THE WATERMAN Jim Jarratt April 2021

THE WATERMAN.Mr Bundle, the owner of a market garden by the Thames, has an abiding friendship with young Tom Tug, a local waterman. When Tom falls in love with his daughter Wilhelmina, Mr Bundle is delighted. His feisty wife however, has other plans - and a rival suitor -Mr Robin, another gardener. Young Wilhemina, feisty as her mother, likes them both but cannot decide, and is playing her parents against each other to gain time.Will it be Robin ? Or Honest Tom?The Waterman first aired at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket, in 1774, where it was a huge success. It was written by writer, musician and theatrical performer Charles Dibdin (1745 -1814), Associate of David Garrick and Joseph Grimaldi the famous clown. Dibdin was the most prolific songwriter of his age, having written well in excess of 600 songs, mainly on nautical themes, (His brother was a sea captain). Because Drury Lane held a virtual monopoly on pure drama, productions at the Haymarket were filled with songs to avoid litigation, thus producing the first 'stage musicals' . This Toy Theatre version dates from the 1840s. It is essentially the Skelts version with the Pollock characters (Which I feel are better rendered than Skelts). By this time the original productionwas long out of style, and it seems the toy theatre versions were inspired by a brief resurgence of the play in the late 1830s. They were of course, all brutal ‘short-short’ versions of the original play.My 'covid lockdown' performance of the play was constructed using many resources online. It references three Dibdin songs 'The lass that Loves a Sailor' (as Theme music) The Jolly Young Waterman, and Farewell my Trim Built Wherry. The other songs are as follows - Hail Smiling Morn by Reginald Spofforth ( 1769 - 1827), and In The Bay of Biscay O! by Andrew Cherry (1762-1812). The Victorian play ended with a rousing performance of Dr. Arnes 'Rule Britannia' but I decided to give it a more atmosperic contemporary tone by performing Sweet Thames Flow Softly, by Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger. Most of the orchestral music used in this play is based on adaptations of online sequences by Lesley Nelson........., with the exception of 'Sweet Thames Flow Softly' which is entirely my own take. The artwork in this production (other than toy theatre)consists of animated Victorian paintings mainly by John Atkinson Grimshaw. Making it has been a labour of love...... Enjoy!Jim Jarratt Easter 2021.
Central to the story of The Waterman is the worlds oldest boat race - Doggetts Coat and Badge. There is an excellent documentary about the race, past and present, at
• The World's Oldest Boa...

[@jrgoddard3378]

how wonderful! i am really enjoying your hard work, its great!

[@strathtales]

It's charming, Jim. Some lovely set pieces and musical arrangements. For the finale, Ewan MacColl and Atkinson Grimshaw, plus J Jarratt. A great team!

[@jimjarratt1]

Hi Bob. Glad you liked it. It was a challenge - doing all those southern accents! It was great fun though! Upcoming on this channel is 'Mary the Maid of the Inn' a folk rock 'penny dreadful ballad I based on Robert Southey, for which the mini theatre is offering a somewhat darker tone!
This particular version is set in Leeds! All the best,
Jim.