OUGSS Presents The Sorcerer (TT 2023) 

Comely

Bravo! Back to an orchestra as opposed to an instrumental ensemble, and on RU-vid from which you may get more members. I'm a life member after decades & it used to be in the constitution that town people could join and play roles. There seemed to be added percussion e. g. Wells' Song. It is difficult finding a venue. The long-established equivalent at Manchester University has folded because of the cost of venues. However a background of a brick wall (& with a dustbin which hid the flageolet playing Mrs. Partlet at one stage) wasn't suitable as a mansion. I once had to suffer bricks in a professional production of "Tannhauser"! We expect humour from the leading light comic (Wells) which we didn't get. I've played it with magic tricks & an accent e. g. Cockney ("I drop my haitches, 'ave frough life"). The line "persons of your station" was superfluous. He also has a sinister (supernatural) side. There was a lot of exuberance so restraint would have been welcome as shown e. g. in the dignified Sir Marmaduke & Aline Act ll aria. There is a second verse & I'd like to see the original version of the Brindisi, properly as in the marvellous D'Oyly Carte production, with tea-cups. I've seen the scene with Ahrimanes appearing. I think "Happy are we" has been used as the Curtain Call. We could have a cast list. The Society used to put the college with University members. Alexis seemed to have friends in the City rather than in the military but uniforms can be expensive to hire. I was given a German helmet! There was some archaic law regarding uniforms on stage. As part of research I went to see the Guards & they showed me the uniform they used in their production (gold braid down the side of the black trousers). A robe could have been found for Dr. Daly rather than a dressing-gown. Lady Sangazure (an otherwise stately impersonation from a young man) went too far in exposing her bra! Her song has been reconstructed.