This IS singing. Not actors' singing. That voice is articulated,impostation and skilled present. Dame. Not many are able to handle all the "Fachs" . Yet, she is modest in her grandezza , shines, with no intention to be a star. Monarchy Jewel.
Thank you so much for uploading this. What an amazing talented lady Dame Routledge is. I have only recently discovered the musical prowess of this lady when I found by accident her performance of Ruth in the Pirates of Penzance. I am amazed at this lady's talent c
Thank you so much! I've been watching a lot of Patricia Routledge's "early" work and have been both stunned and delighted by the vast range in her talents. I'm from the US, so I know her mostly from "Keeping Up Appearances." I was looking through some of the Alan Bennett monologues and saw her in "A Woman of No Importance." Incredible. That sparked searches. I am also a Gilbert and Sullivan addict (I'm 70 now, so I'd say for about 60 years). Again, the BBC broadcasts were unknown to me, but I do like the music from "Ruddigore." To hear her as Mad Margaret and to sing "My eyes are fully open"...bliss. Now I have to see if any of her recordings have been posted on RU-vid. Thank you for such a marvelous treat...and for posting the whole operetta.
Yes, and she really plays the jokes ("Strange, they told me she was beautiful.") absolutely deadpan... until that great scream at the end. But then, she was the only truly sympathetic Ruth in Pirates of Penzance (Joe Papp's Central Park production) that I've ever seen - and stole the show with her stage savvy and expert timing. Unforgettable! :-)
Unless it turns up on youTube (it has sometimes astonished me!) there was no recording of Patricia as "La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein" (Offenbach) (the Camden Festival). The first B.B.C. G.& S. complete audio series was very good with sound effects.
Great to have this. It’s not quite correct to say she isn’t remembered as a singer. On Broadway she was primarily known as that, having originated at least three roles, the most famous being Ruth in the Joe Papp PIRATES OF PENZANCE (which is on RU-vid). In the West End she triumphed in COWARDY CUSTARD (her definitive MARVELLOUS PARTY can be found on RU-vid, too), as the Old Lady in CANDIDE, and as Nettie in CAROUSEL, singing YOU'LL NEVER WALL ALONE. All in all, then, she had a formidable career as a singer.
She is not a soprano at all! She has a very rich Mezzo Soprano voice which, because of its wide range, could also handle some Contralto roles. In short, a lovely voice.
It's a shame that she's too old now (I mean that in a professional way) to play Julia in The Grand Duke, which is my favourite G and S operetta. Come to think of it, she could play Caroline Van Krakenfeldt now and do a great job, I'm pleased she gave the 'cat and the dog' song song a real tune. Oooh and now we're getting the duet with Sir Despard too! Thsnk you so much.
Peter Pratt another actor/singer (I'm one) ex D'Oyly Carte principal light comic acts and sings Sir Ruthven Murgatroyd. Simon Butteriss couldn't pronounce the name. It's "without the elision". The other characters say "Riven".
Leo Sheffield distinctly sings, "I claim him as Sir Ruthven Murgatroyd," with no elision, in the 1924 recording. I am skeptical that the "elision" refers to the pronunciation of "Ruthven." Rather, it is the skipping of the given (guthven?) name entirely, when Robin calls himself "Sir Murgatroyd."
@@kevinwachs5905 Thanks. I agree about Sheffield. (A pity he didn't get more opportunities as excellent heavy comic to Lytton's light comic. The latter was excluded from recordings quite often). They did get away with uncorrected errors on recordings. One D'Oyly Carte tenor sang the n word on a recording of "Ida" "Genty Gently" (Sargent L. P.). A guest, Jean Allister pronounced Pointdextre in the French way which a pew-opener is unlikely to do. See "elision' wikipedia. It usually means syllables not whole words. Incidentally people in real life make the mistake Sir Murgatroyd. It's Sir Keir (Starmer). Perhaps Sir Ruthven is being bad by saying it wrong!
@@richardduployen6429, in addition to the definition of "elision," we should consider the meaning of "with greater precision." Pronouncing the silent letters isn't being precise, but specifying which Murgatroyd, and using the title properly, both make the correction more precise.
