by Gilbert & Sullivan

Directed by Bronwyn Calvett
MD John Wilson

FIVE SHOWS ONLY !

‘The Sorcerer’ is the tale of how with the best of intentions Alexis, an English aristocrat in the village of Ploverleigh, through the use of a love potion from an old firm of London magicians, J. Wells & Co., Family Sorcerers, gets all sorts of unlikely people to fall madly in love with one another.
Unfortunately for Alexis, this includes his fiancée, Aline, who falls for the elderly vicar Dr. Daly. Chaos ensues in the village, and after many typical Gilbert and Sullivan style comic twists and turns all is eventually happily resolved.
Well … almost !

‘The Sorcerer’ made its debut in 1877 and was the first Gilbert and Sullivan collaboration in which the two had complete control of the production. It was highly successful for its time, which encouraged them to continue working together and expand the possibilities of satiric operetta. ‘The Sorcerer’ introduced such well known Gilbert and Sullivan trademarks as the comic duet, the patter song, the contrapuntal double chorus, the tenor and soprano love duet and the soprano showpiece aria that we see in other shows to follow.
The Sorcerer also introduced W. S. Gilbert’s passion for satirizing the excessive focus of the English on class differences with a plot that turns the entire social order upside down.