So the Madison Savoyards did The Gondoliers, or The King of Barataria this evening. This being a Gilbert and Sullivan farce means that I can't do a plot-line play-by-play, but can only give a bare summary.
The story is as follows. Two young men work as gondoliers in Venice, and one of them just so happens to be the long-lost heir to the throne of the island kingdom of Barataria. The question, however, is which one is it? Add to the mix the two young ladies who marry the gondoliers, the Duke of Plaza Toro whose daughter had been married by proxy to the prince when they were babies, and a secret hidden by the prince's old nursemaid, and you have quite a chaotic situation on your hands! Suffice it to say that the whole is settles in the typical Gilbert and Sullivan fashion--a plot twist that is just absurd and hilarious as the rest of the story.
Overall the performance was good. The only issues came with the occasional stumble over the rhythm (which is to be expected every now and then), and one young woman lost her voice, but they tried having the substitute singing in the pit rather than just offstage which made the lyrics hard to hear.
The acting was good even the voices stumbled a bit. the chemistry between the couples was especially good. Case in point comes at the very beginning when all the country girls are vying for the attentions of Giuseppe and Marco. When the two guys choose Tessa and Gianetta for their brides, the other girls react with jealousy before reluctantly letting the rest of the gondoliers comfort them. "Dance a Cachucha" and "There lived a King" count as the main highlights of the opera for me.
Heck, forget about the acting. Once again, it's the costumes stole the show for me. The country girls in their romantic little dresses and the gondoliers in their breeches and waistcoats were so much fun to watch. And the Duchess of Plaza Toro's dress was a piece of caricaturish piece of hilariousness. I think it accidentally hit poor Giuseppe in the midriff during the Act 2 gavotte.
Whole some parts could have been done better, overall it was a good performance.
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