Synopsis

ABOUT THE SHOW

Iolanthe, or The Peer and the Peri was the seventh collaborative work by Gilbert and Sullivan, and the first to have its premiere at the Savoy Theatre (to which its predecessor, Patience, had been transferred in the course of its run). It opened on November 25th, 1882, and had a continuous initial run of 398 performances. Though this was well short of the phenomenal 578 achieved by Patience, Iolanthe has stood the test of time rather better: it has always remained one of the most popular and frequently-performed of the Gilbert and Sullivan operas, whereas Patience, undeservedly perhaps, is now much less well-known.
Gilbert’s fantastic imagination reaches its height in this opera, with the comic juxtaposition of pompous peers and dainty fairies. His sharp political satire is still surprisingly relevant, and his dialogue reaches a level of wit which he rarely surpassed: the confrontation between the two Earls in Act II is arguably the finest comedy scene he ever wrote. Sullivan for his part contributed one of his richest and most varied scores, including the sustained drama of the long Act I Finale, the romantic tenderness of the love duet, and the magnificent entrance of the Peers, surely the greatest self-contained choral number in the canon. An adequate production of this opera is a challenge to any society; and we are confident of our ability to rise to it!

SHORT SYNOPSIS
by J.Derrick McClure

In the fairy realm of Arcadia, a lingering sorrow had just been dispelled. Iolanthe, the life and soul of Fairyland, had received the Queen’s pardon for her dreadful sin of marrying a mortal, and been welcomed back after her long banishment. Though of course still as young and beautiful as on the day of her fall from grace, Iolanthe now was the mother of a grown-up son, a gallant young shepherd named Strephon, awkwardly handicapped by his strange part-fairy part-mortal inheritance. Nor was this Strephon’s only concern: he was desperately in love with Phyllis, a beautiful shepherdess – and so, unfortunately for him, were her legal guardian the Lord Chancellor and the entire House of Lords! Phyllis, for her part, preferred her humble shepherd to all the riches and rank the Peers could offer; but the Lord Chancellor was adamant: no ward of his, especially one for whom he himself cherished strong feelings, would marry so far beneath her station. Strephon was in despair, but Iolanthe comforted him with the assurance that the mighty Fairy Queen would use her powers in his favour. Alas, Phyllis happened to observe this innocent mother-and-son conversation; and how furious she was to see her lover in the company of a beautiful maiden! His mother? Nonsense – as if she would believe that! Passionately she renounced him; and turning to her adoring Peers, promised to marry one of them instead: she didn’t even care which. If ever Strephon needed fairy assistance, it was now. The Queen and her train arrived at his summons: but the main issue was soon forgotten as peers and fairies confronted each other and the Lord Chancellor addressed Her Fairy Majesty in terms to which she took grave exception. To teach him a lesson, she resolved to send Strephon into Parliament, endowed with the power to effect root-and-branch reforms of the entire political system: and soon he was doing precisely that, to the horror of Chancellor and Peers.
And what of Phyllis? Though convinced that Strephon had played her false, she still loved him far more than any of her noble admirers. And when he explained to her that his mother was a fairy and therefore eternally young, she was only too glad to be reconciled to him. But how to persuade the Lord Chancellor to consent to their marriage? Once again Strephon turned to his mother for assistance. But for Iolanthe, the situation was deadly: the man she had so rashly married all those years ago, and whom she was forbidden on penalty of death ever to see again, was now – the Lord Chancellor! Taking her life in her hands, the noble fairy approached her unknowing husband to plead for their son.
Will her sacrifice be in vain? Will Phyllis be united with her shepherd or claimed by a noble earl, or by the Chancellor? Will the reform of the House of Lords take effect? Join us and find out!