Our History.
On November 18, 1960, a group of Hyde Parkers opened a production of Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Gondoliers in the University of Chicago’s Mandel Hall. From this beginning grew The Gilbert & Sullivan Opera Company, a not-for-profit corporation of the State of Illinois, which has staged more than fifty productions of the G&S full-length comic operas. That original presentation was directed by Nancy Lorie and associate director Robert Ashenhurst, with musical direction by Roland Bailey, the three founders of the Company. It involved more than one hundred people in performance and production. Most of these at that time were not at all familiar with the G&S tradition.
The Gondoliers was staged for the benefit of The Student Interests Program of the University High School, a worthy cause which allowed the group to use the University facilities. The same sponsorship, under the more formal organizational title Adventures in the Arts, endured for the major productions of the Company in Mandel Hall until 1983. That year sponsorship was assumed by the University of Chicago Department of Music and net proceeds from each production benefit the Department’s performance programs.
Throughout its history, the Company’s goal has been to produce the best possible performances which are true to the traditional Gilbert and Sullivan style. The Company is very proud of its foundation as a strictly amateur organization. However, in the past couple of decades, in order to improve the quality of the production, the Company has offered very modest stipends for cast and staff. Our participants continue to be community residents as well as University students, faculty and staff, and a not inconsiderable number of persons from outside the community, who apparently have found the Company’s ambiance worth a commuting relationship. The extended family of the Company also includes many present and former children, who have thus been given the opportunity to see and absorb, and sometimes participate in, this continuing tradition.
The Gilbert & Sullivan Opera Company of Chicago: The First 50 Years traces the history of this Hyde Park mainstay. For those who have thrilled to the Company’s performances over the years, this book contains a complete chronology of its first 50 productions, with full cast listings, production crews, selected program covers, and many photos featuring the principal stars. If you are part of a group of G&S fans mounting your own production, you may be inspired by the sets and costumes created by a variety of designers. For those who simply love the works of Gilbert and Sullivan, there are plot summaries of each opera and anecdotes about their first staging by the D’Oyly Carte Opera Company in London. Author Victoria Granacki has been the set designer for the Company’s past 13 productions. The book is available from Amazon.com for $10 plus shipping and handling.
The Gilbert & Sullivan Opera Company, Inc. |
Annual Productions 1960 – 2019 |
Year | Opera | Producer | Director | Music | Sets |
1960 | The Gondoliers 1 | Nettie Breslin | Nancy Lorie | Roland Bailey | Harold Bradley |
1961 | The Yeomen of the Guard 1 | Louise Pliss | Nancy Lorie | Roland Bailey | Harold Bradley |
1962 | H.M.S. Pinafore 1 | ||||
& Trial by Jury 1 | Nancy Lorie | Nancy Lorie | Roland Bailey | Robert Wallis | |
1963 | Ruddigore 1 | Nancy Lorie | Nancy Lorie | Roland Bailey | Charles Walls |
1964 | The Mikado 1 | Nancy Lorie | Nancy Lorie | Roland Bailey | Harold Bradley |
1965 | Iolanthe 1 | Nancy Lorie | Nancy Lorie | Roland Bailey | Harold Bradley |
1966 | The Pirates of Penzance 1 | Barbara Currie | Ruth Stack | Roland Bailey | Harold Bradley |
1967 | The Gondoliers 2 | Barbara Currie | Ruth Stack | Roland Bailey | Geoffrey Plampin |
1968 | Princess Ida 1 | Geoffrey Plampin | Ruth Stack | Roland Bailey | George Sikes |
1969 | H.M.S. Pinafore 2 | ||||
& Cox and Box 1 | Charles Walls | David Currie | Roland Bailey | James Kazanis | |
1970 | The Yeomen of the Guard 2 | Charles Walls | David Currie | Roland Bailey | Ernest Arnett |
1971 | The Mikado 2 | Geoffrey Plampin | Janice Roberts | Roland Bailey | James Kazanis |
1972 | Ruddigore 2 | Winfield Smith | Janice Roberts | Roland Bailey | Paul Shedd |
1973 | Iolanthe 2 | Winfield Smith | Janice Roberts | Roland Bailey | Ralph LaMantia |
1974 | Patience 1 | Winfield Smith | Robert Ashenhurst | Roland Bailey | Ralph LaMantia |
1975 | The Pirates of Penzance 2 | Winfield Smith | Robert Ashenhurst | Roland Bailey | Roland Kulla |
1976 | The Gondoliers 3 | Winfield Smith | Janice Roberts | Roland Bailey | Roland Kulla |
1977 | H.M.S. Pinafore 3 | Marnie Deranian | Robert Ashenhurst | Roland Bailey | Winfield Smith |
1977 | The Sorcerer 1 | Winfield Smith | Robert Ashenhurst | Roland Bailey | Winfield Smith |
1978 | The Yeomen of the Guard 3 | Ralph LaMantia | David Currie | Roland Bailey | Winfield Smith |
1979 | The Mikado 3 | Ralph LaMantia | Robert Ashenhurst | Roland Bailey | Winfield Smith |
1980 | Ruddigore 3 | Ralph LaMantia | Ellen Martin | Roland Bailey | Winfield Smith |
1981 | Iolanthe 3 | Myrna Lane | Ellen Martin | Roland Bailey | Roland Kulla |
1982 | The Gondoliers 4 | Beata Boodell | David Currie | Roland Bailey | Matthew Owens |
1983 | H.M.S. Pinafore 4 | Beata Boodell | David Currie | Roland Bailey | Matthew Owens |
1984 | Princess Ida 2 | Beata Boodell | David Currie | Roland Bailey | Matthew Owens |
1985 | The Mikado 4 | Beata Boodell | David Currie | Roland Bailey | Roland Kulla |
1986 | The Pirates of Penzance 3 | Robert Ashenhurst | David Currie | Michael Jinbo | John Vinci |
1987 | Ruddigore 4 | Myrna Lane | Robert Ashenhurst | Mark Stahura | Ralph LaMantia |
1988 | The Yeomen of the Guard 4 | Myrna Lane | David Currie | Michael Melton | Calvert Audrain |
1989 | Iolanthe 4 | Helen Scharbach | David Currie | John Avery | Calvert Audrain |
1990 | The Gondoliers 5 | Zarina O’Hagin | David Currie | John Avery | Calvert Audrain |
1991 | H.M.S. Pinafore 5 | Patricia Werhane | David Currie | Guy Bordo | Calvert Audrain |
1992 | Patience 2 | Helen Scharbach | David Currie | Guy Bordo | Calvert Audrain |
1993 | Utopia, Limited 1 | Patricia Werhane | David Currie | Guy Bordo | Calvert Audrain |
1994 | The Mikado 5 | Mitchell Brown | Michael Kotze | Guy Bordo | Calvert Audrain |
1995 | The Pirates of Penzance 4 | Mitchell Brown | Michael Kotze | Antoinette Arnold | Calvert Audrain |
1996 | The Yeomen of the Guard 5 | Mitchell Brown | Michael Kotze | Antoinette Arnold | Paul Billingsley |
1996 | The Grand Duke 1 | Mitchell Brown | David Currie | Martha Swisher | (Concert version) |
1997 | The Sorcerer 2 | Mitchell Brown | Nicholas Martin | Antoinette Arnold | Paul Billingsley |
1998 | Iolanthe 5 | Mitchell Brown | Nicholas Martin | Antoinette Arnold | Calvert Audrain |
1998 | Trial by Jury 2 | Ruth Lidecka | David Currie | Martha Swisher | (UC courtroom) |
1999 | Ruddigore 5 | Helen Scharbach | David Currie | Antoinette Arnold | Paul Billingsley |
2000 | H.M.S. Pinafore 6 | Mitchell Brown | David Currie | Jeri Johnson | Calvert Audrain |
2000 | Ivanhoe 1 | Gwyneth Aubrey | David Currie | Martha Swisher | (Concert version) |
2001 | Princess Ida 3 | Margaret Schroeder | David Currie | Jeri Johnson | Calvert Audrain |
2002 | The Mikado 6 | Cedric Chernick | Michael Kotze | Steven Huang | Paul Billingsley |
2003 | The Gondoliers 6 | Cedric Chernick | Adam Kozlowski | Steven Huang | Calvert Audrain |
2004 | Patience 3 | Mark A. Johnson | Jill Van Brussel | Chung Park | Calvert Audrain |
2005 | The Pirates of Penzance 5 | Mark A. Johnson | Adam Kozlowski | Andrew Koehler | Calvert Audrain |
2006 | The Yeomen of the Guard 6 | Mark A. Johnson | Jaime Axtell | Andrew Koehler | Calvert Audrain |
2007 | H.M.S. Pinafore 7 | Mark A. Johnson | Thrisa Hodits | William C. White | Victoria Granacki |
2008 | Iolanthe 6 | Mark A. Johnson | Thrisa Hodits | William C. White | Victoria Granacki |
2009 | Ruddigore 6 | Trip Driscoll | Thrisa Hodits | David Cubek | Victoria Granacki |
2010 | The Mikado 7 | Mark A. Johnson | Thrisa Hodits | David Cubek | Victoria Granacki |
2011 | The Sorcerer 3 | Trip Driscoll | Thrisa Hodits | Timothy Semanik | Victoria Granacki |
2012 | The Gondoliers 7 | Nancy Levner | Thrisa Hodits | Timothy Semanik | Victoria Granacki |
2013 | The Pirates of Penzance 6 | Nancy Levner | Thrisa Hodits | Robert Whalen | Victoria Granacki |
2014 | H.M.S. Pinafore 8 | Nancy Levner | Charlie Marie McGrath | Robert Whalen | Victoria Granacki |
2015 | The Yeomen of the Guard 7 | Nancy Levner | Shane Valenzi | Matthew Sheppard | Victoria Granacki |
2016 | Princess Ida 4 | Nancy Levner | Shane Valenzi | Matthew Sheppard | Victoria Granacki |
2017 | Iolanthe 7 | Nancy Levner | Shane Valenzi | Matthew Sheppard | Victoria Granacki |
2018 | Patience 4 | Nancy Levner | Shane Valenzi | Matthew Sheppard | Victoria Granacki |
2019 | Merrie England 1 (German & Hood) | Nancy Levner | Shane Valenzi | Matthew Sheppard | Victoria Granacki |
2020 | The Pirates of Penzance 7* | Nancy Levner | Shane Valenzi | Matthew Sheppard | Will Hughes |