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Event
Ruddygore
THE BAD BARONETS OF RUDDYGORE COME TO FOLLEN CHURCH!!
For more than five decades, the Youth and Junior Choirs of Follen Community Church have been performing Gilbert and Sullivan operettas every June. This tradition, begun by former Music Director Louise Curtis and the Follen Players' director Marilu Nowlin, continued for 22 years under former Follen's Music Director Thomas Stumpf and assisted by Holly Stumpf, is now being continued by Follen's New Music Director,Tyler Turner and by a multitude of enthusiastic and dedicated volunteers.
Follen's 56th presentation will be "Ruddygore", with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. At 8 p.m. on the nights of Friday June 9th and Saturday June 10th, 2017, you are invited to the Follen kids' latest presentation of the topsy-turvy world of Gilbert and Sullivan! The bitingly witty verses of the one and the utterly delightful music of the other cast their spell over a story of professional bridesmaids desperate for a wedding and "bucks and blades" wanting to explore the world of village maidens; curses and bad baronets and their ghosts; an etiquette-obsessed maid, a lovelorn madwoman and a rather vulgar sailor boy - a story of mismatched pairs and mistaken identities which as always lampoons British mores, and humanity in general! Enjoy the show!
Please see the leads for each night below as well as the villagers/chorus. Leads will be in the chorus on their non-lead night. In addition, a complete synopsis is included below which will also be in the program.
Ruddygore Cast List
Friday Saturday
Robin: Henry Walters Robin Armstrong
Richard: Ben Horsburgh Elias Carver
Despard: Liam Wurtz Adam Harrington
Adam Goodheart: Connor Mulligan Tim Watson
Mad Margaret: Izzy Fox Juliana Stern
Roderic: Oliver Cotran Evan Bitsko
Rose Maybud: Jessie Cali Isabella Scopetski
Dame Hannah: Juliet Stevenson Honor O'Shaughnessy
Zorah: Sydney Hart Venice Mountain-Zona
Ruth: Becca Johnson (Both nights)
Lead Ancestor: Owen Hefferman (Both nights)
Lead Bridesmaid: Grace Walters (Both nights)
Villagers
Abigail Becker, Stephanie Campbell, Henri Engstrom, Marjory Feingold Thoryn, Bayley Fox, Camden Fox, Alisha Gandhi, Rohan Gandhi, Claudia Hart, Ian Horsburgh, Calix Huang, Caleb Johnson, Emmy Jones, Skyler Kropper, Amalia Linden, Anneliese Linden, Kieran Linden, Owen Linden, Stuart Livingston, Hannah Markelz, Lucy Markelz, Neel Mohapatra, Heath Nevis, Jasper Nevis, Tess O'Shaughnessy, Maisie Rines, Lydia Rommel, Layla Roof, Nolan Roof, Dylan Scopetski, Ewan Swanson, Annika Truslow and Magnus Truslow.
Act I
In the Cornish fishing village of Rederring, an endowed corps of Professional
Bridesmaids bemoans the fact that Rose Maybud, the queen of maidenkind, is not
yet married (Chorus and solos: Fair is Rose). All the villagers are in love with her,
and until she chooses one, they will remain single. Zorah and Ruth wonder whether
Dame Hannah Roses aunt - might not be willing to marry, but the old woman tells
them that she was once engaged to a bad Baronet of Ruddygore. The maidens are
perplexed, so she tells them the story of the curse of the Ruddygores (Song: Sir
Rupert Murgatroyd): Sir Rupert was in the habit of persecuting witches until one
day a witch proclaimed that every lord of Ruddygore had to commit one crime a day
or else would die an agonizing death. The maidens shudder themselves off.
Rose enters, and Hannah wonders why she will not marry she even suggests a suitable candidate, Robin Oakapple. Rose consults her etiquette book to explain why she cannot approach any prospective suitor (Song: If somebody there chanced to be). When Robin arrives on the scene, it is clear that the two are in love but too shy to do anything about it (Duet: I know a youth). When Rose has left, Robins servant Adam Goodheart reveals that Robin is really Sir Ruthven Murgatroyd, Baronet of Ruddygore, who is pretending to be dead in order to avoid the curse and pass it along to his younger brother Despard.
Robins seafaring foster-brother Richard Dauntless is back from the wars and enters pursued by the Bridesmaids (Chorus and Song : From the briny sea). Robin tells Richard of his love for Rose and of his shyness in professing his love. Richard promises to woo her on his behalf (Song: My boy, you may take it from me). However, when Robin has left and Rose reenters, Richard is so smitten with her that he asks her to marry him. Rose accepts (Duet: The battles roar is over). When Robin comes back and Rose realizes that he was originally the intended suitor, she quickly changes her mind (Trio: In sailing oer lifes ocean wide).
Next we meet Mad Margaret, who loved the evil Sir Despard and is now deranged (Recitative and Aria: Cheerily carols the lark). She believes Sir Despard loves Rose, and drags her off when she thinks Despard is coming. But first the Bridesmaids assemble, wooed by bucks and blades from the city: they prefer the civilized gentry to the peasant villagers, and the gentry find village maidens a refreshing change (Chorus: Welcome, gentry). Sir Despard enters and sings of his evil ways (Song: Oh, why am I moody and sad?). When he has scared off both maidens and gentry, he is accosted by the dauntless Richard, who reveals that Despards brother is not
dead at all, but living in the village under the assumed name of Robin Oakapple.
Despard rejoices that he will soon be free of his curse (Duet: You understand?).
Preparations for the wedding of Roe and Robin are underway (Finale of Act I: Hail
the bride) when Despard bursts in and reveals Robins true identity. Rose refuses to
marry Robin since he will now be the evil baronet, and gives herself to Despard.
Despard however is noble enough to keep his vow to Mad Margaret. Rose decides to
marry the only one left: Richard.
Act II
Robin is now the bad baronet, and he and his servant Adam (whose real name, it
turns out, is Gideon Crawle) bemoan their fate (Duet: I once was as meek). Richard and Rose enter, preparing for their wedding (Duet and Chorus: Happily coupled are we); Robin attempts to threaten them with imprisonment but gives in to Roses pleading (Ballad and Chorus: In bygone days). Unhappy Robin summons his ancestors to step out of their frames, and help him. The ancestors appear (Chorus and soli: Painted emblems of a race) and Sir Roderic Murgatroyd describes the existence they have been leading (Song and Chorus: When the night wind howls).
Robin recounts the daily crimes he has supposedly committed and asks that he be
released from duty. The threat of torture makes it clear that his next crime has to be
to carry off a lady; when he has promised to do so, the ghosts depart (Soli and
Chorus: He yields!) and Gideon Crawle is ordered to carry off any maiden of the
village.
Sir Despard and Margaret enter he is now a blameless person, and Margaret is
making every attempt not to be mad any more. They try to convince Robin to give
up his new life of crime, and eventually they succeed (Trio: My eyes are fully open).
When Despard and Margaret have gone, Robin is horrified when Gideon returns,
having abducted Dame Hannah. Hannah is furious and attacks Robin, who shouts for help from Sir Roderic. Roderic appears and is angry to find that Robin has carried off his old love; he shoos Robin away and rekindles his love for Hannah (Ballad: There grew a little flower).
Robin returns with a brilliant and entirely logical solution to everyones problem, so that the ghosts are once again alive and everyone gains a (more or less) appropriate partner... (Finale of Act II : When a man has been a naughty baronet).
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LocationFollen Church (View)
755 Massachusetts Avenue
Lexington, MA 02420
United States
Categories
| Kid Friendly: Yes! |
| Dog Friendly: No |
| Non-Smoking: Yes! |
| Wheelchair Accessible: Yes! |
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