curate. Cox and Box
Cox and Box
Cox and Box; or, The Long-Lost Brothers, is a one-act comic opera with a libretto by F. C. Burnand and music by Arthur Sullivan, based on the 1847 farce Box and Cox by John Maddison Morton. It was Sullivan's first successful comic opera. The story concerns a landlord who lets a room to two...

was played as a curtain raiser.

Synopsis

Act 1: Low Church. The Village Green.

The Rev. William Barlow, the Vicar of Bray, became Low Church in order to marry his rich wife who, now dead, has left him with a daughter, Dorothy. Dorothy is in love with her father's curate, Henry Sandford, a priggish, pompous and verbose young man. The Vicar prefers that his daughter marry Sandford's old schoolmate, Tommy Merton, son of a wealthy local landowner. To get Sandford out of the way, the Vicar, on the advice of his family solicitor, Mr. Bedford Rowe, turns High Church. Aghast, Sandford flees to become a missionary in the Cassowary Isles.

Act 2: High Church. The Vicarage Grounds.

Now that the Vicar and all his students have become High Church they are doomed to celibacy, and the chorus of lady Sunday School teachers is distraught at the loss of their matrimonial prospects. So, too, is Mrs. Merton, who has had her eye on the Vicar. Tommy Merton is prepared to marry Dorothy, but suddenly Sandford, who everyone supposed was devoured by cannibals, returns as an improved man – no longer pompous. Dorothy returns to her first love, but her father is adamant. The solicitor announces that the Vicar's High Church propensities have displeased his Bishop who has declared him defrocked, his living to be bestowed on Sandford. There is only one way out. The Vicar becomes Low Church again. He is now eligible to wed the wealthy Mrs. Merton, Sandford gets Dorothy, and Tommy goes off with the leading danseuse of the local theatre.

Roles and historical casts

In the list below, the name of the original cast member is followed by the name of the 1892 counterpart.

Reverend William Barlow, Vicar of Bray – W. J. Hill; Rutland Barrington
Rutland Barrington
Rutland Barrington was an English singer, actor, comedian, and Edwardian musical comedy star. Best remembered for originating the lyric baritone roles in the Gilbert and Sullivan operas from 1877 to 1896, his performing career spanned more than four decades...
Reverend Henry Sandford, his curate – Walter H. Fisher
Walter H. Fisher
Walter Henry Fisher was an English singer and actor of the Victorian era best known as a member of the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company and the creator of the role of the Defendant in Gilbert and Sullivan's 1875 opera Trial by Jury...

; Courtice Pounds
Courtice Pounds
Charles Courtice Pounds , better known by the stage name Courtice Pounds, was an English singer and actor known for his performances in the tenor roles of the Savoy Operas with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company and his later roles in Shakespeare plays and Edwardian musical comedies.As a young member...
Thomas Merton, Esq., of Bray Manor – H. Cooper Cliffe; Richard Green
Mr. Bedford Rowe, a Confidential Family Solicitor – W. S. Penley
W. S. Penley
William Sydney Penley was an English actor, singer and comedian best remembered as producer and star of the phenomenally successful 1892 Brandon Thomas farce, Charley's Aunt and as the Reverend Robert Spalding in many productions of The Private Secretary.-Life and career:Penley was born at...

; W. H. Denny
W. H. Denny
W. H. Denny was an English singer and actor best remembered for his portrayal of baritone roles in the Savoy Operas.-Early years:...
Mr. John Dory – R. R. Mason; W. S. Laidlaw
Dorothy, the Vicar's Daughter [called Winifred in the 1892 version] – Lizzie Beaumont; Leonore Snyder
Mrs. Merton, widow of Thomas Merton, of Jamaica – Maria Davis; Rosina Brandram
Rosina Brandram
Rosina Brandram was an English opera singer and actress primarily known for creating many of the contralto roles in the Savoy operas with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company....
Nelly Bly, of the Theatre Royal, Bray – Emma D'Auban; Mary Duggan
Students of Divinity, Ladies of the Ballet, Teachers, Huntsmen, Jockeys.

Musical numbers

Act I

Chorus of Children – Hooray, hooray!
Chorus of Lady Teachers – To a slow and stately measure
Song, Winifred – O, Why is my love?
Chorus of Teachers – All the bold
Chorus of Students; and Solo Sandford – On, Students, on!
Song, Sandford – As good as he ought to be
Ensemble and Entrance of Vicar – Hail to the Vicar
Song, Vicar – The Rev. Mr. Barlow
Chorus – Bow, Students, bow!
Song, Mr. Bedford Rose – I'm as sharp as a ferret
Exit – Good morning, dear Vicar
Entrance of Mrs Merton – Has anyone seen the Pytchley Pack
Pytchley Hunt
The Pytchley Hunt is a fox hunting organisation formerly based near the Northamptonshire village of Pytchley, but since 1966 has had kennels close to Brixworth. The Pytchley country used to include areas of the Rockingham Forest but was split to form the Woodland Pytchley Hunt...

?
Trio, Rowe, Vicar and Mrs Merton – Now if you'll excuse me
Duet, Vicar and Mrs. Merton – The shy widow
Duet, Sandford and Winifred – Tell me true, love
Chorus of Huntsmen; and Solo, Tommy Martin – Jolly, jolly Huntsmen!
Chorus, Corps de Ballet – Please to make way for us
Dance, Nelly Bly
Ensemble – O, shocking sight
Finale – Back, Students, back!

Act II

Chorus of Teachers – Listen to the merry bells
Concerted number: Students, Teachers & Vicar – What is life?
Song and Chorus, Vicar and Students – The Jackson case
Duet, Vicar and Mrs Merton – The Wily Widower
Solo, Mrs Merton – You ask me why
Duet, Winifred and Sandford – Come back to me
Duet, Winifred and Sandford – Propriety, prisms and prunes
Trio, Sandford, Merton & Winifred – Just a word
Entrance, Nellie Bly
Entrance, Corps de Ballet
Dance, Pas de Cinq
Exit of Vicar & Corps de Ballet
Concerted number: Tommy, Merton, Bedford, Rowe and Huntsmen – Confidential family solicitor
Chorus, Corps de Ballet – We no longer gyrate
Concerted piece – Se, see, we saw!
Chorus of Children – Lucky little boys and girls
Wedding chorus – Lady Fair
Finale – O William, sweet William

External links

The Vicar of Bray at The Gilbert & Sullivan Archive
Opening night review
Programme from the original production
Historical background of the character

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