W.S. Gilbert's
Engaged
Capital Fringe Festival 2010
The International Gilbert & Sullivan Festival USA 2010

Directed by Felicity Ann Brown

Cast

Cheviot Hill, a young man of property - David Dubov*
Belvawney, his friend - Gary Sullivan
Mr. Symperson - Tom Goode*
Minnie Symperson, his daughter - Tara Hockensmith
Angus MacAlister, a Lowland peasant lad - James Douglass
Maggie MacFarlane, a Lowland lassie - Guenevere Spilsbury
Mrs. MacFarlane, her mother - Jane Maryott
Belinda Treherne - Erika White Abrams
Major McGillicuddy - Ed Vilade

*At the staged reading at the International Gilbert & Sullivan Festival in Gettysburg, Pa., the role of Cheviot Hill was played by Frederick DuPuy and the role of Mr. Symperson was played by Blair Eig)

Crew

Light Board Operator - Carl Maryott
Stagehands - Carl Maryott & Blair Eig
Program - Erika Abrams

This production was presented as a part of the 2010 Capital Fringe Festival, a program of the Washington, DC non-profit Capital Fringe.

Director's Note

Last winter, a few of us from The Victorian Lyric Opera Company were discussing what we might want to submit to the Capital Fringe Festival this year. Putting on a musical production outside of our normal season seemed daunting to some, so I suggested we simplify things and mount straight play instead. The next thing I knew, I was reading through W.S. Gilbert's plays, and Engaged caught my eye. The hilarity of Gilbert's attempts to spell in a Scottish accent, combined with his usually topsy-turvy nonsensical plot devices seemed like a fun project. I also liked that the cast had room for several of our most dedicated company members to take on speaking roles, who might not normally be selected for a leading role in an operetta.

In researching other productions of Engaged, it became apparent that, despite it being Gilbert's most successful endeavor on his own, the show is far too wordy for it's own good. Most reviews of the show clock it at 2 hours and 15 minutes. With the help of the cast, we were able to trim it down to 90 minutes, by eliminating redundancies and even an entire character (Parker, Minnie's maid), that did not do much to further the plot. Even with all of the cuts, the Gilbert & Sullivan fanatic will hear many phrases peppered throughout the show that Gilbert recycled later in the G&S Canon.

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All Photos of Engaged Copyright 2010 by Paul Gillis Photography.