The Gondoliers Stratford Festival Gilbert and Sullivan
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- Опубликовано: 27 мар 2021
- Hard to find DVD. Don't want these performances to be lost to time from 1984
Subtitles now available!!!
Starring
Eric Donkin
Douglas Chamberlain
Richard McMillan
John Keane
Paul Massel
Karen Skidmore
Marie Baron
Kimble Hall
Deborah Milsom
Well, I was in this production as one of the male chorus. I have a big smile watching it almost forty years later. The folks who don't like the commedia d'arte folks should surely respect their graceful balleticism. Don't forget that Brian Macdonald was primarily a choreographer, so this was an opportunity to choreograph the best dancers in the company. Brian's direction is so flowing and effortless . . . and the cast was singularly fantastic. What a bunch of characters to live and play with! It saddens me that so many of the men in this extraordinary company subsequently died due to AIDS. A great dancer/actor/singer, Ted Pearson, was in the early rehearsals for this Gondoliers, and he disappeared from rehearsals . . . only later did we discover that we was an early AIDS departee. Please respect that this performance was the absolute best that Stratford could do, and was accorded glory in their music theater history. You will not find such quality today.
That is really cool that you were in the production... I wish that you could point yourself out! I grew up with these Stratford productions and they are the ones I consider definitive G&S. My grandmother had the first copies on VHS in the 80s, and whenever I visited I'd pick them for us to watch together... I was around 9-10 when that started. We also obtained them at my mom's house, and then I in turn sought them out to have my own copies when I moved out on my own. They never get old. I also like seeing the same people in the different shows, whether principal or chorus. I'm sorry to learn of the losses. They have a legacy in my home and with my family.
I'm the guy at the back left of the stage during the start of the bows . . . .
Are you kidding? Those commedia dell'arte folks are terrific! What an ingenious way to begin the opera and they were used so brilliantly throughout Love this production!!
It was indeed a quality performance , soloists, choral, and the choreography . I am not quite sure of the ghostly figures in white, what were they supposed to be ?
@@Kirkee7 As the show is set in Venice, and as Brian had excellent dancers in the cast, he chose to highlight some of them as silent commedia del’arte "ghosts" who were amplifying the music and story, but from outside. It was new, clever, and effective. Everyone was very committed in this production. It was a special time in Stratford’s history.
I just…cannot stop watching this over and over. Easily one of the most perfect things I’ve ever seen and heard.
It's as fresh as when it first came out!
Without ANY POSSIBLE doubt, this IS the very finest production (in ALL aspects!) Of the Gondoliers I have EVER had the pleasure to watch!!!!!! OUTSTANDING cast, costume, staging and design, and not to mention such a gorgeous Duchess!!!!!
I totally agree about the production being brilliant. I have been 'into' Gilbert & Sullivan since being introduced to it at the age of three by my parents. That was 65 years ago. I am still just as fond of the Operettas now. I have seen three productions of 'The Gondoliers, including one by the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, but this production is outstanding! Thank you sincerely for posting this on RUclips, albeit a while ago.
I had never seen Gondoliers before; though, being G&S, the plot twist was easy to figure out. This was really a great production; and, as said before, the Director-Choreographer did a great job. So wonderful to see so many singers who could move SO well. The Stratford Festival really deserves credit for this entertaining show!
Amazing, costumes, music, vocal quality, choreography an absolute delight! With imaginative routines too!
Loved the choice of a man as the duchess 🤣
He was manificent...not fooling anyone but having so much fun in the parody ! 😄
I have this DVD, and cherish it. There's also a 1990 production from Australia (Sydney Opera, of course) available on DVD, which uses this same choreography, but is not as well-made in terms of film and sound quality as this. This Canadian Stratford version is supreme!! What voices! The singers are in such control of the combined singing and dancing performance! The sound quality here amazes me - it's almost uncanny! What a joy!
What a wonderful tonic for these pandemic times, and reminiscent of my singing in Yeomen of the Guard in 1954 at Toronto Teachers' College.
I love this! My first exposure to Gondoliers -first rate talent, brava Canada! Where, pray tell, can I find the omitted, but celebrated Gavotte from a similar quality production?
Auditioning for this show in a couple weeks and wanted to watch it through to really get a feel. What a FUN show and a FABULOUS production! Thanks for posting!!
I wish you luck. That would be amazing to see wherever it's performing.
This is my favorite production... I've rewatched this 100's of times and it never disappoints!!❤❤
Richard Macmillan, always a delight.
Such a tall drink of talent-water.
He was absolutely brilliant as Pooh-bah in The Mikado as well!
@@TheKitchenNinjaI've seen lots of Pooh Bahs, and none were better than he!
@@TheKitchenNinja For real. I saw The Mikado first and wound up here, and I was like ... That's the Pooh-bah guy! YAY!
This for me was the golden era of Stratford Festival. Sadly viewing as much as I still enjoy! is a time capsule of joyous memories and days gone by!. Reserving the tickets, travelling to Stratford pre performance for dinner with friends, our anticipation of the performance. After performance joyfully mimicking the brilliance of song and humor we had just seen departing the theatre. Often rounding off the evening with after performances humor of the cast like Eric Donkin and co on the local pub scene. I no longer live in Ontario, and the personal friends with who we went to see other friends who were in the cast sadly now have past! Thanks for the memories!
The best ever! Not a step out of place - jump for joy! What a cast… Gilbert and Sullivan must have watched from heaven.
Thank you so much for posting this. This superb production is THE BEST!! Yes G & S is wonderful music but this performance just glows in every way - singing, dancing, and sheer fun.
What a magnificent performance.
1:34:00 = One of *the* most beautiful renditions of "Take a Pair of Sparkling Eyes" I have ever heard! Our tenor takes his time, and manages to make some of the high notes sound soft and intimate, a skill not easily achieved for those who know about vocal technique at that level. Bravo signor, bravissimo! 😊💜
Possibly my favourite among the Savoy Operas, this production is in a world of its own. In particular I loved the commedia d'arte, a great idea, beautifully done.
Absolute perfection for one of G&S's finest operettas. I watched this on my day off from beginning to end and enjoyed every minute. Thank you. This production has the distinction of the balance of the traditional with a very clever production bringing GnS to modern Canada. I am extremely impressed. This production should not be lost. The extended introductions for effect are not a problem; the extra orchestral passages that are not Sullivan are sensitive and expertly orchestrated; The Duchess of Plaza-Toro in drag is inspired; the extended "There was a King" and "Regular Royal Queen" are glorious; "try we lifelong" not messed with. True, Gavotte - "I am a courtier.." is conspicuous for being missing - but the tune is there before the final scene (I'll forgive them!) I loved the ending - faithful to Sullivan but extended to meet to the production's illusion of the dancers as the narrators and commenters mopping the stage and a final Sullivan style chord. I couldn't ask for more.
I think this may be my favorite from this cast..mikado was also very well done. i wish they had performed Ruddigore, but pirates, pinafore, mikado, and iolanthe are great shows as well.
@@adambrannon8934 I hope someone will post then on here, then. If they are anything like Gondoliers we’re in for a treat.
@@longeaton34 I did. all except for the mikado which already exists here on youtube. just look up Stratford festival or look at the other videos in my channel. there are changes in the cast but the players all overlap in the production. there is one girl that is in every show. karen wood, either appears in the principal or in the chorus
@@adambrannon8934 thanks hb
This was one of my favourites at the Stratford Festival. It was staged in 1983, I saw it live in 1984 and the revival in 1995.
you saw it the year I was born. I sure hope my local theater puts it on one if these days.
I just love this company!!! Thank you for sharing.
Great fun - especially the choreography in Act II. Thanks for posting this!
What an absolutely wonderful production. I was in an amateur production years ago and it was pretty good. This brought back some lovely memories.
Thank you for posting this! So wonderful to see it again 40 years later, still so entertaining! John Keane was a family friend, a lovely gentleman and a massive talent. He's missed by many, but this was a real treat to hear his wonderful voice again.
I was born the year this aired. It has been a treat coming across them and posting for newer generations to enjoy. Been through all the Stratford's I could find. It's funny that the one actress that was in every show was Karen Wood.
What an absolutely brilliant presentation. The director deserves a HUGE amount of credit for having come up with such a fantastic production. Many, many thanks for uploading it!
same company, I'll upload H.M.S. Pinafore tomorrow
@@adambrannon8934 The 1981 production staged by Leon Major? Brian Macdonald staged HMS Pinafore at the Royal Alex in 1987, and revived at Stratford in 1993.
@@adambrannon8934 do you have pirates of penzance as well?
@@Hayzito I do. I know the stratford recording is here on youtube in clips but not in a whole I think. if it doesn't I'll upload it.
Way over the top but, thank you for putting this online! Done in true G&S style. Gilbert making fun of the Victorian stage (and upper class society)! "We undertake to marry any two of you we catch"
Gilbert has an unmatched way with the English language! His prose comedies are not that great. We should never distain Sullivan's genius.
BTW the Luis in this production is in serious need of a dance belt
A wonderful production of an excellent opera, that combines my two great passions: 18th century costume and Gilbert and Sullivan. Love it.
Just watched this and loved it. I don't believe I've seen the Gondoliers before...or if so, long ago; altogether an impressive performance, wonderful choreography, funny, smart, and touching. So sorry to learn from the comment below of the untimely loss of many of the players. So great to see them here.
Thanks for upload at such good quality. I already have on DVD the Australian version of the same production. Both are excellent.
I echo most sentiments here that this is THE BEST PRODUCTION of The Gondoliers I have seen to date. Fantastically cast with wonderful singers. What makes it such a thrill to watch is, in my opinion, Berthold Carriere’s brisk tempi (other G&S conductors ought to take note) and the exceptional and choreography, so well executed by the cast. What lifts it in a class of its own is the addition of the 5 Commedia del Arte figures as the quasi narrators/greek chorus throughout. Brilliant. I saw it last on TV in the eighties and have been desperate to see it again and only now, miraculously, found it here on RUclips. Same production was put on in my home city (Sydney, Australia) but, alas, it lacked the absolute zing of this vefrsion. Am thrilled to bits to have it on YT. And yeah, I’m a retired opera singer and yes, I did a few G&S in my time, including Luiz decades ago.
I have been tracking them down the best versions I can to upload for others to see. Glad I could help.
Adam, thank you soooo much for the upload, and the others. You have no idea how happy this production makes me. I just can’t pick any little bit to criticize. It’s just perfect in every department if you ask me. Just watched it again for the umpteenth time since a month ago. ❤
@@figaroqua221 you're welcome, I'd upload the Mikado as well, but last I checked. It's on RUclips already. I know that show catches a lot of flack.
Fantastic achievement! Hopefully this will be preserved for all posterity!
Delightful! Thank you! 💕💕💕💕💕
Opera Australia bought the rights to this production from the producers. It's just sad that "The Gavotte" was cut from Act 2. .The opera Australia also cut the song/dance although the company complained, hoping it would be restored .
will be putting on the gondoliers next week, i will be a low bass in the men's chorus. been practicing it for three months now, doing it with our local savoyards fan group. can't believe i'll be on stage with a full orchestra performing the same show i've listened to hundreds of times, in front of hundreds of people. thank you so much for uploading all of these videos! they've really helped me find my passion for G&S and now i am hooked for life.
I'm glad these productions have been enjoyable. The one show I would have loved to see this company do is rudigore, but alas.
A marvelous production! And simply stellar performances.
I have the dvd and I was so excited to find it on youtube
What a beautiful score.
The giant dolls were perfect!
I saw this live 3 times in 1983, a few years after the G & S Society at the U of Western Ontario (London Ontario) did it--I was a set painter/English Major in that order. Stephen Beamish, who has a short solo (Antonio), was the Duke of Plaza Toro in our production and Deborah Joy who is in the chorus and one of the zanies (blonde, huge eyes, and Robert Joy's sister) was Casilda. I worked with Joanne Massel, Paul Massel's sister in law, at London Public Library. Stratford used so much local Canadian talent in those days. RIP Stephen--all those rehearsals for the cachucha were worth it! I have a VHS copy of this. BTW all you ST:TNG fans: Gwynyth Walsh who played B'Etor (Duras's sister) is in the chorus--can you spot her??
Stephen beamish died at age 40 or so I discovered in looking up where they are now. do you know what he died of?
@@adambrannon8934 I had met the Don Alhambra, Richard McMillan in New York a couple of times in the late '80's, a real gentleman as well as a fine actor. Looked him up recently and was quite sad to see that he passed some time ago, way too early.
@@kennethwayne6857 awe yes. he was my 2nd favorite part of the mikado. right after Karrn woods hilarious delivery as pitti sing. but I sing while driving "young man dispare" because of McMillan.
@@adambrannon8934 Are you on Facebook?
@@heatherjones6647 yeah, my avatar is me holding my English Bulldog.
So glad to find these here! They make me feel wonderful!!! Oh! Rapture!!!
Delightful!
So go they have the cast list slowly, we must not ever forget the people behind the seen scenes the dress makers, the directors, designers, the stage designer and of course all in the orchestra
Wonderful!
❤❤amszing hope we could see this opera morevoften
Thanks for posting! Great stuff. 7:40 Preparing the role of Inez for this summer OMG ;-D 2:18:40
Exquisite
What a wonderful performance
This is easily the best production of The Gondoliers I've ever seen .... I'm curious if it's the first G&S production with a reverse drag rôle (I'm sure not; but I want to do it!) .... The Duchess is absolutely sublime!
Douglas Chamerlain absolutely killed it as the Duchess! What a wonderful performance!
It's in the tradition of the Dame in British Christmas pantomimes. She is almost always played by a man. 🙂
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I loved this lively and very entertaining performance of The Gondoliers. Many thanks to Adam Brannon for saving and uploading it for our enjoyment!
Douglas Chamberlain according to his cv is now 88 years of age
I am blown away by how good the sound is - with no visible microphones! Most productions from recent decades have visible mikes attached to the singers; how is this sound so good without that? Sometimes I find myself suspecting that they're just miming to a studio recording - but surely not??
Actually yes, I think the talking bits are from an overhead mic, but the singing is definitely recorded after the fact for TV. I spotted some out of sync lip movements from the Mikado in.....the Mikado..ha!
@@adambrannon8934 Shocker!! I wonder if this was ever released as an LP soundtrack...
@@TueSorensen unsure, but you could always RUclips to mp3
They cut out “I am a courtier”?
so sorry the gavotte was left out!! Otherwise really lovely!!
I recently seen the doily cart production of this show and I must say that you're a must say that your production cannot hold a candle to it it holds 10 candles and five spotlights absolutely magnificent and so much better than totally card I've also recently seen your Mercado which is magnificent. I've seen Manny machado's including the film and yours is just top notch. I think I'll go now before I get gushy
@roderickfernandez5382: I think you need to go and study English grammar and spelling which has nothing to do with ‘gushy’. Oh, by the way, what is “Mercado” or “machado”??
@@johnpickford4222 The Mikado, I presume.
@roderickfernandez5282, From the misunderstanding of the idiom "cannot hold a candle to..." which it is clear that you intended as praise, I'd guess that English is not your first language. Please don't be put off posting by any unkind and critical. comments on your use of English. . I'm sure that the person who uploaded the video and any of the original cast members really appreciated your highly complimentary comment! Keep posting. 🙂
Go Canada
Opera Australia apparently duplicated the Stratford choreography of Dance a Cuchacha with dolls in 1989.
Well, that wasn't the only thing they copied
And for a good reason, both turned out splendid
Could you upload the Pirates of Penzance?
Uploading it now. I've been drawing a thumbnail for it
@@adambrannon8934 Thanks for that
What year was this? Could you edit it into the description? Thanks!
1984, the year I was born
Why would you upload this in a low resolution format? Why not in high definition? This is fuzzy and the sound is not clear.
Best quality I can manage from a recording 40 years old. This is how it looks on the dvd
I dont get the opening. I was thinking they would start with a narration from a chorus 😜
A big confusion with italians speaking in spanish ahahah Segnoritas is spanish
The singer who plays Luiz reminds me of Justin Trudeau.
Ha!!! I see it!
Well I may be crazy, but it appears as though Madonna has also seen this video . . . check out her version of "Vogue" in 1990. ruclips.net/video/lTaXtWWR16A/видео.html
I've seen less ham acting in other productions ...
G and S is ALL about ham acting...the more extravagant, the better!
@garthl2954: Written likely by an expert in ‘hammary’ himself!!
I imagine, for a lot of Italian and German viewers, it must be pretty surreal to hear opera music in the same language as all the crappy pop music that comes out nowadays.
Ethor
Is the duchess a dude?
Yes.
One of the greatest...wasn't it obvious?
The duchess is one of the G & S comic baritone roles.
The only thing that spoiled it for me was those clowns dressed in white who had nothing to do with the operetta and kept turning up. Otherwise a great performance.
bow to commedia della arte
They helped with the staging without looking like stagehands.
There is a long tradition of comic jugglers and tumblers acting as crowd control and stage hands.
They spoiled it for me, too. Makes no difference to me whether they were part of a tradition, I still found them disruptive and cloying.
I like them!
The singing is quite good and I love Stratford's Mikado, but I love "Rising Early in the Morning" and do not like the lyrics being changed! There is no point in doing that!
Exactly! My problem is that the orchestrations are all completely altered. Why mess with perfection? But then I'm just another one of those annoying D'Oyly Carte purists.
SABLE COAT--NOT SAILOR COAT! NAP AT THREE--NOT NAP AND THREE! INTERVENE--NOT INTERVEIN! IF YOU MUST INSERT THESE UNNECESSARY SUBTITLES, SPELL AND USE THE WORDS CORRECTLY!
My apologies, subtitling was a very long process. I'm sure plenty of errors snuck passed
What a cantankerous fellow you are! Do you think of yourself a power even higher than the king of Barataria or the Mikado of Japan???
Whenever I switch subtitles on for RUclips videos, they are automatically generated, and hence are always full of errors.
I found the cavorting ghost-like figures really annoying. And who on earth made such a botch of the subtitles? But as ever with G and S, the music was glorious.
I loved this production. The singing was excellent. HOWEVER--those white clad "Greek chorus" were utterly annoying.
I'm gonna be the cranky purist here, but this performance takes way too many liberties with the words and music. G&S doesn't need all these changes; it just makes it tacky. And the strange, Karloff-like take on a Spanish accent has aged terribly and is racist.
Agree regarding the Inquisitor's accent, bizarre but not uncommon to conflate "Mexican" with "Spanish" but a very ignorant conflation to make. Sounds dumb and has aged very poorly. That being said, I think that G&S operettas are meant to serve as a vessel for commentary more material to the times in which the show is being performed, so I am generally very happy with this production. It's just the Inquisitor that makes me cringe.
All a bit sad and not genuine
The “heroes” are just awful! Sorry guys but what rotten over acting. Watch the Australian opera performance instead. Very similar production. Better performances. And yes, I realise this is a comedy and a theatre production and supposed to be over the top but there is no comparison.
It’s G & S. Chill out already.
If I were a preschool teacher I would say keep your hands to yourself. Here I might say keep your opinions to yourself. This is my favorite choreography of my favorite operetta. Keep your opinions to yourself
The Duchess should be sung by a woman not a man.
Why not? Originally, all parts were sung by males. Women were not allowed on stage!
@@sarahhearn-vonfoerster7401 Apparently you've got the Victorian era mixed up with the Elizabeth I era. G&S always had women playing women's roles.
@glenneag3067: Just because Stratford didn’t recognize your attributes and cast you as the Duchess is no reason to criticize their decision. The “Duchess” was cast well and conveyed the character very well. Grow up or quit watching.
Allow me to explain: most G & S operas have a comic baritone role; think of the Executioner in Mikado, Major General in Pirates, John Wellington-Wells etc. In Gondoliers, the comic baritone role is the Duchess. You can hear that the vocal writing is for a baritone.
@@johnpickford4222 Because his singing is terrible!
How sad that they were such poor singers that they had to mime, None of the Stratford productions were live singing. The machinations of Mr Mcmillan seemed to be based upon his expertise on roller skates. Certainly not on his singing or comedic prowess.
Disappointing.
They probably were in the chorus