Reviews

Reviews

Click on the following links to view reviews for a specific show.

The Sound of Music (Fall 2001)
Nunsense (Spring 2002)
My Fair Lady (Fall 2002)
Iolanthe (Spring 2003)
HMS Pinafore (Fall 2003)
The Secret Garden (Spring 2005)
The Merry Widow (Fall 2005)

The following review of The Merry Widow, written by Vinny Alexander, appeared in the Pulse on November 25, 2005:

For a Rollicking Good Time, Make Local Theater a Holiday Tradition

Community Theater at its Best with This

Last weekend, Gilbert & Sullivan Musical Theatre Company ended its run of “The Merry Widow” at the Center for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck and took it on the road to the Bardavon 1869 Opera House. Since 1978, the theater company has performed every Thanksgiving weekend at the Bardavon.

This year’s production will be “The Merry Widow,” which runs today and Saturday at Poughkeepsie’s landmark music hall, continuing this holiday tradition.

“The Merry Widow” celebrates its 100^th anniversary this year. Community opera and theater companies across the nation are producing the Franz Lehar operetta in recognition of this timeless musical classic. And “The Merry Widow” is timeless. The whimsical and light score with catchy melodies makes the musical a crowd-pleaser.

Last Friday night at Rhinebeck, the almost capacity crowd laughed out loud. It was obvious that they were enjoying the show. The comedy, music and dancing had the audience engaged for three acts. During intermission, a gentleman behind me was humming the songs and musical themes. I heard another audience member comment, “This is fun, isn’t it?” And that is the best way to describe “The Merry Widow.” It is fun. Audiences love it.

At the heart of this production of “The Merry Widow” is director Lou Trapani.

A modern twist

The staging keeps the actors moving and occupied with the business of the scene. The kinetic blocking is echoed in Miriam Mahdaviani’s choreography. The cast seems to be enjoying themselves every step of the way. They are having as much fun as the audience.

Trapani is also responsible for the script adaptation. This could explain the contemporary twist on the comedy. There is an edge to his humor. Trapani also played the role of Njegus, the witty and sarcastic secretary to the inept ambassador of Sylvania, Zeta.

Glenn Knicerbocker plays the bumbling Zeta. He has a good comic rapport with Trapani. Many of the jokes come from the fact that Zeta cannot keep track of his wife, Valencienne. She is always off flirting with Camille de Rosillon. Leah Arington and Charles Sokolowski play these roles, contributing to the comic mayhem and plot twists.

Lovely presence on stage

Soprano Kimberly Kahan leads the cast in the title role. Kahan is stunning. She has a beautiful voice and a tremendous stage presence. When she sings, it appears effortless. Particularly enjoyable is the number “Vilia.” Kahan shines on this critically praised Lehar song.

Opposite Kahan is local favorite Benedikt Kellner. Kellner sings and performs with a number of musical the theatrical groups throughout Dutchess County. He plays Count Danilo with style and grace.

I attended the production with my son Nathanael. About three minutes into the performance, he started to rifle through his program. When I asked him what he was looking for, he responded by telling me that his music teacher, Mary Dallari, was in the cast. He was confirming that it was in fact her on stage. This made me look at the other cast biographies. The ensemble is made up of teachers, engineers and real estate brokers, to name a few.

This is the glory of the Gilbert and Sullivan Musical Theatre Company—local, talented people performing at some the community’s finest venues.

“The Merry Widow” is truly a delight.

The performance this weekend will include a full orchestra. Music director Edward Lundergan was limited to a trio of musicians at Rhinebeck because of space.

The colorful sets and backdrops designed by Trapani and the elaborate period costumes created by designer Natalie Lunn are just additional reasons to make Gilbert and Sullivan Musical Theatre Company part of your Thanksgiving traditions.

The following review of The Merry Widow, written by J. D. Goldsmith, appeared in the Pulse on November 17, 2005:

A "Merry" Musical

Franz Lehar’s “The Merry Widow” is another charming production from the Gilbert & Sullivan Musical Theater Company

The men abide by the credo if “fall in love frequently, get married never.” The women, meanwhile, each claim to be “a dutiful wife.” So begins the romantic adventure of Franz Lehar’s “The Merry Widow,” performed by the Gilbert and Sullivan Musical Theatre Company.

This show, celebrating its centennial this fall, is something of a matriarch among the operetta canon, not to mention a staple of the GSMTS’s repertoire. The Viennese musical – indeed, the classic operetta genre as a whole – carries with it the potential to fall into an expected, mothball-tinged rut of stuffiness. However, beneath it silken operatic veneer, “The Merry Widow” provides quite the comic plotline, alive and sprightly with clever wordplay and mistaken identities. Under the direction of Lou Trapani, an ensemble of gifted vocalists tackles this tale of Victorian propriety. Because of the production’s visual and musical elegance, the Saturday evening audience seemed hesitant to laugh. But go ahead and chuckle—behind Lehar’s orchestration, “The Merry Widow” is, at its core, a romantic comedy of song.

Golden-voiced soprano Kimberly Kahan brings to life the title role, the widow Anna Glavari, as she sorts through programs of would-be suitors, all eager for a chance to woo the lovely Sylvanian ingenue and her inheritance. Complications arise when Baron Zeta, Sylvania’s ambassador to Paris (Glenn Knickerbocker), reveals that the nation will go bankrupt if the widow marries a foreigner. Danilo Danilovitch, a Sylvanian count (Benedikt Kellner), is selected to try to keep Anna’s affections and finances, within her native country. But Danilo and Anna share a history that upsets his chance at winning her heart. In the meantime, the baron’s wife is pushing her French paramour to court the widow and divert attention from their own secret romance. What ensues is a tangle of European aristocracy tempered with amorous scandal.

The vocal performances are breathtaking. Musical director Ed Lundergan has masterfully worked the three-piece orchestra and cast into professional-caliber melodies. It’s as easy to lose yourself in the sound as it is in the polished sets and draping costumes.

This production’s only fault lies in the continuity of its ensemble. At times, the show seems uncertain of where to target its appeal—in the substantive or superficial, traditional or contemporary. Negotiating a successful balance of classicism and modernity is a tricky endeavor and, while “The Merry Widow” achieves high accolades visually, musically and vocally, its alignment of both choreography and acting falls a bit behind. Some members of the ensemble give highly stylized performances, recalling what one would imagine the show to look like at its Vienna premiere in 1905: demonstrative and lush, nestling comfortably between the acting trends of the opera and the silent film. Kahan’s portrayal of Anna Glavari begs the flicker of spotlights beneath a turn-of-the-century marquis. Meanwhile, others in the cast offer more modern, nuanced interpretations of the roles, subtle enough to suit the intimate space just fine – Kellner’s Danilo hides an adorable twist of vulnerability behind the character’s pride and Leah Arington’s Baroness is deliciously fickle – but these performances are overwhelmed at times by the potency of Kahan’s Anna.

The same rings true of the choreography. Young solo dancer Brittany Sokolowski is notably talented, and her dance-intensive numbers stand out against the otherwise understated choreography. While she, like Kahan, is no doubt an asset to the show, blending the talents of the cast more cohesively throughout “The Merry Widow” would have fortified the already respectable production.

“The Merry Widow” completes its two-week run at The Center for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck this weekend before moving to Poughkeepsie’s Bardavon for two additional performances on Nov. 25 and 26. In either location, the ceremonious costumes and rich voices are certainly enough to warm an audience from the chill of November nights.

The following review of The Merry Widow, written by Cynthia O. Topps, appeared in the Times Herald Record on November 17, 2005:

Make Merry and Go See GSMTC Production of "Widow"

Rhinebeck—Gilbert & Sullivan Musical Theatre Company marks the 100^th anniversary of the premiere of Franz Lehar’s engaging, oft-staged “Merry Widow” with performances in Rhinebeck and Poughkeepsie.

The Baron Zeta, ambassador to Pars from Sylvania, must see that the wealthy widow Anna Glavari marries a Sylvanian, thus keeping her fortune in the country, which is nearly bankrupt. He and his wife host a ball in her honor and order Count Danilo Danilovitch to woo her. But it seems that years ago the Count was her suitor when she was a mere commoner. His family would not allow them to wed. Now that their social class is not obstacle, their pride is.

In the colorful GSMTC production, Kiimberly Kahan and Benedikt Kellner are cast to portray these star-crossed lovers. Kahan’s lilting and soaring soprano is perfection. Costumer Barbara Pierce has created stunning ensembles for Kahan to wear, making her a treat for the eye as well as the ear.

Kellner does justice to Danilo’s musical pieces. However, his stiff demeanor dampens any romantic sparks between him and Kahan.

Richard Hack as the fortune-hunting Marquis De Cascada and Lance Lavender as rival Vicomte de Saint Brioche are amusing. Hack is the better songster and comic of the two. As the other suitor, Camille de Rossillon, who is infatuated with the Baron’s wife Valencienne, (Leah Arignton), Charles Sokolowski does his best. Vocally his duets with Arington are robust and pleasant. Arington, also beautifully outfitted by the costumer, is coquettish and relishes her role. Glenn Knickerbocker, as her oblivious spouse, appears aptly befuddled and confused.

The female ensemble sings as brightly as the ensembles they wear. The entire male cast has a terrific number in Act 2 titled “March-Septet”, but it should be subtitled “Girls, Girls, Girls.” Choreographer Miriam Mahdaviani ingeniously combines amusing actions with clever lyrics. The men are having a grand time executing the steps.

The following review of The Secret Garden, written by Kitty Montgomery, appeared in the Kingston Freeman on May 31, 2005:

Sterling Performances Flourish in "The Secret Garden"

“The Secret Garden” by Francis Hodgson Burnett is a poignant tale of tragedy and triumphant eternal love, a saga of child empowerment fused with a haunting, grown-up romance.

Inspired to create a musical based on this book, author and actress Marsha Norman enlisted Lucy Simon to compose the score. Simon’s songs and ensemble pieces elevate the work to operatic splendor. Any company attempting a production of the show had better assemble a pretty terrific collection of singers, instrumentalists and some precocious child actors.

Musical director Edward Lundergan deploys an unsurpassed cast and chorus for the Gilbert and Sullivan Musical Theater Company’s production, playing at the Center for the Performing Arts in Rhinebeck. Lundergan and his stage director, Nancy Sans, work with some of the Hudson Valley’s finest voices. The band, directed by Lundergan, includes Lynette Benner on Flute, Andrew Montaruli on clarinet and rehearsal pianist James Fitzwilliam. The band abetted the beauty and mystery of the production.

The original Simon and Norman work is long, and cuts have been made for this production that alter the balance of its dramatic impact. We get all the turning points, but character development is diminished. Dr. Neville Craven is one of the great monsters of storyland, and David Pietri’s man with the compelling voice seems much too decent as he participates in curtailed scenes. Individual performances by other cast members almost compensate for the text abbreviations.

Here’s “Garden’s” plot: Young Mary Lennox’s parents and an entire British compound in India have been wiped out by a cholera epidemic. She is sent to England to live with her uncle, Archibald Craven, a hunchbacked manor lord who grieves for his dead wife, Lily, and has a secret in the household. A son, Colin, heir to the estate, lies confined to his room because Archibald’s younger brother Neville, has convinced him the child is a cripple and doomed to die.

Colin’s birth, combined with an accidental fall in her walled garden, has caused the death of the mother. Neville, who coveted his brother’s wife seeks to take over his inheritance by snuffing the boy. Mary’s presence, with the help of the lovely ephemeral Lily, a host of ghosts from the past life in India and some hearty, mystical moorland servants, gets access to the garden, restoring life and hope.

Ayla Recotr’s Mary is sullen, vulnerable, wise and joyous, matched in imperious petulance and ultimate, resurrected radiance by C.J. Sokolowski’s Colin. This young actor is watched over by his own father Charles Sokolowski, as Lt. Wright, tenor apex of the India ghost chorus.

Mary Dallari, as the earthy Martha, is a wonderful singing actress who dissolves the boundary between speech and song. Lou Trapani’s crotchety take on the gnarly gardener Ben Weatherstaff is insidiously touching, and Michael Dunn’s frolic as the moor elf Dickon enchants us all.

The romance between Joanne Fenton’s Lily and Paul Coleman’s Archibald sweeps the show. Coleman plays this bereaved widower with such humanity, in a spectrum of grief, tenderness and joy, it’s no wonder his Lily stays with him, to cherish and console.

The following review of The Secret Garden, written by Marsden Epworth, appeared in The Compass on May 19, 2005:

About Evil, Loss and Justice

“The Secret Garden” is a fairy tale set to gorgeous music. There’s a touch of Dickens here—children cast into ghastly plights—and an intense theatricality buoyed by loss, ghosts, intrigue, absolutely swell four-voice ensembles and, ultimately the sweet hand of justice.

The setting is England, in 1911, and the woman who wrote “Little Lord Fauntleroy,” Frances Hodgson Burnett, wrote this charmer too, which opens with British colonials in India wiped out by cholera, among them the loving parents of one Mary Lennox. The little girl is unceremoniously shipped back to this sceptred isle to live at Misselthwaite, a vast and haunted manor inhabited by her uncle, Archibald Craven. His is distant, mostly absent and still grieving the death of his wife Lily, who died in childbirth. Their son Colin, a frail lad, is growing up in the care of a wicked uncle/doctor who medicates him, for reasons of his own, to unconsciousness. Of course Mary discovers Colin, coaxes him into sound health, awakens paternal notions in her uncle, and grows up, presumably, to be a pampered and barely educated woman with a lot of pretty clothes.

The Gilbert & Sullivan Musical Theater Company certainly has gone all-out on this beautiful production with some fine acting and singing, most notably by Joanne Fenton as Lily and Paul Coleman as Archibald.

The sets, though very simple, are beautiful and drenched in mystery. And the music, played by James Fitzwilliam, keyboard; Anastasia DeStefano, flute; and Andrew Montaruli, clarinet, is absolutely lovely.

This cast is full of children, and they all perform with conviction and look adorable.

“The Secret Garden” runs at the Center for Performing Arts in Rhinebeck, NY through May 29.

The following review of The Secret Garden, written by Cynthia O. Topps, appeared in the Times Herald Record on May 18, 2005:

"Garden" beautiful to look at, listen to

Rhinebeck—What was your favorite children’s book? If that were a question on a reader’s poll for women, “The Secret Garden” by Frances Hodgson Burnett would certainly be cited in the top 10. That having been said, the brilliance of the librettist-lyricist Marsha Norman and composer Lucy Simon in turning this favorite into a musical would guarantee an audience. “The Secret Garden” was introduced to Broadway audiences in 1991, earning a Tony nomination as Best Musical and winning aTony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical (Daisy Eagan) and Best Book of a Musical.

Gilbert & Sullivan Musical Theater has assembled a talented cast and crew to stage “The Secret Garden” at the Center for performing Arts at Rhinebeck. The beautiful backdrops, fabric scrims and colorful period costumes transform this intimate space into the show’s numerous scenes, culminating in its most stunning one, the secret garden. The story is about Mary Lennox (Ayla Rector), who is orphaned by a cholera epidemic in India. She is sent to live with her Uncle Archibald (Paul Coleman) and his son, Colin (CJ Sokolowski), in Yorkshire, England. Still grieving over the loss of his wife, Lily (Joanne Fenton), Archibald and his brother, Dr. Craven (David Pietri), care for Colin, who is bedridden with a mysterious illness. All this despair casts gloom over the manor to which Mary has been brought.

Lacking playmates, Mary spends her time in the gardens on the advice of her maid, Martha (Mary Dallari) and Martha’s fey brother, Dickon (Michael Dunn). Mary searches for a way to find her own happiness as well as help Colin and her Uncle Archibald.

The music is beautiful and the performers do it justice, particularly in the duets. Fenton and Sokolowski’s voices complement one another beautifully, and Fenton moves the listener to tears as Lily’s ghost entreats her son to “Come to My Garden”. Coleman and Pietri are at their best in “Lily’s Eyes” when they sing of the love they share for Archibald’s late wife.

As the kind siblings who work a the Manor, Dallarli and Dunn add merriment and good humor. Both performers deliver fine vocals, but Dallari is too physically static in ‘Hold On”. Character-appropriate movement, such as that done by Dunn, would help that piece.

Rector as Mary is a fine actress. The depth and range of emotions she shows is remarkable for a 12-year-old. The score is challenging, and at times Rector struggles to remain in tune. But she always commits herself to the role and delivers a believable portrayal.

The chorus of ghosts is important musically to move the scenes along. Directors Nancy Sans and Edward Lundergan use the ghosts creatively to enhance the piece and showcase their fine voices. This spring is a great time to revisit “The Secret Garden” or to make your first visit behind the ivy-covered door. Open it to a colorful and tuneful place, where happy-ever-afters hide.

The following review of HMS Pinafore, written by Fernando Valdivia, appeared in the Times Herald Record on Tuesday, November 18, 2003:

All Aboard for 'HMS Pinafore'

Play Review: Once again, the Gilbert & Sullivan Musical Theater Company scores another hit with its production of 'HMS Pinafore.'

Following its successful production last June of "Iolanthe," the Gilbert & Sullivan Musical Theater Company is offering another favorite operetta from its repertoire - "HMS Pinafore" - first at the Center for Performing Arts in Rhinebeck and then at the Bardavon in Poughkeepsie.

"HMS Pinafore" or "The Lass that Loved a Sailor," was Gilbert and Sullivan's fourth collaboration and their first major success. It opened on May 28, 1878, at the Opera Comique in London and ran for 571 performances.

Because of its infectious tunes and well-constructed libretto, "Pinafore" is among the most popular G&S operettas. The operetta's gentle satire builds on the familiar theme of love between members of different social classes.

Capt. Corcoran (Paul Frazer), the gentlemanly commander of the pinafore who claims that he would never swear at his crew, doesn't know that his daughter Josephine (Katie DeFiglio), has fallen in love with Ralph Rackstraw (Ray Calderon), a common sailor serving on her father's ship. Meanwhile, the captain has arranged for her to marry the First Lord of the Admiralty, Sir Joseph Porter (Benedikt Kellner). Sir Joseph himself has risen from humble beginnings to gain his office by political acumen, despite having never gone to sea! And the Captain himself fancies a poor bumboat woman, Little Buttercup (Jennie Litt).

Assisted by boatswain's mate Bill Bobstay (Patrick Schneider), carpenter's mate Bob Becket (Richard Pierce) and Sir Joseph's cousin Hebe (Marlene Golia), Josephine and Ralph plan to elope but they are prevented when able seaman Dick Deadeye (Rich White) informs the Captain. That's when Little Buttercup reveals an embarrassing secret she's kept for years.

Under the direction of Pail Cooper and musical director Laura Ramsey Russell, and accompanied at the Rhinebeck venue on piano by James Fitzwilliam (an orchestra provides accompaniment for the Bardavon performances), the 24 members of the cast sing 25 musical numbers. While doing so, they are dressed in attractive period costumes provided by Meegan Veeder-Shave as they move about the spacious nautical set designed by David George and Paul Rivenburgh.

It's been 13 years since the Gilbert & Sullivan Musical Theater Company staged "HMS Pinafore," so here is an opportunity for both G&S aficionados and lovers of musical comedy to attend a first-rate production. The principals are all excellent singers and actors and are backed up by a well-rehearsed and enthusiastic chorus.

The following review of HMS Pinafore was written by Robert Lachman for The Taconic Weekend:

Musical Mariners

"We sail the ocean blue, and our saucy ship's a beauty; We're sober men and true, attentive to our duty," sing the sailors of the H.M.S. Pinafore.

Musical Satire and silliness ruled the stage at the Center for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck last weekend as the Gilbert & Sullivan Musical Theater Company performed W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan's first big musical hit of their illustrious career, "H.M.S. Pinafore."

"Things are seldom what they seem, skim milk masquerades as cream" sings Little Buttercup (Jennie Litt) and Capt. Corcoran (Paul Frazer) in this delightful production. In life, as well as in Gilbert and Sullivan's world, nothing could be truer than this.

The story of "H.M.S. Pinafore" uses all Gilbert and Sullivan conventions - love between upper and lower classes, a rich older man vying for the hand of a lovely younger woman who (of course) loves a poor handsome man, and a past secret that levels the playing field at the end.

As the musical opens, the sailors of Her Majesty's Ship Pinafore are preparing the ship for the arrival of Sir Joseph Porter, the First Lord of the Admiralty (Benedikt Kellner). He is coming to ask for the hand of the captain's daughter Josephine (a marvelous Katie DeFiglio) in marriage. Josephine secretly loves midshipman Ralph Rachstraw (Ray Calderon), who confesses his love openly and audaciously in the beautiful duet at the end of Act 1 "Refrain Audacious Tar." Though nauseated by the attentions of Sir Joseph, Josephine rejects Ralph's advances because of the disparity in their respective ranks. When Ralph threatens to kill himself with a gun affably offered by Dick Deadeye (Richard White), Josephine relents and they plan to elope. This causes many problems in the second act, but everything works out in the end.

The play is filled with astute and witty songs like "When I was a Lad," sung by Sire Joseph and a wonderful chorus of aunts and cousins, whom he travels with everywhere, that tells the story of how he became First Sea Lord, "I though so little they rewarded me, By making me the ruler of the Queen's navy." In "The Hour Creeps on Apace," Josephine sings, "Oh God of love and God of reason which should my heart obey, Love's a platform on which all ranks meet."

The Gilbert & Sullivan Musical Theater Company has brought quality performances to The Center each time I've seen them, and "H.M.S. Pinafore" is no exception.

At first I was upset by the lack of an orchestra since they did have musicians at their productio of "Iolanthe," but as I was swept up in the story and the fabulous singing of everyone in the cast, the solo piano accompaniment by barefoot wonder (and husband to Little Buttercup) James Fitzwilliam was perfect for the intimacy of the venue.

There was one set for the entire performance, which made sense, since the whole piece takes place on the deck of a ship, and it was beautifully realized by set designers David George and Paul Rivenburgh.

Director Paul Cooper kept the pace moving while giving the actors the room to shine individually and together, as in the case of the 10 sailors who skip and cavort throughout the play, or when, in the second act, the Captain sings his lovely solo, "Fair Moon to Thee I Sing," while plucking a ukulele from high above the main deck.

Music director Laura Ramsey Russell did a fine job of pulling together the disparate choral vocal elements and difficult phrasing that so often make up Gilbert and Sullivan's best work and made it seem effortless.

Litt was fine as Little Buttercup, Frazer made a perfect Captain and White was a particularly trenchant Dick Deadeye, but it was DeFiglio and Calderon, whose exceptional voices (especially DeFiglio's range of tone and feeling) got the audience cheering at the end of the show. Kellner, as Sir Joseph, was also perfectly cast and reminded me of Jim Broadbent who played Gilbert so incisively in the film "Topsy Turvy." His strong voice and presence are the essence of what Sir Joseph Porter should be; pompous aggravating and yet quite British. It was wonderful to see him chastise the captain for giving an order to his men without saying, "If you please!" (These are very polite sailors.)

Go see "H.M.S. Pinafore" at the Venter or the Bardavon in Poughkeepsie when it move there for its final weekend of performances; it's a saucy treat.

The following review for Iolanthe, written by Kitty Montgomery, appeared in the Kingston Freeman on Friday, May 30, 2003:

'Iolanthe' at Rhinebeck a peerless charmer

Rhinebeck - Ladies considering botox injections or laser reconstruction will abandon these superficial adjustments to physiognomy the instant they set their eyes on the fairy band prancing hither and thither (they know not why) in the Gilbert and Sullivan Musical Theater Company's production of "Iolanthe" at the Center for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck.

Ear extensions a la Spock in "Star Trek" or those elvish folk in "Lord of the Rings" are what truly lend a woman girlish immortality, and I can't wait to get mine done. There are no makeup credits or even the name of a plastic surgeon listed in the program, so we presume this earry touch was conceived in a collaboration between the show's director, David Forman and costumiere Meegan Veeder-Shave, who clothes the nigh-nude fairies and lords of the realm with discretion of elegance.

Center Habitues who remember Forman's fairy godfather in a Rhinebeck Theatrical Societies production of "Cinderella" last season know the man is capable of delivering on all kinds of dreams. In this Gilbert and Sullivan take of marriage and other follies among British peers and pixies, most musically told under the baton of Edward Lundergan, Forman's enchanted touch is everywhere.

Seasons past, celebrating the cheeky precursors of Monty Python and a subsequent host of brilliant British satirists, the Gilbert and Sullivan troupe has divided its performances between Poughkeepsie and Rhinebeck. This time around the troupe's doing the whole three-weekend run at the Rhinebeck center.

No more musical schizophrenia, with an orchestra for the Po'town production and an offstage piano at the barn. In exquisite compromise, a string quartet of violinists Marla Rathbun and Karli Keator, violist Nadege Foofat and cellist Ling Kwan join the pianist James Fitzwilliam, always a one-man orchestra when he carries the company's instrumental score alone, in fusions of elf-bell clarity.

Lundergan guides their grace as he exhorts choristers and soloists with disembodied hand rising from the well where the lovely Iolanthe has chosen to live out her eternal banishment from fairy circles upside down among the frogs. Performing on the same stage, enhanced by Forman's set designs - immense magic mushrooms for fairyland and a towering abstract of Londontown's hallowed architectural structures when everybody goes to Parliament - has got to give mortal and immortal souls a solid, ensemble feel.

So you thought fairies can do anything they want to do , which is mostly prance hither and thither (they know not why). Well, they can't. They can't marry mortals, which is why Iolanthe (Molly McClarnon) went into the well. When they do, they sometimes produce halflings, like Iolanthe's minstrel-shepherd son Strephon (Glenn Knickerbocker) who is mortal below the waist.

It's a misalliance that causes all sorts of confusion in both camps, which, of course, makes for the foolish plot of this show, which we will not detail here.

Elizabeth Dana Wunderlich, a wonderful mezzo, is a veritable Valkyrie as Queen of the Faries and breast-plated enforcer of segregation codes. Her fairy minions, robust as Rhine-maidens, prance exquisitely as they sing and vice versa. (Barbara Forman choreographs their whimsical ring rites.)

It is a mark of Forman's direction that each of the fey ladies and all of the peers are encouraged to portray individual characters, which they sustain through all scenes to give the production rare animation.

Sensational among the foppish and fatuous parliamentarians are Benedikt Kellner as Lord Tolloller and David Tass Rodriguez as the sensual Lord Mountararat.

Michael DaTorre patter-sings the songs of the Lord Chancellor trippingly and conveys a fragility beyond the role's obvious bluster and mawkishness.

Phyllis (Teresa Byrons), the chancellor's coveted ward who loves Strephon but flees him when she finds him in the arms of a 17-year-old girl (his ageless mother), causes more trouble in the House of Lords than a nation of pixies and ends up inciting revolution.

The Fairy Queen, smitten by a slyly smug yeoman of the guard (Richard White), rewrites fairy code with the aid of that wily parliamentarian, the Lord Chancellor (Iolanthe's mortal husband), inserting "does not" into the phrase :every fairy who marries a mortal shall die."

She and all the sisters spirit the pompous peers to fairyland as husbands, leaving Parliament to be replenished by men selected on the basis of intelligence rather than birth.

How's that for a radical conclusion?

The following review for Iolanthe, written by Fernando Valdivia, appeared in the Times Herald-Record on Wednesday, May 28, 2003:

'Iolanthe' has no peer in Rhinebeck

To kick off it's 25th anniversary, to Gilbert & Sullivan Musical Theater Company is staging "Iolanthe or the Peer and the Peri." The seventh of Gilbert & Sullivan's 14 operettas, it opened on Nov. 25, 1882, at the Savoy Theatre and ran for 400 performances. In collaboration with musical director Edward Lundergan and choreographer Barbara Forman, the versatile David Forman not only directed this excellent production by also designed the set and lighting as well as the program's cover and artwork.

Last produced by the troupe in 1992, with the peers representing the Dutchess County legislators and the fairies as local artists, the current production adheres to the origional dual setting - the woods, where the fairies dwell, and the House of Lords. Meegan Veeder-Shave's contrasting costumes emphasize the ethereal femininity of the fairies and the pompous foppishness of the peerage.

Because the program provides a plot summary and a helpful glossary of unfamiliar terms and expressions, it's only necessary to point out that the essential conflict between the fairies and the peers concerns Iolanthe's half-human son, Strephon, and his desire to marry Phyllis, a shepherdess who is also the Lord Chancellor's ward in Chancery. When her guardian refuses to allow Phyllis to marry anyone other than a peer, Iolanthe begs the Queen of the Fairies to intervene.

Molly McClarnon as the once-banished but forgiven Iolanthe is a repentant but devoted fairy mother whose love and concern for her son is expressed in a dulcet appeal to Elizabeth Dana Wunderlich, who, as the helmet armored Queen, responds in a powerful contralto. As Strephon, tenor Glenn Knickerbocker professes his love for Phyllis (Teresa Byrons) with credible sincerity in both solos and duets. So does soprano Byrons, who also demonstrates with a comedic talent in her scenes with the enamored lords.

As competing lords Tolloller and Mountararat, baritones Benedikt Kellner and David Tass Rodriguez portray their characters more like gay companions than lifelong friends, forgoing dueling pistols to valet the despairing Lord Chancellor. But the fast-patter songs for which Martyn Greene of the D'Oyly Carte Ooera Company was famous are left for Michael DaTorre to deliver as the light-footed Lord High Chancellor, whose guardianship of Phyllis is less avuncular than lecherous. As Pvt. Willis, the guardsman whose ramrod rigidity arouses the Fairy Queen's lust, Richard White intones the sentry's observations on the genetic evenhandedness of parliamentary politics.

A talented chorus of delicately winged fairies and white-wigged nobles and a five-member orchestra round out this delightful production, which both charms and entertains as it champions true love and brains over pedigree while poking fun at the snobbery of class distinctions.

The following review for Iolanthe, written by Robert Lachman, appeared in the Taconic Weekend on Tuesday, May 29, 2003:

Fairy tale

"Faint heart never won fair lady... In for a penny, in for a pound, it's love that makes the world go 'round," sings the Lord Chancellor (Michael DaTorre) in the Gilbert & Sullivan Musical Theater Company's delightful production of "Iolanthe," now playing through June 8 at The Center for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck.

"Iolanthe" first opened Nov. 25 1882 at the Savoy Theater in London and ran for 400 performances, making it one of the most popular Gilbert & Sullivan musicals of its day. Unfortunately, it is one of their lesser-known works now, eclipsed by "Pirates of Penzance," "HMS Pinafore," and "The Mikado."

Perhaps fairies invading Parliament is far too whimsical a subject for modern audiences to accept, but from the reactions of the audience in Rhinebeck Saturday night, such fanciful care may be just what is needed during these trying times. Everyone love it, giving the cast sustained applause at the end.

The last time the Gilbert & Sullivan Musical Theater Company presented "Iolanthe" was in 1002 when the faires were "artists" and the Peers (high-ranking noblemen) were Dutchess County legislators. Perhaps it could also be performed in Washington with the fairies as liberals and the Peers as the Bush cabinet. However it is performed, "Iolanthe" is a marvelous swipe at the rule of law and the men who hide behind its billowing cloak.

Twenty-five years before the story begins, the fairy Iolanthe married a mortal. The Queen of the Fairies (Elizabeth Dana Wunderlich) commuted her death sentence to life-long banishment, as long as she left her husband and never saw him again.

At the beginning of Act One, the fairies beg the Queen to release her from exile (Iolanthe chose to live with the frogs in the bottom of a nearby stream so she could be close to her son). Strephon (Glenn Knickerbocker), an Arcadian shepherd, is Iolanthe's half-mortal, half-fairy son. "What's the use of being half a fairy? My body can creep through a keyhole but what't the good of that when by legs are left kicking behind?"

Strephon is to be married to the Lord Chancellor's ward Phyllis, an Arcadian shepherdess. Of course, the Lord Chancellor and the other Peers are smitten by her too.

When Phyllis catches Strephon, who is 24 embracing his immortal mother, who still looks like a young girl of 17, the fun begins in earnest.

From the opening dance of the fairies to the final scene where everyone in the House of Lords ends up with a fairy mate singing, "Happy are we, everyone is now a fairy," this production has been beautifully mounted. David Forman's astute direction and set design, along with Barbara Forman's co-direction and choreography make this a real labor of love that translates into every facet of the production.

Music Director Edward Lundergan conducts the viola, two violins and piano like a much bigger orchestra; costumers Meegan Veeder-Shave and Miranda Dubner outdo themselves on both fairies' and Peers' costumes; and the cast members performto perfection what must be a difficult score.

The casting is superb. Teresa Byrons as Phyllis has a powerful voice and is extremely pretty (I can see why she was so popular with the Peers). She is especially good delivering lines like, "No girl could care for a man whose mother is considerably younger than himself,"abd my favorite, once she understands that Strephon's mother is immortal, "Whenever I see you kissing young ladies I'll know it's really an elderly relative."

David Rodriguez as Lord Mountararat is hilarious with his foppish air and bright red lipstick, as are all the lords, especially Michael DaTorre whose Lord Chancellor was deliriously funny as he struggled against his own desires in the face of so much silliness.

Enough said. Do yourself a favor and for an evening of delectable musical satire, go see "Iolanthe." You won't be disappointed.

The following review of Iolanthe, written by Rebecca Daniels, appeared in the New Paltz Times on Tuesday, May 29, 2003:

'None shall part us from each other'

Iolanthe's World of Fairy Love

As a feature-piece orchestra launched into the lively overture of Gilbert & Sullivan's Iolanthe last Saturday night at the Rhinebeck Center for Performing Arts, tiny red and green lights flashed on and off like fireflies in the mist. Gradually, the dark stage brightened to reveal a flock of fairies in a forest with toadstools and towering trees. Nine young women dressed in wings a, bright gauzy tunics, and glittering 1920's headdresses flirted with the audience throughout a delightful Busby Berkeley dance routine. And that was just the overture.

There's practically no dialogue in this musical romp about a group of fairies that descend on the pretentious House of Lords, catapulting them into an irrevocable tailspin. An intricate plot fueled by mistaken identities and the threat of impending disaster, Iolanthe, herself a fairy, risks her life to help her son marry his love, Phyllis, the ward of the Chancellor. One catchy musical number segues into another, the lyrics filled with wit, wordplay and irreverent humor. In the end, of course, because everyone has a loving heart, the conflicts are happily resolved.

Over the last quarter of a century, the Poughkeepsie-based Gilbert and Sullivan Musical Theater Company has put on four productions of Iolanthe, each production bearing the distinctive imprint of its director and choreographer. Director, David Forman and his wife, Barbara Forman (co-director/choreographer), have done a superb job in bringing an effervescent energy to the stage that kept the audience smiling and applauding throughout. Fanciful costuming by Meegan Veeder-Shave, and a talented group of instrumentalists conducted by musical director Edward Lundergan, greatly enhanced the evenings pleasure.

The large cast included many wonderful voices and some fine actors as well. Teresa Byrons plays Phyllis, an arcadian shepherdess and ward in chancery who is in love with Strephon, an arcadian shepherd and son of the fairy, Iolanthe. Everyone, including the Chancellor, desires the beautiful Phyllis, and it is easy to see why, for Byron sparkles onstage. Her strong soprano voice and comedic ability combined with an attractive physical presence make her perfect for the role. Glenn Knickerbocker, as Strephon, does a fine job of partnering Byrons, both comedically and vocally.

Michael Dattore, already well known to local audiences, makes his Gilbert & Sullivan debut in the prominent role of The Lord Chancellor. Dattore handled his musical solos with aplomb and was particularly impressive delivering the fast-paced lyrics to "Love, unrequited, robs me of my rest," a feat which re-quires excellent articulation and breath control.

His henchmen, Lord Tolloller (Benedict Kellner) and Lord Mountararat (David Rodriguez) added to the fun with their light-hearted approach and well-trained voices.

From her dynamic entrance as the Queen of the Fairies, wearing a breastplate and Valkirie helmet, Elizabeth Wunderlich created a dramatic stir whenever she was on stage. her deep rich voice provided a musical respite from the predominantly soprano voices of the fairy clan. Wunderlich, a veteran with Gilbert and Sullivan Musical Theater Company, was obviously having fun in her role, and the effect of contagious.

The Rhinebeck Center for the Performing Arts will be presenting Iolanthe through June 8. Performances are: Fridays and Saturdays, May 30 and 31 and June 6 and 7 at 8p.m.; Sundays, June 1 and 8 at 3p.m.; and Thursday June 5 at 8p.m.Tickets are $17 for adults and $15 for seniors and children. Group rates are available. There's also a special children's show on Saturday, May 31 at 11a.m. Tickets are $5 for children and $7 for adults. Call 876-3080 for reservations and information.

The following review of My Fair Lady, written by Kitty Montgomery, appeared in the Kingston Freeman on Friday, December 13, 2002:

G&S 'My Fair Lady' is more than just 'loverly'

Rhinebeck - Any old troupe can sing the songs of "My Fair Lady" and come up with a fun, hum-along, dance-along show.

What makes the Gilbert and Sullivan Musical Theater Company's take on this musical outstanding is its realization of the dramatic content that gives rise to the tunes. The poignancy and the wit of their production plays on at the Rhinebeck Center for Performing Arts through this weekend.

Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe took their inspiration for "My Fair Lady" from George Bernard Shaw's play, "Pygmalion", drawn from Greek myth. Pygmalion, King of Cyprus, carved an ivory statue he subsequently fell in love with. Aphrodite accommodated his anguished fixation by turning his objet d'art into the lovely lass, Galatea.

The "stuff Professor Higgins (James Klosty) works with in this musical variation of the tale, is already animate. It's Eliza Doolittle (Barbara Nolan), a scruffy cringing flower girl from the streets of London. On a bet with comrade Col. Pickering (Patrick Sheils), Higgins proposes to turn this "creature" into a lady who can pass for a princess by altering her high unintelligible Cockney patois into properly enunciated English.

Higgins is a pedantic language freak who can tell by their accents where, within a street or so, anybody in all of England comes from. He is also a confirmed bachelor and borderline misogynist. Eliza might as well be made of doll stuffing for all his overt consideration of her humanity. What we are privy to, as the music - "Wouldn't It Be Loverly", "I Could Have Danced All Night" - sweeps us along, is the intensity of the work professor and pupil pursue.

"The Rain in Spain" becomes something more than a catchy song and dance. It's a celebration of Eliza's breakthrough. From here on in, Professor Higgins' challenge becomes a cakewalk.

After Higgins wins his bet, he and the Colonel gloat about the scam in the presence of their prodigy. Humiliated, and ever honorable - it was flowers Eliza sold in the streets - she departs the Higgins household with nothing more than she came in with except a uselessly elegant accent.

Herein begins her real transfiguration from waif to genuine noblewoman, abetted by Henry's mother (Faith Compo), who serves as Aphrodite. The professor has indeed fallen in love with his creation - "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face".

Rex Harrison, as the world knows, charmed in the role of Higgins by talking his way through the songs. In addition to actually singing, Klosty's portrait engages us beyond the role's sardonic Shavian wit. His man harbors a vulnerability that never quite cracks, and Nolan's Eliza, evolving from rag-doll cringes to a genuine dignity, is his match.

The genius of the collaboration between stage director Lou Trapani and musical director Edward Lundergan lies in their ability to elicit excellence with an invisible touch. No musical effect, no characterization or staging bit stands out from an outstanding and most musical telling of "My Fair Lady".

The following review of My Fair Lady, written by Fernando Valdivia, appeared in the Times Herald Record on Tuesday, December 3, 2002:

A "My Fair Lady" to celebrate in Dutchess

Since the day after Thanksgiving is traditionally the beginning of the Christmas shopping season, surely one of the better bargains last weekend was the Gilbert and Sullivan Musical Theater Company's production of "My Fair Lady" at the Bardavon in Poughkeepsie. When lyricist Alan J. Lerner and composer Frederick Lowe adapted George Bernard Shaw's satire on the superficiality of class distinctions, the result was one of the most successful and enduring musical comedies in Broadway history. Starting Thursday, this thoroughly entertaining production relocates to the Center for Performing Arts in Rheinbeck.

The plot hinges on a casually uttered boast by phonetics expert Henry Higgins to his colleague, Colonel Pickering, that he can transform Eliza Doolittle, a Cockney flower girl, into a lady within three months by teaching her to speak correctly and behave properly. Pickering wagers that he can't, and what follows is not only what happens to Eliza but to Higgins as well. A humorous subplot involving Eliza's ne'er-do-well father, Alfred P. Doolittle, adds more satire and a couple of boisterous songs to the show.

Ably directed by Lou Trapani and accompanied by a 13-piece orchestra under the direction of Edward Lundergan, James Klosty and Barbara Nolan are sympathetic Higgins and Eliza, pitting his reclusive misogyny against her resiliently mutable charm. While his confirmed bachelor-posturing is expressed in the rhythmic patter of "I'm an Ordinary Man" and "Hymn to Him", her feistiness is sung melodiously in "Just You Wait" and "Without You". Their romantic vulnerability is revealed in Eliza's deliriously happy "I Could Have Danced All Night" and Higgins' plaintive "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face".

David Forman is unashamedly proud in the role of Eliza's profligate father, dancing all over the stage in the rowdy "With a Little Bit of Luck" and "Get Me to the Church on Time". A more subdued Shawn R. Morgan displays a fine tenor in a clear rendition of Freddy Eynsford-Hill's infatuated swain's ballad, "On the Street Where You Live".

As Pickering, Patrick Sheils joins Higgins and Eliza in the phonetically correct "The Rain in Spain" and later congratulates Higgins in "You Did It". Faith Compo as Henry's mother and Ellen Haspel as his housekeeper, Mrs. Pearce, do their best to restrain the sometimes crass professor. For its part, the ensemble switches from a Cockney chorus in "Wouldn't It Be Loverly" to the staid aristocrats of "Ascot Gavotte".

Although not as seasonally topical as "The Nutcracker" and "A Christmas Carol", the Gilbert and Sullivan Company's production of "My Fair Lady" is an equally enjoyable holiday entertainment the whole family can enjoy.

The following review of Nunsense, written by Fernando Valdivia, appeared in the Times Herald Record for Friday, May 31, 2002:

Sisters are doing it for themselves

Soliciting charitable donations, five talented members of the Little Sisters of Hoboken have taken up temporary residence at the Center for Performing Arts in Rhinebeck to stage a musical comedy, titled "Nunsense", that pokes gentle fun at the stereotype of convent life. Produced by the Gilbert & Sullivan Musical Theater Company and directed by Nicola Sheara in collaboration with musical director Bonnie Brown King, Dan Goggin's two-act parody of Catholic sisterhood has all the ingredients for an evening of comic entertainment.

Set in the gymnasium of the fictional Mount St. Helen's School in New Jersey, "Nunsense" is best described as a chaotic variety show that combines 21 musical numbers with lots of clever banter, some sight gags, spirited dancing, and a few pratfalls. Accompanied by pianist James Fitzwilliam, who is dressed like a bearded nun, and percussionist Jessie Cullen, similarly costumed, the five-member cast, in order of rank, are Louise Nawrocki as Sister Mary Cordelia, the convent's Mother Superior; Claudia Taschler as Sister Mary Hubert, in charge of the novices; Jessica Lanzetta as Sister Robert Anne, the irrepressible understudy; Susan O'Dea as Sister Mary Amnesia, also known as Sister Mary Paul; and Katie Martyniuk as Sister Mary Leo, the former ballerina.

Beginning with a pious Latin canticle, the Sisters segue into a rousing, hand-clapping "Welcome" chorus that prepares the audience for the songs and sketches that follow. In addition to their harmonized ensemble numbers, each of the nuns sings a quasi-biographical solo that explains how she chose the cloister over the cabaret. Notwithstanding their vows, however, these sisters can belt out a show tune like any veteran trouper.

Much of the humor depends on the contrast between the nuns' chaste attire and their outrageous comments and behavior. One of the funniest scenes, for example, occurs when the Mother Superior gets high after accidentally sniffing a confiscated vial of Rush. Picture Jonathan Winters in convent drag and you'll have some idea of Sister Mary Cordelia's hilarious antics.

Prompted by Sister Mary Hubert, the audience is invited to join the cast in syncoated clapping during the show's concluding number, a gospel-style rendition of "Holier Than Thou". As one of the Sisters comments at the beginning, one doesn't have to be Catholic to enjoy "Nunsense".

The following review of Nunsense, written by Kitty Montgomery, appeared in the Daily Freeman for Thursday, May 30, 2002:

Delightful (dis)order descends on Rhinebeck

Rhinebeck - For a quarter of a century, the Gilbert and Sullivan Musical Theater Company has produced tightly wrapped shows of silly or serious nature in the Hudson Valley.

Now, with a takeover by the (dis) order of the Little Sisters of Hoboken, who whoop it up at the Center for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck in "Nunsense", Dan Goggin's tribute to the unquenchable diva who lurks beneath every wimple, all hell breaks loose in this formerly venerable society.

Their show plays - on a stage set that is nothing but a ratty gymnasium - like a cross between a Flying Karamazov jam and a gig by that irrepressible flying nun, and the other one who sings. Here, two fly via toe-shoes and ingested illegal substance, and all five sing.

Their rocking country gospel, doo-wop tunes gilded with an occasional coloratura rift by Sister Mary Amnesia and a celestial ode from baaaad Sister Robert Anne are encouraged by musical director Bonnie Brown King, and abetted by the piano accompaniment of Sister Mary James, the Barefoot Nun, a/k/a James Fitzwilliam, who will wear any costume in a G&S production, but not shoes.

Stage director Nicola Sheara can be held only partially responsible for the garrulous confidences and improvisational excesses of these sacred sisters, each finally enjoying the "15 minutes of fame" she's secretly lusted for in a lifetime of humble service.

They sing, dance and indulge in cathartic confession before an audience to raise funds for the order's burial society. After a little mistake in the cloister kitchen by Sister Julia-Child of God, botulated vichyssoise downs 52 sisters. They've got 48 interred and have four, tucked in the freezer, still to go. They had the cash, but Sister Mary Cordelia, Mother Superior, blew a wad buying a DVD player and a boxed set of "Sex in the City". This indulgence is a source of some disagreement within the order, particularly since the arrival of the Hoboken Board of Health.

Cordelia's saga of sacrifice, confided with such spontaneous absent-mindedness it's hard to tell if this ample mother of the order is verging on senile dementia or if actress Louise Nawrocki is going up on her lines, is amazing. A former tightrope walker, Cordelia promised her life to Christ if God saved her dad and mum from their tumble during a rope walk across the Thames. He did, and she's regretted her impulse ever since.

As Mistress of Novices, Sister Mary Hubert (Claudia Taschler) may play second fiddle to the Mother Superior, but her break-out in "Holier than Thou", a rousing gospel routine, proves she's a wild woman