Washington Savoyards
Encyclopedia
Washington Savoyards, Ltd. is the only professional light opera repertory performing company based in Washington, DC. Founded in 1972, the company annually produces three fully staged works of light opera, operetta
, and musical theatre
, including at least one Gilbert and Sullivan
production each year. It performs at the Atlas Performing Arts Center.
The company attracts its singers from among opera and theatre professionals based in the Washington area, as well as from music, theatre, and opera
students at local universities. In 2004, the company was accepted into residency at Flashpoint, Washington's arts incubator run by the Cultural Development Corporation of Washington. The company's President is Kathleen Mitchell, and its artistic director is N. Thomas Pedersen. Audrey M. Shipp directed all of the Savoyards' productions from 1973 until 1995. In recent years, its stage directors have included Catherine Huntress-Reeve, Roberta Morrell, Hal Simons and Scott Kenison, and its music directors have included Richard Fazio, John Burrows, Michael Rossi, and Pedersen.
The company receives support from charitable foundations, such as the Fund for Maryland's Future, the Sprenger-Lang Foundation, MARPAT Foundation, the Meyer Foundation, the Morris & Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation and individual donors, as well as from ticket sales and program advertising. The company's name is a reference to the Savoy Theatre
in London, where the Gilbert and Sullivan operas were originally presented in the 1880s and 1890s by the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company
and to aficionados and performers of the Savoy operas. In 1986, Supreme Court Justice William Rehnquist
(later Chief Justice of the United States
) joined the Washington Savoyards as "the Solicitor" in its production of Gilbert and Sullivan's Patience
.
, Kiss Me, Kate
(as part of the Shakespeare in Washington Festival
), and The Merry Widow
. It also performed The Condensed Mikado, an adaptation of The Mikado
, during the National Cherry Blossom Festival
. In its 2007-08 season, among other events, the company presented Victor Herbert
's Babes in Toyland
, The Pirates of Penzance
, its annual presentation of The Condensed Mikado, and Man of La Mancha
. The 2008-09 season includes productions of The Music Man
and Iolanthe
.
Operetta
Operetta is a genre of light opera, light in terms both of music and subject matter. It is also closely related, in English-language works, to forms of musical theatre.-Origins:...
, and musical theatre
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...
, including at least one 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...
production each year. It performs at the Atlas Performing Arts Center.
Description of the company
The company was formed as the Montgomery Savoyards but changed its name in 1981, since its performers, musicians and patrons are drawn from all over the Washington, DC metropolitan area. For many years, the company performed primarily the operas of Gilbert and Sullivan and was based in the Duke Ellington School for the Arts. In recent seasons, the company has broadened its repertory to include other works of light opera, operetta and musical theatre. In late 2006, the company moved to its new home, the Atlas Performing Arts Center. The company has also performed at the Kennedy Center's Millennium Stage and at the Arts Club of Washington, among other venues.The company attracts its singers from among opera and theatre professionals based in the Washington area, as well as from music, theatre, and opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
students at local universities. In 2004, the company was accepted into residency at Flashpoint, Washington's arts incubator run by the Cultural Development Corporation of Washington. The company's President is Kathleen Mitchell, and its artistic director is N. Thomas Pedersen. Audrey M. Shipp directed all of the Savoyards' productions from 1973 until 1995. In recent years, its stage directors have included Catherine Huntress-Reeve, Roberta Morrell, Hal Simons and Scott Kenison, and its music directors have included Richard Fazio, John Burrows, Michael Rossi, and Pedersen.
The company receives support from charitable foundations, such as the Fund for Maryland's Future, the Sprenger-Lang Foundation, MARPAT Foundation, the Meyer Foundation, the Morris & Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation and individual donors, as well as from ticket sales and program advertising. The company's name is a reference to 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,...
in London, where the Gilbert and Sullivan operas were originally presented in the 1880s and 1890s by the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company
D'Oyly Carte Opera Company
The D'Oyly Carte Opera Company was a professional light opera company that staged Gilbert and Sullivan's Savoy operas. The company performed nearly year-round in the UK and sometimes toured in Europe, North America and elsewhere, from the 1870s until it closed in 1982. It was revived in 1988 and...
and to aficionados and performers of the Savoy operas. In 1986, Supreme Court Justice William Rehnquist
William Rehnquist
William Hubbs Rehnquist was an American lawyer, jurist, and political figure who served as an Associate Justice on the Supreme Court of the United States and later as the 16th Chief Justice of the United States...
(later Chief Justice of the United States
Chief Justice of the United States
The Chief Justice of the United States is the head of the United States federal court system and the chief judge of the Supreme Court of the United States. The Chief Justice is one of nine Supreme Court justices; the other eight are the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States...
) joined the Washington Savoyards as "the Solicitor" in its 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...
.
Recent seasons
During its 2006-07 season, the Washington Savoyards produced PatiencePatience (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...
, Kiss Me, Kate
Kiss Me, Kate
Kiss Me, Kate is a musical with music and lyrics by Cole Porter. It is structured as a play within a play, where the interior play is a musical version of William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew. The original production starred Alfred Drake, Patricia Morison, Lisa Kirk and Harold Lang.Kiss...
(as part of the Shakespeare in Washington Festival
Shakespeare in Washington Festival
The Shakespeare in Washington Festival was a cultural festival held in Washington, D.C. from January through June 2007 in honor of the works of William Shakespeare....
), and 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,...
. It also performed The Condensed Mikado, an adaptation of The Mikado
The Mikado
The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, their ninth of fourteen operatic collaborations...
, during the National Cherry Blossom Festival
National Cherry Blossom Festival
The National Cherry Blossom Festival is a spring celebration in Washington, D.C., commemorating the March 27, 1912, gift of Japanese cherry trees from Mayor Yukio Ozaki of Tokyo to the city of Washington...
. In its 2007-08 season, among other events, the company presented Victor Herbert
Victor Herbert
Victor August Herbert was an Irish-born, German-raised American composer, cellist and conductor. Although Herbert enjoyed important careers as a cello soloist and conductor, he is best known for composing many successful operettas that premiered on Broadway from the 1890s to World War I...
's Babes in Toyland
Babes in Toyland (operetta)
Babes in Toyland is an operetta composed by Victor Herbert with a libretto by Glen MacDonough , which wove together various characters from Mother Goose nursery rhymes into a Christmas-themed musical extravaganza. The creators wanted to cash in on the extraordinary success of The Wizard of Oz,...
, The Pirates of Penzance
The Pirates of Penzance
The Pirates of Penzance; or, The Slave of Duty is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. The opera's official premiere was at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York City on 31 December 1879, where the show was well received by both audiences...
, its annual presentation of The Condensed Mikado, and Man of La Mancha
Man of La Mancha
Man of La Mancha is a musical with a book by Dale Wasserman, lyrics by Joe Darion and music by Mitch Leigh. It is adapted from Wasserman's non-musical 1959 teleplay I, Don Quixote, which was in turn inspired by Miguel de Cervantes's seventeenth century masterpiece Don Quixote...
. The 2008-09 season includes productions of The Music Man
The Music Man
The Music Man is a musical with book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson, based on a story by Willson and Franklin Lacey. The plot concerns con man Harold Hill, who poses as a boys' band organizer and leader and sells band instruments and uniforms to naive townsfolk before skipping town with...
and Iolanthe
Iolanthe
Iolanthe; or, The Peer and the Peri is a comic opera with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It is one of the Savoy operas and is the seventh collaboration of the fourteen between Gilbert and Sullivan....
.