The Broadway musical did not originate on Broadway.
It started at London’s Savoy Theatre with the sparkling work of W.S. Gilbert & Arthur Sullivan. These theater titans created a special sort of “operetta,” one filled with charm and wicked wit, melodically rich, with surreal comedy that pricked current norms, all of it radiantly presented with novel scenic design, naturalistic direction (by Gilbert, perhaps the first auteur theater director), and tongue-twisting patter that rivaled Rossini.
It was a new sort of musical theater that hadn’t been seen or heard before, and it was a sensation. Their work from the late Victorian era has never been equaled. It’s uniquely their own creation. Once heard, you know exactly who wrote it.
Their tenth collaboration, Ruddigore, or The Witch’s Curse (1887), on view for a very short run from the award-winning Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Houston, had the misfortune of following the team’s exceptionally successful The Mikado, an international smash upon its premiere. It was a hard act for the duo to follow. It played for eight months, but the reviews weren’t kind.
The critics didn’t approve of the ghost music – one even calling it out for being in the wrong key! They disparaged the second act where the ghosts of Robin’s forebears come alive, stepping out of their picture frames and interacting with the other characters; the set had problems; the leading tenor was getting ill and would be out of the run for a month; and they hated that title. Originally it was called “Ruddygore,” which sounded to them like the British B-word, “bloody,” an iconic swear word. No young lady would ever say such a title.
Yes, the second act drags just a bit, for we’re far away from the sunny Cornish coast of Act I and find ourselves in the gloomy baronial castle hall of the cursed Murgatroyds, whose ancestral ghosts come alive and torment the latest baron, our hero Robin Oakapple. It’s wondrously silly and satiric, and in no way merits the barbs thrown at it at its opening night. Gilbert adored this work, maybe because it was his unappreciated child, and reworked its libretto with some new music from composer Sullivan. But Ruddigore didn’t catch fire with the public and was never revived during the duo’s lifetime.
But if the critics had lived to see G&S Society’s production, I think they would have changed their minds.
What a marvelous, inventive, and colorful production this is. This is the best show The Society has presented in seasons. Directed with a sure commanding hand by Buck Ross, as if Gilbert’s ghost had sat and whispered on his shoulder, the musical is all of one piece. The cast is well-nigh perfect. The conducting from Opera in the Heights’ maestro Eiki Isomura and the playing from the orchestra is thrilling.
And the picture book look from scenic designer Jodi Bobrovsky, abetted by Ross’s cartoon CGI projections of fog and lightning or the churning sea that turns from blue to black, is stunning. The costumes from Kat Jedlicka and Performing Arts Supply Company are vibrantly alive, as is the atmospheric lighting from Christina Giannelli. Even the blocking is clever and genuinely funny. Nothing is overplayed, overstated, over-anything.
As always, Sullivan’s music is sublimely tuneful. He hated writing for the stage and thought it beneath a classical composer. History is a funny thing. Sullivan, who wrote oratorios, hymns (“Onward Christian Soldiers”), operas, and concert pieces, is most famous for his “theater” work with Gilbert. It’s no surprise. He can write in any mode: be it ditty, patter song, gavotte, folk, love ballad, choral anthem. Every piece is fresh and works in its context. Buoyant and glittery, Sullivan’s music constantly surprises.
And then there’s Gilbert. No librettist has approached his peerless genius. Not even Sondheim can touch him for the unending sparkle of his lyrics. Every writer since has owed a debt to him, for he defined the role of lyricist: fast-paced, character-driven, a deft combo of Dickensian filigree and divinely-inspired wit. Gilbert is the quintessential wordsmith, spinning out tongue-twisting patter songs and love lyrics with equal aplomb. Sullivan matches him in every way with melodies that stick in your ear. Under Gilbert and Sullivan, the pairing of words with music is incomparable.
There’s not a hiccup throughout the cast. Wesley Landry (the sweetest voice), Thomas O’Neill (the cheekiest voice), Dennis Arrowsmith (the mustache-twirling voice), Lisa Borik Vickers (the most soprano voice), Meaghan Heath (the best voice), Jana Ellsworth (the comedy voice), Richard Paul Fink (the deepest voice), and supporting voices Riley Vagis, Chloe Owens, Johnny Salvesen and the exceptional choral work are the best around. They have studied their G&S and have received the highest marks.
The problem is that the Society plays for only three more performances. This Ruddigore is a show for a lovely summer’s entertainment. This is musical comedy at its best. Go, be dazzled by the Victorian charm, it’s priceless.
Ruddigore continues at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, July 21; 7 p.m. Saturday, July 27; and 2:30 p.m. Sunday, July 27 at the Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Houston at Cullen Performing Hall at the University of Houston, 4300 University Drive. For more information, call 832-842-3131 or visit gilbertandsulllivan.org. $49-$94.
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2024.
