I have had the invaluable opportunity of researching many of the productions of the original Gilbert and Sullivan operas with Rosie Chambers for the current motion picture about the life of Gilbert and Sullivan Topsy Turvy, directed by Mike Leigh. This has enabled me to draw from, and contribute to, perhaps the most extensive collection amassed in the world.

Iolanthe is a parody of High Victorian romantic drama, which still has a remarkably contemporary relevance today. In 1870 Gilbert first worked on this idea in one of his Bab Ballads, originally setting it in a Law Court. He then took its name from a play Iolanthe by W.G. Wells, which starred Ellen Terry and Sir Henry Irving at the Lyceum Theatre London a year earlier in 1881.

For this new Carl Rosa Opera production of Iolanthe it is my intention to remain faithful to “tradition” but also to introduce a modern relevance to this work. It is very clear from studying Gilbert’s diaries that he loathed the Establishment, but ironically be spent most of his life trying to be an accepted part of it (he was refused entry to the Royal Yacht Society forty times during his life). He therefore enjoyed placing the House of Peers in full court state dress in the middle of an Arcadian rural scene, pompously singing “Bow, bow, you lower middle classes”. The Peers are outwardly dominant, but they become powerless in the hands of the fairies, which typified their perceived irrelevance, long before any idea of abolition.

Iolanthe was the second production to be presented at the new Savoy Theatre, built especially for the Gilbert and Sullivan operas by Carte.

Rehearsals were conducted in secrecy to prevent the “pirating” and presentation of illicit productions, and was therefore first called Perola, only becoming Iolanthe on the final dress rehearsal. This was the first new Savoy Opera production to be designed using “the new Electricity”.

This included fairy head-dresses having little electric stars lit with batter powered packs attached to their costumes. The Fair Queen was originally a parody of Wagner’s Brunnhilde with metal leaf bodice, flaxen hair and helmet.

This design was deliberately intended to make the Queen of the Fairies large and comical. I have similarly redesigned a new costume with these aims in mind to complement our settings.

For this new production I considered recreating the original “Wilhelm” Fairy costume designs. These are very plainly made from simple pastel shades of Liberty silks. After further research I discovered, in a private collection, a beautiful set of fairy costumes designed also by Wilhelm, but for a Drury Lane Ballet production in 1895.

For the scenery and settings we have emulated traditional designs and further complemented them with theatre lighting and effects from the Victorian era. Originally the act two prompt notes refer to “the Palace Courtyard, House of Parliament” ; later this appeared in printed librettos as “the Palace Courtyard, Westminster”. Unlike today, in 1882 there was only one House of Parliament for Gilbert to choose!

As we have successfully achieved with our current production of The Mikado, Gilbert’s original prompt book has been studied to recreate the original staging for this production. I have worked toward setting a balance between the original production intentions and to strive for a new freshness of presentation, and in doing so it must be remembered that these operas are perhaps the finest example of High Victorian musical theatre. I therefore understand that these operas were not written as modern “all singing and dancing” American musicals and should only be presented as such if they are rewritten and re-scored like The Hot Mikado, Hollywood Pinafore and the most successful of all, Papp’s Pirates.

Achieving a balance of old and new without “setting the opera in aspic” or “throwing the baby out with the bath water” is very hard. I hope we have achieved this new balance, and that this production and opera continues to enchant and entertain new and old audiences alike well into the new Millennium.

Peter Mulloy
Director