Pickering College - Voyageur Yearbook (Newmarket, Ontario Canada)

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LN-i 9'f love with a woman, Phyllis, who is a ward of the Lord Chancellor. Moreover, her hand is sought by two noble lords and even by the great Lord Chancellor himself. But as usual with Gilbert and Sullivan, this tangled state of affairs is unravelled and all the lovers are united in a suitable arrangement as the entire company adjoums to fairyland for a blissful life ever after . As in all Gilbert and Sullivan operettas there are a number of leading roles which must be filled by competent singers and actors. It is no exaggeration to state this year's show displayed some of the finest talent ever seen on the stage of Pick- ering College. From the opening scene of the fairy dance we were impressed and thrilled with the quality exhibited by all the actors and, hence, throughout the evening we were granted a delightful and exciting performance. Altogether there was too much fairy dancing in the opening scene, actually, it almost turned one against the entire show. Nevertheless, this activity immediately infused a necessary nOtC of gaiety and light heartedness into the production while the three leading fairies CHenny Iburg, Carol Smith, and Susan Sproulel each dramatized this important ingredient in their scene. Elizabeth Beer, an old hand at ' u - K il aw yin f' sa I ' m , J g 'f Q dare ' G t i lu l X3 4 531. Twenty-three

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7 u .1 ' i. eng, A rpa, HQ l .-5 ami? a 3f't'f:l QB? GLEE CLUB- lolanthe This year's Gilbert and Sullivan operetta, presented by the Pickering College Glee Club, Iolanthe, carried us into the mythical realm of fairies and gave us a glimpse of their relations with the inhabitants of the human world. Primarily, as might be expected, it was a story of romance between these fantastic creatures and their human friends carried on in defiance of a strict law which forbade such relations. The penalty for this heinous crime was banishment to a place of utter darkness. Such a prohibition only makes love more sweet and more tempting and, alas, often more tragic in its consequences. Indeed, one fairy in this story, Iolanthe, was so intemperate as to have a child who grew up to be half man and half mortal. This situation is increasingly complicated by the fact that this half man, Strephon, is in Twenty-two 2 I t '1'v

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Gilbert and Sullivan, depicted a stern but compassionate Fairy Queen who was quite capable of succumbing to the charms of the dashing Private Willis who, alas, was a mere mortal. Caroline Back really looked as if she were a fairy princess, and, although her voice was often weak and thin, she gave an extremely effective per- formance as Iolanthe. Indeed, she carried much of the show. Peter Stephens, stage performance continues to improve. He often was able to communicate a light touch which was needed in his role as the half and half shepherd boy. His baritone voice was rich and warm and projected very well in his duets with his love Phyllis. Doris Baulch's interpretation of Phyllis was absolutely tremendous. Her voice was magnificent and united with her acting ability and stage presence laid the foundation for the most stimulating piece of stage-craft of the evening. It was fortunate that Pickering College was able to lend one of its own clowns to play the role of the Lord Chancellor. The director, Philip Schaus, is to be highly commended for his imaginative choice of Philip Schaus to play this nonsensical character. Role and player were blissfuly united in a matrimony of bulfoonery, comedy, and foolishness. Schaus' considerable talents and abilities were given ample opportunity to develop a part so congenial to his temperament. Happy is the man who can portray himself on stage and survive the crisis. Peter Almquist and Mike Stevenson depicted the two noble suitors for Phyllis' hand, the Lords Mountarat and Tolloller. Although their voices were not always strong enough to carry the high notes, they did give the right degree of snobbishness and haughtiness to their roles. As Private Willis, Leon Simmons was a dashing and handsome sentry in his brilliant scarlet tunic and busby. It was wonderful to hear his lovely baritone again, especially when he rendered his solo When all night longv. The two choruses, the fairies and the British peers, were quite superior this year. Obviously much time and effort was expended on their training and these efforts paid off handsomely. The quality of their tone and pitch were excellent. They added much strength and liveliness to the production. They certainly appeared to be enjoying it. The sets were designed by Mr. A. H. Jewell and the make-up was also handled by Mr. Jewell in his usual extraordinary fashion. Too often not enough credit is given to this essential department. Lighting was handled by Dave Newcome assisted by his staff, while the costumes were under the care of Mrs. Willard Fish - in utrumque paratus. In the time honoured cliche - it was a splendid show. -J. D. Purdy. THE ANNA BELUGIN MEMORIAL PRIZE This prize is awarded each year to a student or students who were considered to have shown a thoughtful approach to academics and lively intellectual curiosity. This year the award was made to Allan Scott, whose home is in Liberia. Twenty-four