PHOTO BY MARC BUSSIERE
From left, Libby Maxey as Josephine, the captain’s daughter, Matthew Roehrig as Sir Joseph Porter, First Lord of the Admiralty, and Heather Williams as Cousin Hebe, Sir Joseph’s cousin
By ARIEL KAY Gazette Contributing Writer
(Published in print: Thursday, November 7, 2013)
Gilbert and Sullivan are two of the most famous composers of the 19th century, and “H.M.S. Pinafore” may be their most celebrated creation. The Valley Light Opera will perform the comedic operetta over the next two weekends at the Academy of Music in Northampton.
“H.M.S. Pinafore” is the tale of a navy captain’s daughter, Josephine, who falls in love with a common sailor, though her father wants her to marry a lord. The opera combines a love story and a comedy of manners on the high seas, and finds most of its humor in poking fun at the British class system and the incompetence of those in authority.
The VLO, a nonprofit community opera company based in Amherst, is dedicated to performing primarily Gilbert and Sullivan works, though the company also mixes operas by other composers into its schedule from time to time. Since Gilbert and Sullivan only wrote 14 operas and the VLO has been putting on two or more shows a year since 1975, the company has performed many of the duo’s works multiple times.
Their newest rendition of “Pinafore” marks the fifth time the company has put on the classic. But each season, company members say, they add something new.
“Even if it’s the same show, the acting is different, the choreography and the blocking are different, the time period may be different,” said Nina Pollard of Hadley, a chorus member in this year’s production and a 10-year veteran of the VLO. “Everyone’s directing style is different.”
“I like something rather specific to hang my hat on for a production,” Christian said in a recent interview at the Wesley United Methodist Church in Hadley, where the group rehearses. “It says something about the way characters carry themselves, what their expectations are, the society in which they operate. It’s also a tremendous boon to costume designers and set designers to say ‘Where are we? When are we?’ ”
Christian says he chose 1805 because that era is particularly recognizable to audiences, both for its culture and its history.
“There’s a real attraction to positioning the play in the world of Jane Austen, in the world of ‘Master and Commander,’ ” he said. “There’s a little danger if you’re not specific, that you end up in this sort of vague operetta land. I’ve seen plenty of operettas where it’s just set somewhere in the 19th century.”
Head of costuming, Elaine Walker of Amherst, has taken inspiration from the time period. The VLO’s costume shop is set up in the church as well, in a small room off the main lobby. At least 10 sewing machines are crammed in the space, and at any time during rehearsals 15 or more costumers can be found hemming dresses, attaching buttons and hand-stitching details onto the hundreds of pieces the cast of 51 requires.
Walker maintains a book pasted with Victorian inspirations for costumes, including images from films such as 2005’s “Pride and Prejudice” and 1996’s “Emma,” both based on Austen novels. She did most of her research for the production on the Internet.
“Online, it’s so easy,” she said. “You can download the images to find all the little details that one would want to put on a costume.”
The costume shop does not buy or rent any clothing, but produces every article themselves. Walker began working on “Pinafore” in April.
