Cast interview: Tom Goode

Tom Goode as Lord Mountararat in Iolanthe

It's exactly one month until opening night of VLOC's The Pirates of Penzance!  Are you ready for some piracy?  Our cast certainly is.  Except, perhaps, the Sergeant of Police, who is played by Tom Goode and is the subject of today's cast interview. 

What's your role in the show?
Sergeant of Police.

Is this your first time in Pirates? If no, how many Pirates productions have you been in?
I have been in two other productions as a chorister.

When and how did you first get involved with VLOC?
I've been a G&S fanatic since childhood. My parents had done some G&S in their youth, so the recordings and scores were always around (including my current Pirates score!). While in college, I spent a year at Oxford, and belonged to the G&S Society there. I used to work in a law office, in a menial capacity, and one of the associates was Larry Garvin, who was president of VLOC at that time. We had many conversations on the subject. During one of these, I suggested to him what has evolved into the Great G&S Sing-Out. (Gotta get my brag in!) It was based on an event I attended while in England. Larry encouraged me to try out for VLOC, and my first show was Patience in 1993.

What's your favorite part about being in a show (this particular one, or any show)?
Definitely the company. I thought I knew all about G&S when I started with VLOC, but I'm constantly learning things from the people in VLOC that I had no idea about. The opportunity to perform with such a talented, knowledgeable, and enthusiastic group of people is wonderful.

What's your least favorite or the hardest part of the rehearsal process for you?
Watching videos of myself. That guy who's always standing where I thought I was is such a bore! Everybody else is doing their job, but that guy just drags the whole show down. I'm sure I could do a better job than him.

When you're not performing in community theatre, what do you do? (job, hobby, family, etc.)
By day, I'm employed by the Catholic Archdiocese for the Military Services, keeping track of Baptism, Marriage, Confirmation & First Communion records for military personnel and their families. I live in Silver Spring with my wife and daughter, two dogs, and a large collection of LPs and CDs (mostly classical), which I've been collecting all my life. I'm also famously addicted to cryptic crossword puzzles.

What's your favorite Gilbert & Sullivan show and why? (If you don't have one, pick a favorite musical or opera)
Iolanthe has always been my favorite G&S opera. There's something special about a show with such an indescribably nonsensical plot, that can still manage to bring a tear to the eye before it's over. Playing Lord Mountararat last season was a fulfillment of a longstanding ambition. I have to admire a guy who knows well that his vast importance to society (and it is vast) lies in the fact that he "does not itch to interfere in matters which (he does) not understand."

Anything else you want to share?
The Pirates of Penzance is probably my second favorite G&S opera. The fact that, after 135 years, the jokes have not dated at all and still make people laugh out loud is the mark of a true classic.

What is your Pirate name?
I don't mix much with them, but I like to think it's "The Outraged Majesty of the Law".

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