The National Gilbert & Sullivan Opera Company open the 22nd International Gilbert & Sullivan Festival with a sparkling new production of The Gondoliers. This is a visually stunning show with toe-tapping tunes and glorious, lively dances and has proved to be one of Gilbert and Sullivan’s most enduring successes.
Marco and Giuseppe, the handsome Palmieri brothers, lead a charmed life as gondoliers in sunny Venice. They can take their pick of the pretty contadine and merrily marry Gianetta and Tessa. But the arrival of the Spanish aristocracy presents a royal dilemma when it is revealed that one of them is now the King of Barataria, who as a baby, was entrusted into the care of a drunken gondolier who mixed up the prince with his own son. The brothers must travel to Barataria and rule the kingdom jointly until the truth can be determined.
Their two wives are delighted with the idea of one of them being queen but to their horror discover that the King was married to Casilda in babyhood. The final complicating factor is that Casilda is in love with another man. How will the problem be solved?
Sullivan’s sparkling music and Gilbert’s delicious wit combine all the right ingredients for a stunning show. Expect a slick and polished new production from director John Savournin, following his recent outstanding work with the Gilbert & Sullivan Opera Company’s productions of HMS Pinafore and The Pirates of Penzance.