Video: Dress Rehearsal for The Mikado, Gilbert and Sullivan Society of Austin, June 9 - 19

An ALTcom glimpse of the company's first dress rehearsal with the orchestra of The Mikado, a four-minute compendium of scenes from Act I:

Apple users: can't see the video? Click to go to YouTube!

presents its summer 2011 grand production

The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu

by Sir W. S. Gilbert and Sir Arthur Sullivan

directed by Ralph MacPhail, Jr., with musical direction by Jeffrey Jones-Ragona

June 9-19 -- 9 Performances

Evening performances Thursdays, Fridays, & Saturdays at 8 p.m.

Matinees at 3 p.m., June 12, 18 & 19.

Travis High School Performing Arts Center / 1211 E. Oltorf (click for Google map)

For information, visit www.gilbertsullivan.org or call (512) 472-4772

Click here to purchase tickets on-line

Video: Blocking The Mikado, Gilbert and Sullivan Society of Austin, May 15

ALT watched G&S Artistic Director Ralph MacPhail, Jr. working with the men's and women's choruses three weeks ago, as they were working on the initial blocking for the June 9-19 production of Gilbert and Sullivan's The Mikado. Here's a five-minute video showing some of the proceedings.

presents its summer 2011 grand production

The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu

by Sir W. S. Gilbert and Sir Arthur Sullivan

directed by Ralph MacPhail, Jr.

musical direction by Jeffrey Jones-Ragona

June 9-19 -- 9 Performances

Evening performances Thursdays, Fridays, & Saturdays at 8 p.m.

Matinees at 3 p.m., June 12, 18 & 19.

Special Children’s Activities Sunday, June 12 at 2 p.m.

Travis High School Performing Arts Center / 1211 E. Oltorf (click for Google map)

For information, visit www.gilbertsullivan.org or call (512) 472-4772

Click here to purchase tickets on-line

For group sales of 10 or more, contact Michael Meigs at(512) 420-0888 or michael@gilbertsullivan.org

The Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Austin is proud to present its Summer 2011 Grand Production of The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu. The Mikado has delighted audiences for more than a century and is perhaps the most popular comic opera ever written. This quintessential satire of human nature represents Gilbert and Sullivan at the height of their creative geniuses. The Mikado is filled with masterful Gilbertian lyrics and magnificent Sullivanian musical “hits,” conveyed with orchestral brilliance. Populated with memorable characters and colorfully exotic costumes and sets, The Mikado is wildly funny. Audiences of all ages will be captivated by its hauntingly beautiful tunes and its colorful pageantry.

Video: The Mikado, Gilbert and Sullivan Society of Austin, June 9 - 19

Found on-line:

presents its summer 2011 grand production

The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu

by Sir W. S. Gilbert and Sir Arthur Sullivan

directed by Ralph MacPhail, Jr.

musical direction by Jeffrey Jones-Ragona

June 9-19 -- 9 Performances

Evening performances Thursdays, Fridays, & Saturdays at 8 p.m.

Matinees at 3 p.m., June 12, 18 & 19.

Special Children’s Activities Sunday, June 12 at 2 p.m.

Travis High School Performing Arts Center / 1211 E. Oltorf (click for Google map)

For information, visit www.gilbertsullivan.org or call (512) 472-4772

Click here to purchase tickets on-line

For group sales of 10 or more, contact Michael Meigs at(512) 420-0888 or michael@gilbertsullivan.org

The Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Austin is proud to present its Summer 2011 Grand Production of The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu. The Mikado has delighted audiences for more than a century and is perhaps the most popular comic opera ever written. This quintessential satire of human nature represents Gilbert and Sullivan at the height of their creative geniuses. The Mikado is filled with masterful Gilbertian lyrics and magnificent Sullivanian musical “hits,” conveyed with orchestral brilliance. Populated with memorable characters and colorfully exotic costumes and sets, The Mikado is wildly funny. Audiences of all ages will be captivated by its hauntingly beautiful tunes and its colorful pageantry.

T-Shirts for The Mikado - Barb Jernigan's Variations on the Hat Design

Designer Barb Jernigan has provided some variations of the most-favored design to date, an abstract that incorporates the extravagant hat worn by the Mikado (Russell Gregory):

Click to view additional variants and an array of available t-shirt colors

The Pleasure of Working with Designer Barb Jernigan for The Mikado, June 9 - 19

Barb Jernigan, resident scenic designer for the Georgetown Palace, kindly agreed to work up designs for the T-shirts that are traditionally sold for each grand summer production by the Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Austin (GSSA). From her magic sketchpad, here's the portfolio for The Mikado, playing June 9 - 19 (click here for further information about the production). Click here to purchase tickets for The Mikado on-line.

GSSA will order light-weight t-shirts in a color or colors similar to those used here for the backgrounds. The shirts will be available in men's and women's styles at the merchandise table in the lobby at our venue, the Travis Performing Arts Center.

Click to view seven more designs by Barb Jernigan for the t-shirt for The Mikado at AustinLiveTheatre.com . . . .

Upcoming: The Mikado, Gilbert and Sullivan Society of Austin at Travis Performing Arts Center, June 9 - 19

Received directly:

presents its summer 2011 grand production

The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu

by Sir W. S. Gilbert and Sir Arthur Sullivan

directed by Ralph MacPhail, Jr.

musical direction by Jeffrey Jones-Ragona

June 9-19 -- 9 Performances

Evening performances Thursdays, Fridays, & Saturdays at 8 p.m.

Matinees at 3 p.m., June 12, 18 & 19.

Special Children’s Activities Sunday, June 12 at 2 p.m.

Travis High School Performing Arts Center / 1211 E. Oltorf (click for Google map)

For information, visit www.gilbertsullivan.org or call (512) 472-4772

For group sales of 10 or more, contact Michael Meigs at (512) 420-0888 or michael@gilbertsullivan.org

The Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Austin is proud to present its Summer 2011 Grand Production of The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu. The Mikado has delighted audiences for more than a century and is perhaps the most popular comic opera ever written. This quintessential satire of human nature represents Gilbert and Sullivan at the height of their creative geniuses. The Mikado is filled with masterful Gilbertian lyrics and magnificent Sullivanian musical “hits,” conveyed with orchestral brilliance. Populated with memorable characters and colorfully exotic costumes and sets, The Mikado is wildly funny. Audiences of all ages will be captivated by its hauntingly beautiful tunes and its colorful pageantry.

The Mikado opened in London on March 14, 1885, and ran for a record-breaking 672 performances at the Savoy Theatre. This comedy about an executioner, while set in Japan, displays wit that is very much British, albeit kimono-clad. Victorian England is the target of Gilbert's satire, thinly disguised as a strange and distant land. The Mikado has had an extensive influence on popular culture, from “Pooh-Bah,” “Tit-Willow," “A Wand’ring Minstrel I” and “Three Little Maids” to the 1999 Mike Leigh film “Topsy-Turvy,” which tells the story of the creation of The Mikado.

Artistic Director Ralph MacPhail, Jr. returns for his 11^th summer with the Society, along with Jeffrey Jones-Ragona, enjoying his 15^th season as Music Director.

The cast includes Holton Johnson (Nanki-Poo), Tamsen Cohagan (Yum-Yum), Russell Gregory (The Mikado), Janette Jones (Katisha), Arthur DiBianca (Ko-Ko), Patricia Combs (Pitti-Sing), Robert L. Schneider (Pooh-Bah), Angela Irving (Peep-Bo), Jay Young (Pish-Tush), and a Chorus of 24 Noblemen and School-Girls.

A free Opening Night Gala with refreshments follows the Friday, June 10 performance. Special Children's Activities precede the performance on June 12 at 2 p.m. All performances will have supertitles.

Usually regarded as Gilbert & Sullivan's masterpiece, The Mikado has been translated into other languages and adapted more than any other of their works. The Gilbert and Sullivan Society of Austin will continue its tradition of offering The Mikado that Gilbert and Sullivan wrote, demonstrating why the work has proved so enduring and endearing for 125 years.

Read synopsis and further information at AustinLiveTheatre.com . . . .

Group Sales for The Mikado, Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Austin, June 9 - 19 Group Sales

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Special Discounts for Group Sales - click 'Read more," below

The Mikado, June 9 – 19

Thursdays - Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 3 p.m.

Saturday matinee June 18, 3 p.m.

Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Austin

Travis Performing Arts Center, I-35 & Oltorff

click for link for on-line sales (general admission $20, college students $15, persons 18 years of age and younger $5 plus processing fees) or call 1-800-494-TKTS

This June the Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Austin (GSSA) will be presenting its 35^th annual grand summer production, the ever-popular musical comedy The Mikado. GSSA is happy to make available special rates for groups of 10 persons or more, at prices that represent a significant discount and entail no processing fees. I can arrange for specially printed tickets bearing the name of the group. We can mail them or deliver them along with an invoice that can be paid at the group’s convenience.

We are staging The Mikado at the performing arts center at Travis High School, 1211 E Oltorf St, Austin (Oltorf and I-35), with a Thursday, June 9 preview and an opening night gala on June 10 (including a buffet reception afterwards at no extra charge) to Sunday, June 19. Performances are at 8 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays. We offer matinees at 3 p.m. on Sunday, June 12, on Saturday, June 18, and on Sunday, June 19.

Gilbert & Sullivan’s works are always colorful and amusing. Under the guidance of our artistic director Ralph MacPhail, Jr., we follow the original staging very closely. With our 100% Austin cast, crew and musicians we create a world of music and comedy unmatched elsewhere in Austin. In 2010, our production of The Yeomen of the Guard received seven nominations from Austin’s B. Iden Payne committee for best musical performances of the year – for best musical, for artistic direction, for the musical direction by Jeffrey Jones-Ragona, for leading actor, for supporting actor, and two nominations for best actress!

GSSA uses “super-titles” projected above the stage so that our audiences can follow every word of the songs and the witty banter.

We’re very proud of our website at http://www.gilbertsullivan.org, which has a wealth of information about GSSA, about its history, and about the upcoming production of The Mikado. We invite everyone to use the links to our Twitter and Facebook accounts and to sign up through the website for our regular e-mails about upcoming events.

Click to go to AustinLiveTheatre.com for a chart of group rates for tickets at a discount of approximately 20% with no fees and special service.

Upcoming: Auditions for The Mikado, Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Austin, March 4 & 5

Received directly:

The Austin Gilbert & Sullivan Society announces

Auditions for The Mikado

Saturday, March 5 & Sunday, March 6
By appointment only

Call Chuck Antonie at (512) 733-1006 or (512)-825-5187 or email cantonie@yahoo.com to reserve an audition time slot.

Complete information at www.gilbertsullivan.org

The Gilbert and Sullivan Society of Austin announces auditions for its June 9-19 production of The Mikado by W. S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan. Ralph MacPhail, Jr. and Jeffrey Jones-Ragona will be returning as artistic and musical directors, respectively.

Auditions are approximately ten minutes long, by appointment only. All 33 roles (except that of Katisha) are open for casting, including principals and chorus. A prepared, accompanied aria, completed audition form, résumé, and headshot are required. A small honorarium will be paid to all performers. For complete details, visit www.gilbertsullivan.org. Auditions will be held at Genesis Presbyterian Church, 1507 Wilshire Blvd.

About The Mikado
Last produced by the Society in 2005, The Mikado has delighted audiences for more than a century, and is arguably the most popular comic opera ever written. This quintessential satire of human nature represents both Gilbert and Sullivan at the height of their creative geniuses.

The Mikado opened in London on March 14, 1885, and ran for a record-breaking 672 performances at the Savoy Theatre. This comedy about an executioner, while set in Japan, displays wit that is very much British, albeit kimono-clad. Victorian England is the target of Gilbert's satire, thinly disguised as a strange and distant land. Its influence on popular culture is pervasive, from “Pooh-Bah,” “Tit-Willow," “A Wandring Minstrel I” and “Three Little Maids” to the 1999 Mike Leigh film “Topsy-Turvy” which tells the story of the creation of The Mikado.

The Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Austin was founded in 1976 with the purpose of education by preserving and presenting the works of Gilbert & Sullivan. The Gilbert & Sullivan Society is sponsored in part by the City of Austin’s Cultural Arts Division and the Texas Commission on the Arts.