This was our 47th production and the 6th time we've produced "The Mikado". The fact the this operetta was the very first G&S operetta that the Society performed, is testament to its popularity.
The show programme reminds us of a performance of "Three Little Maids" performed by three naval officers on board the "Ark Royal" in the BBC TV documentary 'Sailor' in the 1970's.
The Mikado remains the most frequently performed Savoy Opera. The work has been translated into numerous languages and is one of the most frequently played musical theatre pieces in history.
It opened on 14 March 1885, in London, where it ran at the Savoy Theatre for 672 performances, which was the second longest run for any work of musical theatre and one of the longest runs of any theatre piece up to that time. From 1885 until the Company's closure in 1982, there was no year in which a D'Oyly Carte company (or several of them) was not presenting it.
"The Mikado" has had several incarnations including "A Swing Mikado" in 1938 and "The Black Mikado" in 1975. It was also the first Savoy Opera to find its way onto celluloid in 1939.
Producer/Director : Graham Weston
Musical Director : Ian Abbott
The Mikado Of Japan: | Chris Sowerby |
Nanki-Poo : (his son,disguised as a minstrel) | Ian Townend |
Ko-Ko : (Lord High Executioner of Titipu) | Malcolm Parkinson |
Pooh-Bah : (Lord High Everything Else) | Robert Thurman |
Pish-Tush : (a Noble Lord) | David Atkinson |
Go-To : (a Nobleman) | Paul Child |
Three Sisters, Wards of Ko-Ko | |
Yum-Yum: | Carol Parkinson |
Pitti-Sing: | Alison Sowerby |
Peep-Bo: | Rachel Clegg |
Katisha : (an Elderly Lady) | Stephanie Roe |
Marie Bullock, Janice Child, Judith Gill, Margaret Hanson, Karen Morton, Sue Ralph, Sally Roberts, Debbie Stringer, Kathryn Thurman, Doroty Whitworth, John Berry, Ian Castle, David Hirst, Keith Horner, Jeremy Shoesmith, Ian Stringer, Gavin Walker.