The Edinburgh Gilbert & Sullivan Societypresents

Artistic DirectorAlan BorthwickMusical Director

David LyleChoreographerJanice Bruce

Assistant Musical DirectorMargaret Donaldson

An amateur production by arrangement with R&H Theatricals EuropeThe Edinburgh Gilbert & Sullivan Society is registered as a charity and limited company

in Scotland (company number SC356199) (charity number SC027486)Registered office: 27 Rosslyn Crescent, Edinburgh EH6 5AT

www.edgas.org

Music by RICHARD RODGERSLyrics by OSCAR HAMMERSTEIN II

Book by OSCAR HAMMERSTEIN II and JOSHUA LOGANAdapted from the Pulitzer Prize winning novel

“Tales of the South Pacific” by JAMES A. MICHENER

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Welcome

Good evening (or afternoon as the case may be) and welcome to the Edinburgh Gilbert & Sullivan Society’s production of South Pacific!

You may well be wondering why a Gilbert and Sullivan Society should be performing a work by other authors, written half a century later and on a different continent. Our constitution certainly requires us to focus on the works of Gilbert and Sullivan. But South Pacific is one of many exam-ples of how the influence of G&S has spread over oceans and decades. In his book You’ve

got to have a dream, Ian Bradley notes that it was H.M.S. Pinafore that really opened the American stage to musical theatre, add-ing “Rodgers and Hammerstein took American musical theatre back to its roots in the Savoy operas from which it had been diverted by the counter influence of the operetta tradition”.

Like Gilbert – and unlike previous American lyricists - Hammerstein wrote both the dialogue and lyrics, and they preceded the music. Like Sullivan, Rodgers was inspired by those lyrics to pen wonderful, memorable melodies that have stood the test of time. But unlike Gilbert & Sullivan’s imaginary exotic location for Utopia, Limited (1893), this South Pacific set-ting is all too real as we discover the impact of foreign forces and brutal war on an island paradise.

We have greatly enjoyed this venture into new musical territory. I hope you will as well, and that you’ll emerge from the theatre humming the tunes just as much as with G&S!

Finally, do come along to our regular autumn concert with the Band of Her Majesty’s Royal Marines in the Usher Hall on Saturday 21st November. And we will be back with Gilbert & Sullivan in The King’s Theatre from 8th

to 12th March with the ever-popular The Gondoliers.

Hope to see you then!

Ian Lawson(President)

Synopsis

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The famous collaboration between Richard Rodgers (com-poser) and Oscar Hammerstein II (lyricist) started in 1943 with Oklahoma! and reached its zenith in 1949 when South Pacific was premiered at the Majestic Theatre on Broadway. The Critics’ Circle named South Pacific the best musical of the year (second on the list was Kiss Me Kate) and it also won seven Tony awards, nine Donaldson awards and the Pulitzer prize for Drama. The original production ran for 1,925 performances and sales of the original cast recording exceeded $4 million in one year. Not bad, eh?? In other words, the musical was a smash hit and retains its position as one of the greatest musicals of all time.

A Note from theArtistic Director

The story takes place in the South Pacific during World War II. Nellie Forbush, a young girl from Little Rock, Arkansas, has become an ensign in the American armed forces. She believes she is less prejudiced about other races than her parents were, but when she’s faced with the reality that Emile de Becque, the Frenchman with whom she’s fallen in love, has fathered two children by a Polynesian woman, she is repulsed. By show’s end she needs to seriously revise her ideas, partly because she’s seen and sanctioned the love of the young Lieutenant Cable and a beautiful native girl, Liat.

David Lyle was born and educated in Edinburgh and is prominent in the musical life of the city, being well known as a con-ductor, accompanist, arranger and orches-tral timpanist. His services are constantly in demand and this year will be his 39th as Musical Director of EDGAS. He has led them in concerts in and outwith Scotland, including gala evenings with The Band of H.M. Royal Marines in Edinburgh’s Usher Hall and invitation concerts at the Buxton, Stranraer and Dunkeld festivals.

His specialist field is the music of Sullivan and he has now conducted commercial recordings of all the composer’s non-Gilbert works, including the first ever of Sullivan’s only grand opera, Ivanhoe. His performance, in Edinburgh, of Sullivan’s cantata, The Golden Legend, won first prize in the Choral Music for the Millennium Competition, organized by the British Music Association.

He recently conducted a concert includ-ing Sullivan’s Symphony in E (the “Irish”) and a rare performance of his comic opera, The Zoo, in Edinburgh’s Greyfriars Kirk. In August, he appeared as one of the principal conductors at the Harrogate International Gilbert and Sullivan Festival.

Alan Borthwick has sung leading tenor roles in operas ranging from Poulenc to Puccini as guest artiste for companies throughout Scotland. He is the only singer ever to have performed all the tenor roles in Sullivan ope-ras - including those written without Gilbert - and he has recorded many of these roles for leading record companies.

For some years now Alan has been in demand as a professional director and has directed shows annually in the King’s Theatre, Edinburgh. For the last two sum-mers he has been invited to collaborate with the International Gilbert and Sullivan Festival in Harrogate to celebrate the life of W.S. Gilbert by presenting excerpts from Gilbert’s plays and performances of his operas Fallen Fairies and The Gentleman in Black. He also performed the young, romantic tenor role of “Richard Dauntless” in an over-60s performance of Ruddigore – nearly 50 years after he had first performed the role for the Edinburgh University Savoy Group – and, at the other end of the age-range (and some-what more appropriate) the elderly vicar who bemoans the fact that women no longer fall at his feet, in a production of The Sorcerer.

Next spring he will direct The Gondoliers for EDGAS, and plans are in the pipeline for a possible Festival Fringe production of one of the Gilbert operas.

Musical Director

David Lyle

Alan Borthwick

Artistic DirectorJanice Bruce started as a dancer aged 16 with the Bohemians and progressed to leading roles including Annie (Annie get your gun), Reno (Anything goes), Marilyn Monroe (Gentlemen prefer blondes), and Aldonza (Man of La Mancha).

Since 1989, she has choreographed many shows for Edinburgh companies including Allegro, Tempo, EMT, SLO, Bohemians and for the first time this week the Edinburgh Gilbert & Sullivan Society. Working with Allegro also gave her the opportunity to direct The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Copacabana and The Wedding Singer.

This is not the first time Janice has worked with MD David Lyle and artistic director Alan Borthwick. In fact, in 1991 Janice and Alan were on the same production team doing South Pacific with Tempo. Janice is pleased to be working with them again along with the very enthusiastic and lovely members of EDGAS.

For her day job, she runs Janice Bruce design consultant for home and fashion (@janicebdesign 07738521221) as well as being a choreographer for wedding cou-ples.

Enjoy the show !!!!

Janice Bruce

Choreographer

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CastEnsign Betty Pitt .........................................................................................Anne BunyanEnsign Pat Northrop ......................................................................... Maggie CormackEnsign Dinah Murphy .............................................................................. Angie FowlerLT. Genevieve Marshall ............................................................................Peggy GibsonEnsign Pamela Whitmore ................................................................... Annabel HamidEnsign Gloria Meli ...............................................................................Dorothy HardingEnsign Sandra Deel ........................................................................Norma MacdonaldEnsign Mardi Bayne ..........................................................................Hayley MathiesonEnsign Bernice Saunders ................................................................... Lorraine McBainEnsign Janet MacGregor ......................................................................Judith NeesonEnsign Helena Schurgot ..............................................................................Elodie PetitEnsign Bessie Noonan ............................................................................. Indigo ReeveEnsign Lisa Minelli .................................................................................. Jennifer SmithEnsign Jacqueline Fisher ................................................................................Gillian Tait

Ensign Nellie Forbush ................................................................................... Fiona MainEmile de Becque ..........................................................................................David MutchNgana, his daughter ................................ Elise Edwards (Wed, Sat Mat, Sat Eve)

Eve Hanson (Thu, Fri)Jerome, his son ........................................ Nathan Faulds (Wed, Sat Mat, Sat Eve)

Will Robertson (Thu, Fri)Henry, his native servant ..........................................................................Hans Siy-YapBloody Mary ..................................................................................................Caroline KerrLiat, her daughter ............................................................................... Emma McFarlaneLuther Billis .......................................................................................... Simon BoothroydLt. Joseph Cable, United States Marine Corps ...................................Chris CotterCapt. George Brackett, United States Navy ................................................Ross MainCmdr. William Harbison, United States Navy .................................David McBainLt. Buzz Adams ........................................................................................ Zorbey TurkalpRadio Operator Bob McCaffrey ...................................................Andrew CrawfordStewpot (carpenter’s Mate Second Class, George Watts) .........Peter TomassiProfessor ........................................................................................................ Nick Clelland

Seabee Morton Wise ..........................................................................Gary ArmstrongStaff Sgt. Thomas Hassinger, marine.................................................David BunyanYeoman Herbert Quale .................................................................................Mike HeadSeabee Richard West ................................................................................Charles LaingSeaman Tom O’Brien ....................................................................................Bob MartinPrivate Sven Larsen ....................................................................................Alex RankineSgt. Kenneth Johnson ............................................................................ Paul ShephardMarine Cpl. Hamilton Steeves ........................................................Keith StarsmearePrivate Victor Jerome .......................................................................... Ritchie Turnbull

Ensign Sue Yaeger ..............................................................................Judith AndersonEnsign Evelyn Colby ........................................................................... Jennifer BarbourEnsign Connie Walewska .......................................................................Kath Barbour

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Orchestra

FLUTE / CLARINETDavid Morrow

OBOE / COR ANGLAISMorven Bell

CLARINETCrawford Moyes

TRUMPETSGraeme WilliamsonAndrew Williamson

HORNDavid Rimer

TROMBONENeil Short

PERCUSSIONJake Perry

DOUBLE BASSFiona Donaldson

PIANOMargaret Donaldson

SYNTHESISERPeter Horsfall

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Musical Numbers and ScenesACT IOVERTURE

Scene 1: The Terrace of Emile de Becque’s Plantation HomeDITES-MOI ........................................................................................Ngana and JeromeA COCKEYED OPTIMIST ..........................................................................................NellieTWIN SOLILOQUIES ............................................................................Nellie and EmileSOME ENCHANTED EVENING ...............................................................................Emile

Scene 2: Another Part of the IslandBLOODY MARY ......................................................................................................Seabees

Scene 3: The Egde of a Palm Grove Near the BeachTHERE IS NOTHIN’ LIKE A DAME ............................................... Billis and SeabeesBALI HA’I ........................................................................................................ Bloody Mary

Scene 4: The Company Street

Scene 5: Inside the Island Commander’s Office

Scene 6: The Company Street

Scene 7: The BeachI’M GONNA WASH THAT MAN RIGHT OUT OF MY HAIR ........Nellie and NursesReprise: SOME ENCHANTED EVENING ........................................Emile and NellieA WONDERFUL GUY ........................................................................Nellie and Nurses

Scene 8: The Company Street

Scene 9: Inside the Island Commander’s Office

Scene 10: On Bali Ha’iReprise: BALI HA’I .................................................................................... Island Women

Scene 11: Inside a Native Hut on Bali Ha’iYOUNGER THAN SPRINGTIME ............................................................................Cable

Scene 12: Near the Beach on Bali Ha’i

Scene 13: Emile’s TerraceTHIS IS HOW IT FEELS ........................................................................Nellie and EmileFINALE ACT 1 ...............................................................................................................Emile

ACT II

ENTR’ACTE

Scene 1: A Performance of “The Thanksgiving Follies”OPENING ACT II (DANCE) ..................................................Nellie, Nurses and G.I.’s

Scene 2: Backstage at “The Thanksgiving Follies”HAPPY TALK .................................................................................Bloody Mary and Liat

Scene 3: The Performance Resumes, as in scene 1HONEY BUN .......................................................................Nellie, Billis and Ensemble

Scene 4: Backstage, as in scene 2YOU’VE GOT TO BE CAREFULLY TAUGHT ........................................................CableTHIS NEARLY WAS MINE ........................................................................................Emlie

Scene 5: Another part of the island

Scene 6: The Radio Shack

Scene 7: Another part of the island

Scene 8: The Radio Shack

Scene 9: The Company Street

Scene 10: The BeachReprise: SOME ENCHANTED EVENING .............................................................Nellie

Scene 11: The Company Street

Scene 12: Emile’s TerraceFINALE ULTIMO ...................................................Nellie, Ngana, Jerome and Emile

The action of the play takes place on two islands in the South Pacific during World War II.

There is one week’s lapse of time between the two Acts.

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Born, raised and educated in Edinburgh, Caroline has music in her genes - two uncles wrote sketches and songs for profession-al use and also worked semi-pro-fessionally themselves during and after the war years; her mother was a talented pianist; and her father used the family writings in his own performances and compositions.

Her roles for the company include Chloe and Ada (Princess Ida – in separate productions!), Hebe (HMS Pinafore), Elsa (The Grand Duke), Phylla (Utopia, Limited), not forgetting Juno (Orpheus in the Underworld) where she got to swear on stage! Wait for more bad language this time! She has also undertaken several understudy roles with the company, latterly for The Pirates of Penzance, Princess Ida, The Sorcerer, Iolanthe and The Mikado.

She is looking forward to playing the role of Bloody Mary again, a role she last played in her final year at high school.

Fiona has been singing in musi-cal theatre, opera, light opera and Gilbert and Sullivan for as long as she can remember and has a particular love for the works of Rodgers and Hammerstein.

Favourite roles over the years have included Anna Leonowens in The King and I, Anna Glavari in The Merry Widow, Katisha in The Mikado and Sarah-Jane Moore in Stephen Sondheim’s Assassins.

Later this year she will be perform-ing two personal ‘firsts’ – her first ever leading role in a professional Grand Opera singing the part of Dorabella in Voicearc’s new pro-duction of Mozart’s comic opera Cosi fan Tutte, and her first ever professional pantomime role as the Fairy Godmother in Cinderella at Cupar Corn Exchange.

Fiona loves playing feisty Nellie Forbush in this fabulous produc-tion of South Pacific and sincerely hopes you have as much fun watching as the cast are having on stage.

30 years ago, Alan Borthwick directed David in Guys & Dolls while at school. Now this will be David’s first foray into Edinburgh musical theatre after many years playing leading roles across West Fife in Oklahoma!, Copacabana, The Pajama Game, Guys & Dolls and Anything Goes to name but a few.

Professional credits include 11 - The Musical and Fling on The Edinburgh Fringe with Cutting Edge Theatre, and West End cred-its with Stars Give Hope with Pineapple Performing Arts.

Recording credits include: Blude Red, 11 - The Musical, Carnegie, Hymn Idol and Gold Rush.

A regular jazz performer on the cabaret circuit, David has per-formed throughout the UK and is a judge both regionally and in the national finals of TalentFest UK.

According to his mum, Simon started acting the day he was born. His first foray onto the stage was in a primary school show where he played one of The Beatles (he can’t remember which one) in the school pantomime.

He didn’t set foot on the stage again until the age of fifteen when he took on the title role in the school production of The Mikado.

Since then he has appeared in over one hundred productions in theatres through Scotland and even a couple in England. Simon has sung most of the baritone roles in Gilbert and Sullivan. Other appearances include Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Tempest. Musical performances include My Fair Lady, Assassins, Into The Woods, Sweeney Todd and Orpheus in The Underworld.

Nellie Forbush

Fiona Main

Emile de Becque

David Mutch

Bloody Mary

Caroline Kerr

Luther Billis

Simon Boothroyd

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Ross has been performing on the stage from the age of 12 when he took part in The Gang Show at Dundee’s Whitehall Theatre. Since then, he has taken part in a mul-titude of shows from Little Mary Sunshine and The Student Prince, to La Bohème and Carmen.

After taking a few years out from stage work to concentrate more on the technical side of show productions, Ross returned to the Edinburgh stage last year to play Scynthius in Princess Ida, and Marchand in The Count of Luxembourg.

This year, he appeared as Giuseppe in Dunfermline Gilbert & Sullivan Society’s production of The Gondoliers. South Pacific is one of Ross’s all-time favourite shows, and he has been waiting years for the opportunity to be in it. He is delighted to be playing the part of Captain Bracket.

David was introduced to theat-rical musicals whilst at Darroch Secondary School when he appeared in an obscure operetta called The Blind Beggar’s Daughter playing alongside the late lament-ed blues singer Tam White. The school closed in 1973 but, faithful to his Alma mater, David admin-istrates a flourishing website at www.darrochfpa.co.uk.

On leaving school he joined the Southern Light Opera Company where he has played principal parts in all but two of his 44 appear-ances, and latterly EDGAS which he joined in 2001. David also has a life long love of drama and has appeared in plays too numerous to mention which include over 40 years in the Festival Fringe.

‘Spare’ time interests include classic motorcycles - a throwback to the 1960’s when he competed annu-ally in the Isle of Man TT, and golf where he is still hanging on tena-ciously to a single figure handicap.

Emma hails from Kirkcaldy but lives in Edinburgh whilst at university gaining a degree in History. South Pacific will be her second show with EDGAS, having joined the company last year for The Pirates of Penzance. However, Emma is no stranger to the stage. She has played a number of roles including Eponine in Les Misérables SE, Kim in Miss Saigon SE and Meg Giry in The Phantom of the Opera.

Her most recent musical ventures were at this year’s Fringe Festival. Emma was a part of Cat-Like Tread’s production of H.M.S. Pinafore and played the Baker’s Wife in Into the Woods with Youth Music Theatre Scotland.

Emma is now looking forward to performing in South Pacific and in fact will be following in her mum’s footsteps. Many years ago in Kirkcaldy, Emma’s mum played Liat opposite her dad as Cable.

Chris remembers a time back in his undergraduate days when his good friend Sam Cable would extol the virtues of South Pacific as a potential ‘November Show’ for the Edinburgh University Savoy Opera Group. It is somewhat fitting that several years later, and with much less hair on his head, Chris is finally performing in said show, and play-ing Sam’s namesake, Joe Cable.

Although Chris has spent much of his time on stage appearing in the G&S operas, he has also been known to try his hand at other roles, including ‘Mack the Knife’ (The Threepenny Opera), Camille (The Merry Widow) and Motel (Fiddler on the Roof), and directing EUSOG’s production of Honk!

Chris is nearing the end of a Ph.D. in Religious Studies, and given that he will now be spending signifi-cantly less time in the gym, he hopes to have submitted before The Gondoliers in March.

Joseph Cable

Chris Cotter

Capt. Brackett

Ross Main

Cmdr. Harbison

David McBain

Liat

Emma McFarlane

Wizard of Oz SP Advert.qxp_Layout 1 29/09/2015 07:37 Page 1

Elise Edwards Eve Hanson

Nathan Faulds Will Robertson

Elise is 13 years old and attends school at Fettes College where one of the subjects she studies is drama. She has taken part in, and won, several singing competi-tions. Elise, who has a big brother and a little sister, is delighted to be playing the part of Ngana in EDGAS’s production of South Pacific.

Nathan is thrilled to be performing with the Edinburgh Gilbert and Sullivan Society having seen all their productions since he was a baby! When not at school (Duddingston Primary) Nathan, aged 10, loves performing - he is an excellent violin player, attends Stagecoach, plays chanter and loves athletics, running and wildlife/nature.

Eve is 12 year old and is delighted to be able to take part in this production, her first with EDGAS. She has previously performed in panto at both the King’ Theatre, Edinburgh and the Alhambra, Dunfermline, and played the role of Bielke alongside Paul Michael Glaser in Fiddler on the Roof at the Festival Theatre. In dance, she has reached the Grand Final of Talentfest UK two years running.

Will is a P6 pupil at Duddingston Primary School and a member of the Lyceum Youth Theatre. He recently performed at the Traverse Theatre during the Edinburgh Fringe in Vanishing Point’s Tomorrow. Will’s hobbies include judo, basketball, gymnastics and playing the cello. He loves drawing and is often seen skating around his local park on his roller blades.

Ngana

Jerome

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Stage Manager John Urquhart

Dep. Stage Mgr. Helen Pendlowski

Asst. Stage Mgr. Sheona Goodall

Set supplied by John Urquhart

Lighting Mike Pendlowski

Sound Ian Cunningham

Properties Mary Scott

Wardrobe Jane Borthwick

Costumes Utopia Costumes The Cast

Programme Ross Main

Publicity Design Fiona Main

Photographs Ross Main

Stage Crew Robert Turton Beth Nicholson

Business Manager Andrew Crawford

Marketing Erika Ishimaru Andrew Crawford Fiona Main Ross Main Mike Head

Ticket Sales Alan Borthwick

Front of House Hugh Craig

Technical Staff

The Edinburgh Gilbert & Sullivan Society is affiliated to the National Operatic and Dramatic Association

AcknowledgementsThe Society would like to offer its sincere thanks to the Kirk Sessions of St Andrew’s & St George’s West Church, St Anne’s Church, Murrayfield Parish Church & Pilrig St. Paul’s Church, and to the many others who have helped, in some way, to make this production possible. Finally, we are also very grateful to the management team and staff of the Church Hill Theatre who do so much to make a visit to their theatre so enjoyable for both the audience and the performers alike.

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