The Zoo

Not long now! Our Triple Bill opens in 10 days and there are still tickets available for all nights. We advise booking now for Friday 12th and Saturday13 March to avoid disappointment because these nights always prove popular!

Sandwiched between Cox and Box and Trial by Jury we are presenting The Zoo by Sullivan and Stephenson, a farcical tale of two pairs of lovers - a nobleman who is wooing a seller of cakes and buns, and a young chemist who mistakenly believes he has accidentally poisoned his beloved. Set in London Zoo, all kind of confusion reigns until all is finally resolved and the couples live happily ever after.

The Zoo premièred in 1875 at the St James’s Theatre, just 10 weeks after Trial By Jury opened at the Royalty Theatre. At this point Sullivan’s great partnership with Gilbert was still in the future, with Sullivan composing Trial with Gilbert, The Zoo with Stephenson and two comic pieces with Burnand (including our opening piece, Cox and Box). How Sullivan came together with Stephenson (then writing under his pen-name of Bolton Rowe) is the source of a lot of speculation. But it appears likely that the libretto at the very least was being prepared by Stephenson while Sullivan was getting ready for Trial by Jury with Gilbert, and Sullivan was probably already committed to The Zoo and had started on the music.

When The Zoo opened at St James's Theatre, it shared the bill with Gilbert’s comic play, Tom Cobb. As with Cox and Box, which Gilbert reviewed, the two seemed to be always circulating within each other’s orbit waiting for destiny to finally push them permanently together.

After a short period at St James's, The Zoo transferred to the Haymarket and finished after a five week run. It had two short revivals before vanishing from sight, having never enjoyed the success of its competitor, Trial by Jury. But Gilbert was already a well known comic writer and librettist while Stephenson had all his success still before him. Luckily for us and comic opera lovers everywhere, this gem of a piece was rediscovered by Dr Terence Reece, who bought the manuscript at an auction and arranged for it to be published. Its modern premiere was given by the Fulham Light Opera in 1971 and a recording by D'Oyly Carte Opera Company in 1978 ensured that this wonderfully funny work re-entered the canon. It has remained popular ever since!

 

Paula Fraser rehearsing the part of Laetitia

For full booking details visit our Next Show Page.

Photo © Sue Wookey

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Cox and Box

Bob Little and Graham Breeze rehearsing Cox and Box

It’s not long now until our Triple Bill, which will be showing at the Queen Mother Theatre, Hitchin from 10th-13th April. We will be opening our trio with Cox and Box. Written by Sullivan and Burnand, this is a first for Putteridge Bury and tells the increasingly surprising story of two men - one who works days and one who works nights - who are unwittingly renting the same room. It has all the elements of farce and we know our audiences will enjoy every minute of it.

The idea for Cox and Box originally came from F.C. Burnand who was holding a musical supper party and thought it would be a good idea to set Maddison Morton’s farce, Box and Cox, to music. He persuaded Sullivan to write the music, the title was reversed, and it was presented at midnight to an audience of mainly actors who had arrived straight from their various theatres. George du Maurier (of later Trilby fame) played Box. The party and the presentation went so well that it was repeated at the home of artist and business man, Arthur Lewis, with Sullivan again playing the piano. After a third charity presentation Sullivan orchestrated it and on 11 May 1867 it received its first public performance at the Adelphi Theatre.

In the audience at the Adelphi was the critic of Fun magazine, who was none other than W. S. Gilbert, oblivious of what the future would hold. Sullivan, equally oblivious, saw his work with Burnand, which included The Contrabandista, as a bit of a fun detour from his serious composing career. Like Cox and Box, the two were destined to ‘collide in the same room’ and forge a connection that they could never have imagined.

You can book online for our Trio, which includes Trial By Jury and The Zoo, at the Queen Mother Theatre Website, or you can ring their Box Office on 01462 455166. If you want to order directly through PBGS then please contact Ketina on 07946 264886 or email us at putteridgeburygs@gmail.com. Please also contact us directly if you'd like to make a group booking.

Sources: Gilbert and Sullivan and their World by Leslie Baily. Wikipedia.
Photo: Sue Wookey
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Triple Bill Booking

Our Triple Bill preparations are coming on apace, as you can see from these photos of us rehearsing The Zoo! We are presenting The Zoo along with Cox and Box and a Trial By Jury with a twist, at the Queen Mother Theatre, Hitchin from 10th-13th April.
 

 Brian Miles as Carboy in The Zoo

 

 Paula Fraser as Laetitia and Brian Miles as Carboy in The Zoo

 Jo Biggs as Eliza

There are lots of ways to book your tickets. You can book online at the Queen Mother Theatre Website, or you can ring their Box Office on 01462 455166. The theatre box office has limited opening hours so you are encouraged to leave a message on the answerphone for them to get back to you. You can also download and print our Booking Form here, and send it to the theatre with a cheque. Full details are on the booking form. If you want to order directly through PBGS then please contact Ketina on 07946 264886 or email us at putteridgeburygs@gmail.com. Please also contact us directly if you'd like to make a group booking.

We suggest booking early as some nights sell out faster than others!

 

 

Jo Biggs with Producer Richard Fraser

All photos © Sue Wookey

'Come and Sing The Mikado' in Harringay

Music on the Ladder are putting on a Come and Sing "The Mikado" event on Saturday, 8 June at St. Paul's Church, Harringay, N4:

The idea is that everyone rocks up at 1 pm to rehearse and then at 7 pm we unleash our endeavours on the public in a concert performance. We would like to invite members of PBGS to come along - if anyone is interested, they should send an e-mail to musicontheladder@gmail.com, letting us know their voice part. It's £10 for singers and £5 for audience, with proceeds going to church funds. There are refreshments available throughout the day, and the primary objective is for everyone to have a laugh.

In addition to needing a fantastic come and sing chorus, we'll also need principals - to this end, we're auditioning for the principal roles on Saturday, 23 March. Again, anyone interested should e-mail musicontheladder@gmail.com, letting us know which part they'd like to sing for and we'll get back to them with more details and specific times.

You can find out more about Music on the Ladder on their facebook page at www.facebook.com/musicontheladder 
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Yeomen at Wolverton

Wolverton G&S Society are presenting The Yeomen of the Guard, 19th to 23rd March 2013, at the Stantonbury Campus theatre, Stantonbury, Milton Keynes.

Several familiar faces from PBGS will be taking part in the production, one of Gilbert and Sullivan's most dramatic and popular works.

Box Office 01908 26225. More details about the show and how to book at the Wolverton Website.

Triple Bill Booking

Booking for our Triple Bill of Trial By Jury, Cox and Box and The Zoo has now opened at the Queen Mother Theatre in Hitchin. Our shows are very popular, so we recommend booking early to make sure that you get the nights you want!

You can also obtain tickets from PBGS on 07946 264886 or by emailing putteridgeburygs@gmail.com.

Booking forms will soon be available from PBGS and are available for download in PDF format here:

Booking Form Front
Booking Form Reverse

The Triple Bill includes a new take on that old favourite, Trial by Jury. If you think you've seen it all before, wait until you see our new production where Cinderella will be suing Prince Charming for Breach of Promise of Marriage. With The Fairy Godmother as Cinderella's Counsel, and the Wicked Queen judging, will they all live happily every after?

Cox and Box is a gem of comic interplay and timing. Two men, one working days and one working nights, unwittingly rent one room from their crafty landlord, Bouncer. On one fateful day they meet face to face and all kinds of surprises ensue.

The Zoo is a Sullivan musical delight. Set in London Zoo, two sets of lovers play out their tangled stories in the unlikely company of a full chorus, the bears, the baboons, the 'strong racoon'  and the 'gentle armadillo'.

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Noda East Award Nomination

Our wonderfully funny Spring 2012 Production of Patience is one of three musicals nominated for a NODA Eastern Region Award! The winner will be announced on 7 April at a Gala Luncheon at the Burgess Hall, St. Ives, Cambs.

Congratulations to our Producer, Alison Gibbs and our MD Margaret Johnson for getting the best out of us and giving us a fantastic show, and to everyone on stage and off who put everything into the production. The show was hugely enjoyed by our enthusiastic audiences and it's wonderful to see all our efforts recognised.

Keep your fingers crossed, everyone!

All photos © XMO4 PHOTOS
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Fully updated cast for our Triple Bill

We now have a complete and slightly revised cast for our April Triple Bill of Trial by Jury, Cox & Box and The Zoo:

COX & BOX

Bouncer - Richard Dean
Cox - Graham Breeze
Box - Bob Little

THE ZOO

Carboy -  Brian Miles
Thomas Brown - Graham Breeze
Eliza -  Jo Bigg
Laetitia -  Paula Fraser
Grinder - Tom Gammell

TRIAL BY JURY

Judge - Jo Bigg
Counsel - Sue Wookey
Defendant - Brian Miles
Plaintiff - Paula Fraser
Usher -  Frank Banks
Foreman - Peter Johnson
Bridesmaids - Ketina Orriss, Nicole Santlemann, Gill Davidson, Alice Bridges
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Patience at Abbots Langley

Abbots Langley G&S are presenting Patience at the Watford Palace Theatre, from 22-26 January.

'Set in 1940s rural England, this intricate tale of unrequited love fits perfectly within the realm of rustic Land Girls and eccentric Home Guardsmen. Gilbert’s cleverly crafted comedy, combined with some of Sullivan's finest music, speaks for itself in a fresh, appealing and highly entertaining production of an infrequently performed piece.'

Tickets are available from the Box Office: 01923 225671. More details about the show at the Abbots Langley Website.
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Raving at The Raven

'Tis the Season to be Jolly - and we did it in style last night at The Raven in Hexton at the PBGS Christmas Dinner. We even managed a few 'fa la la's' when Shirley led us in some community singing - I will never be able to sing the Twelve Days of Christmas again without thinking of Kangaroos. Yup - you had to be there....

Many thanks to Paula for arranging our annual bash, and to Ketina for suggesting the venue. We filled an entire area, well away from everyone else, where we could be as mad as we liked. Which was just about perfect.

Shirley leads us Down Under

A very Merry Christmas and a

 Happy New Year to all our friends and supporters. We look forward to seeing you all at the Queen Mother Theatre in 2013!

All photos © Sue Wookey

AGM and Show Choosing Night

The PBGS AGM is on Tuesday 27th November. We are looking for nominations for Treasurer so if you would like to nominate someone for this post or for the general committee, or stand yourself, please contact our secretary, Paula Fraser, before the AGM.

If you have any other business for the AGM, please contact our Chairman (Richard Fraser) or Paula so that it can be added now to the agenda.

Full details are on the Contact Us page.

After the AGM, members will have the chance to choose shows for 2014 and 2015. Full details can be found on our Notices Page. Please come and enjoy the presentations and cast your vote!

And finally, it's not too late to join us for our Christmas Meal on Tuesday 18th December at the Raven in Hexton. We always have a huge amount of fun, so don't miss out - contact Paula now to secure your place.

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Triple Bill Cast

We have a complete cast for our April Triple Bill of Trial by Jury, Cox & Box and The Zoo:

COX & BOX

Bouncer - Richard Dean
Cox - Graham Breeze
Box - Bob Little

THE ZOO

Carboy -  Brian Miles
Thomas Brown - Graham Breeze
Eliza -  Jo Bigg
Laetitia -  Paula Fraser
Grinder - Tom Gammell

TRIAL BY JURY

Judge - Jo Bigg
Counsel - Sue Wookey
Defendant - Brian Miles
Plaintiff - Paula Fraser
Usher -  Frank Banks
Foreman - Peter Johnson
Bridesmaids - Ketina Orriss, Nicole Santlemann, Gill Davidson, Alice Bridges

Congratulations to everyone who was successful after some terrific auditions with the usual high standard!

The Gondoliers and Calender Girls

There are two local shows to enjoy this month!

Stewartby -  The Gondoliers

Stewartby are performing The Gondoliers from 20th -24 November at Stewartby Village Hall. Directed by Pru, the show will be full of familiar faces from PBGS.

Tickets are available from the Box Office on 01525 402457/403426 or email: information@saods.org.uk.

Pirton Players - Calender Girls

Pirton Players are performing Calender Girls from 20 - 24 November at Pirton Village Hall. There are tickets available for Tue, Wed, Thur and a couple left for Sat, from  Members or from the Village Shop.

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Trial, Cox & Box and The Zoo Auditions

Auditions for our Triple Bill are nearly upon us! We hope the auditions will be well attended with lots of you trying for a part in these three shows.

Auditions for Trial by Jury will take place on Tuesday 13th November at Streatley Village Hall, from 7.45pm. It's important that all of you that want to audition for Trial attend on this date if you can.

Downloadable PDF of the Trial by Jury Audition Pieces

Auditions for Cox & Box and The Zoo will take place on Sunday 18th November at Streatley Village Hall, from 3pm.

Downloadable PFD of the Cox & Box Audition Pieces
Downloadable PFD of The Zoo Audition Pieces

Copies of revised words for the Judges Song and the new words for Laetitia's audition are available at rehearsal, but can be e-mailed if requested.

If you would like to try for a part your full membership must be paid up before auditioning. You can download an Audition Form here.

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Our next production - a Triple Bill!

Thank you to all our audiences who made our week presenting Jack the Ripper at the Queen Mother Theatre in Hitchin such a special one!

We appreciate all the support (especially from those swaying along at the back during the finale!) and hope you will all be along to see us at our next production in May 2013, when we will be presenting a triple bill of one act operas. We have a bit of Gilbert partnering Sullivan in the ever popular Trial by Jury, and even more of Sullivan partnering firstly Burnand and then Stephenson in Cox and Box and The Zoo. Both of these operettas are terrific fun and we guarantee that you will have a wonderful evening.

If you are unfamiliar with the works (although some of you will have experienced a breakneck 5 minute Trial in our G&S Sketch Show!) then here is a little bit about them:

Trial by Jury is a comic one act operetta by Gilbert and Sullivan which was first produced in 1875, shortly before The Zoo which we are also presenting in this Triple Bill. Although this was Gilbert and Sullivan's second collaboration (the first being Thespis), all the essentials we expect of a classic G&S farce are here - a parody of 'breach of promise of marriage', a Judge who has risen through the ranks by dubious means, an unfeeling Defendant and a fainting Bride. With music that sizzles along, Trial by Jury was a huge hit when it opened, where it ran for 131 performances at the Royalty Theatre. 138 years later it's still a much performed favourite.

Cox and Box, by Sullivan and Burnand, is our second one act comic opera and tells the increasingly surprising story of two men - one who works days and one who works nights - who are unwittingly renting the same room. Cox and Box was written 5 years before Sullivan’s first partnership with Gilbert for Thespis and premiered in 1866, becoming so popular it ran for 264 performances. Sullivan shows all the musical flare we expect from his later partnership with Gilbert, and Burnand delivers a wonderfully ridiculous story that never flags and delivers plenty of laughs.

The Zoo, by Sullivan and Stephenson, is a one act comic opera without dialogue set in London Zoo. Premièring in 1875 at the Haymarket Theatre, it had a five week run and two short revivals before vanishing from sight. Luckily for us and comic opera lovers everywhere, this gem of a piece was rediscovered by Dr Terence Reece, who bought the manuscript at an auction and arranged for it to be published. Its modern premiere was given by the Fulham Light Opera in 1971 and a recording by D'Oyly Carte Opera Company in 1978 ensured that this wonderfully funny work re-entered the canon. It has remained popular ever since. The Zoo is a farcical tale of two lovers - a nobleman who is wooing a seller of cakes and buns, and a young chemist who mistakenly believes he has accidentally poisoned his beloved. All kinds of confusion reign until finally all is resolved and the couples live happily ever after.

We look forward to seeing you all again in May!

'Jack the Ripper' opens tomorrow in Hitchin

Our show, Jack the Ripper by Pember and De Marne, opens tomorrow night and runs from 10th - 13th October. We moved the production to the stage of the Queen Mother Theatre in Hitchin for our Tech rehearsal last night and it was great to run it through with the set and see our 5 months of work finally come together. This will be an outstanding show from PBGS and there are still tickets available for every night (though Friday and Saturday are selling fast) so don't miss out on your chance to join us.

Jack the Ripper is a musical reconstruction of the incidents relating to the East End murders which took place between Friday August 31st and Friday November 9th, 1888.

Set in the Steampacket music hall and the surrounding streets of Whitechapel it reflects the life and times of the victims and introduces the various suspects who were all rumoured to be "the ripper".

The show combines classic Music Hall melodrama and big musical numbers with heart-felt reactions to the horror of the murders as well as some great comedic moments.

Full price tickets: £13
Concessions: £11*
 *For performances on Wednesday 10th and Thursday 11th October only.
 
Tickets are available online through the Queen Mother Theatre or by ringing the Box Office on 01462 455166.

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My name is Jack the Ripper...

The identity of Jack the Ripper tested the detectives of the time and is still the epicentre of endless speculation and theories today, taking such unlikely people as Prince Albert Victor the Duke of Clarence and even Lewis Carroll.

But for Sir Melville Macnaghten of Scotland Yard there were only ever three main suspects, all of which he named in his report of 23 February 1894 in an attempt to throw cold water on the theories put forward by the Sun earlier the same month. The Sun had re-examined the case and named Thomas Cutbush as most likely to be the Ripper.

Macnaughten’s report formed the basis of most early Ripper research. In his opinion the three most likely men to be the Ripper were Montague John Druitt, Michael Ostrog and Aaron Kosminski.

Druitt was a barrister and part-time school teacher at a Blackheath boarding school. He committed suicide in December 1888 after being dismissed from the school for reasons that have never been given. Macnaghten said that Druitt was "a doctor of about 41 years of age and of fairly good family, who disappeared at the time of the Miller’s Court murder, and whose body was found floating in the Thames on 31st December: i.e. 7 weeks after the said murder. The body was said to have been in the water for a month, or more…From private information I have little doubt but that his own family suspected this man of being the Whitechapel murderer, it was alleged that he was sexually insane." Druitt’s body was pulled out of the water at Chiswick. Although there are many good reasons for Druitt being a main suspect, there is also a lot of contradictory evidence.

Ostrog became a likely suspect because the police had been searching asylum releases for a doctor or surgeon who was also a lunatic. That a psychopath with medical knowledge was the Ripper had become their main working theory, possibly one released when the murders started. Ostrog failed to report to the police when requested and Macnaghten said that Ostrog was "…a Russian doctor, and a convict who was subsequently detained in a lunatic asylum as a homicidal maniac. This man’s antecedents were of the worst possible type, and his whereabouts at the time of the murders could never be ascertained."

Aaron Kosminski was, according to Macnaghten “… a Polish Jew, & resident in Whitechapel. This man became insane owing to many years indulgence in solitary vices. He had a great hatred of women, especially of the prostitute class, & had strong homicidal tendencies; he was removed to a lunatic asylum about March 1889…”. Macnaghten wasn't the only one to have Kosminski in his sights, two other high ranking officers who were close to the investigation also considered him to be a likely suspect for the Ripper: head of the C.I.D. Dr. Robert Anderson and the officer in charge of the case, Chief Inspector Donald Swanson. Kosminski entered Colney Hatch Asylum in February 1891.

Out of the three, Druitt was Macnaghten’s favourite suspect, although Detective Chief lnspector John George Littlechild, the ex-head of the Special Branch at Scotland Yard in 1888, considered a fourth suspect to be the Ripper – Francis Tumblety, an Irish seller of patent medicines.

Our Show opens next week at the Queen Mother Theatre, Hitchin and we hope you’ll join us in the search for the Ripper through the streets of Whitechapel. You can book your tickets on-line at the Queen Mother Theatre or by ringing their box office on 01462 455166.

Reference:
http://www.met.police.uk/history/ripper.htm 
http://www.jack-the-ripper.org/

Special Jack the Ripper NODA Evening

PBGS is holding a NODA evening for our performance of Jack the Ripper on Thursday, 11th October 2012 at 7.15pm for a 7.45pm performance.

All members of societies affiliated to Noda are welcome to join us at the concession ticket price of £11 and will receive a free programme and a complimentary drink. To book your tickets for the Noda night, please call the PBGS box office on 07946 264886 (please do not book through the theatre).

As well as a great night out, this is a wonderful opportunity for members thinking of doing the show or looking for something that has terrific scope for principals and chorus!

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Christmas Meal

 Fun and frivolity at the 2011 PBGS Meal

Yes! Seriously! Where did the summer go?

The PBGS Christmas meal has already been arranged and will be at The Raven in Hexton on Tuesday 18th December 2012, 7.15pm for a meal at 7.45pm. The 3 course meal + coffee looks really yummy with plenty of choice and costs £23 per head. Paula would like to have it booked by the end of this month so please get in touch with her or catch her at rehearsals to book your place and pay your £10 deposit or, better still, the full amount. Partners very welcome, of course!

Clicky clicky here for a PDF of the full menu and all the details.

'What a life'

We’re continuing the build-up to our Show, Jack the Ripper by Ron Pember and Denis de Marne, with a look at the lives of the people who lived in Whitechapel, brought vividly to life through music, drama, tragedy and the wry comedy that binds people together through the worst of circumstances.

By the time of the Ripper murders, Whitechapel had become a place of poverty, unemployment, overcrowding and vice of every kind. Nearly 80,000 people were crowded into dismal living conditions, caused by rising rents and the tearing down of unsanitary buildings under the 1875 Artisans and Labourers Dwelling Act. The new buildings meant to replace them were too expensive for people to move back into and the common lodging house became the only thing between most people and the streets. Overcrowded and filthy, many social reformers of the time believed the lodging houses were rife with vice and prostitution, adding to the 63 East End brothels.

Unemployment was high, with an influx of European immigrants fleeing persecution adding to the tension. Most of those lucky enough to be in employment worked 18 hour days in overcrowded sweat shops for minimal wages. Many Whitechapel residents escaped from their grim living conditions, poverty and the grind of sweated labour by spending most of their spare time in the numerous public houses, where drunkenness was rife, leading to more disease and unemployment. Worst of all it led to violence which was so commonplace and accepted in the East End, especially against women, that the journalist George Sims commented before the Ripper murders in 1883 that "the spirit of murder hovers over this spot, for life is held of little account."

For many women, the only way to make a living was through prostitution. Out of the five known ripper victims, three were known to have been previously married, but had been abandoned by or left their husbands. The 1881 census tells us that Elizabeth Stride was married to a carpenter and had moved to London from Sweden, where she had previously worked as a prostitute. By the time of the Ripper murders she was a widow. Catherine Eddowes had a husband and two children at the time of the census and was working as a charwoman, but fell into prostitution to pay the rent on her Spitalfields lodging house. Annie Chapman was married to a stud groom and living near Windsor at the time of the census, but after a series of tragedies, including the death of their 12 year old daughter, they turned to drink. After separating, Annie returned to London and the streets. There is no census information on Nichols, but we know she was born in Limerick, lived in Cardiff and worked in a brothel after arriving in London in 1884. There is no census information on Chapman either but The Star newspaper reported after her horrific murder in 1888 that she “had perhaps a happy and innocent girlhood, and was once a wife, had to turn out and seek the sale of her body for the price of a bed."

The police turned a blind eye to prostitution in the East End where it was rife but rarely came to the attention of the respectable. For the most part the women were left to their trade - prostitution wasn’t a crime and the police could only arrest a prostitute if they create a public disturbance.

It was in this hotbed of poverty, vice, slum conditions and little regard for life that Jack the Ripper carried out his murders, the horror of which finally shed a light on the lives of the people of Whitechapel.

You can join us in the Music Hall and on the streets of Whitechapel by booking your tickets for Jack the Ripper on-line at the Queen Mother Theatre. You will also find alternative booking details here.

Reference:
Essays in history
History of the Metropolitan Police
Daily Mail