“Hark, the hour of ten is sounding,
hearts with anxious fears are bounding,
Hall of Justice, crowds surrounding,
breathing hope and fear.
For to-day in this arena,
summoned by a stern subpoena,
Edwin, sued by Angelina,
shortly will appear.”
Trial by Jury
The Zoo and Trial by Jury
November 8 to 24, 1996
The Zoo / Trial by Jury Program
Directors:
| Stage Director: | Donna Carroll |
| Music Director: | Becky Swanson |
| Artistic Director: | Wendy Evans |
Program Note
Sir Arthur Sullivan is the connection between the three works on our program. The first shows his serious (but still light) classical vein. Overture di Ballo is a ten minute orchestral work that premiered in 1970.
Trial by Jury, a charming gem in the G&S canon, is the earliest existing collaboration between W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan. (The music to the earlier Thespis has been lost.) Both Trial by Jury and The Zoo were first produced in 1875, three months apart, and both are one-act operettas with no spoken dialogue. However, the words for The Zoo are by B.C. Stephenson, not Gilbert, and the focus is melodrama rather than satire. The score for The Zoo was lost for many years. It re-surfaced at a Sotheby’s auction in 1966 and was soon thereafter made available once more to the theatrical world. Interestingly, the double bill of The Zoo and Trial by Jury was performed once before in the Twin Cities about twenty-five years ago, and in this very theatre!
Two excellent internet resources for information about Trial by Jury:
The Gilbert & Sullivan Archive – Trial by Jury
Two excellent internet resources for information about The Zoo:
Show Poster
Company Photo
Photography by Daniels Studio
“Are the birds all caged?
The wild beasts all littered down?”
The Yeomen of the Guard
Photo Gallery
