Gilbert and Sullivan for All was a touring concert and opera company, formed in 1963 by

D'Oyly Carte Opera Company The D'Oyly Carte Opera Company is a professional British light opera company that, from the 1870s until 1982, staged Gilbert and Sullivan's Savoy operas nearly year-round in the UK and sometimes toured in Europe, North America and elsewhere. Th ...

performers Thomas Round and

Donald Adams Charles Donald Adams (20 December 1928 – 8 April 1996) was an English opera singer and actor, best known for his performances in bass-baritone roles of the Savoy operas with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company and his own company, Gilbert and Sull ...

and former director Norman Meadmore, and which exclusively performed the works of

Gilbert and Sullivan Gilbert and Sullivan was a Victorian era, Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the dramatist W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911) and the composer Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900), who jointly created fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which ...

, usually in concert, but sometimes giving full productions. They also recorded most of the

Savoy opera Savoy opera was a style of comic opera that developed in Victorian England in the late 19th century, with W. S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan as the original and most successful practitioners. The name is derived from the Savoy Theatre, which impr ...

s both on video and audio. They continued to tour into the 1980s, occasionally reuniting for performances thereafter.

Description

Gilbert and Sullivan for All gave concert performances of highlights from the

s of Gilbert and Sullivan, and sometimes full productions of the operas, throughout Britain and made several world tours to North America,

Australasia Australasia is a region that comprises Australia, New Zealand and some neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term is used in a number of different contexts, including geopolitically, physiogeographically, philologically, and ecologica ...

, and the Far East.Shepherd, Marc
"The G&S for All Films"
''The Gilbert and Sullivan Discography'' By 1963, Round had left the

, and, together with Adams and Meadmore (a former director of D'Oyly Carte), formed the group.Stone, David
Donald Adams
''Who Was Who in the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company''

''Who Was Who in the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company'' Gilbert and Sullivan for All, usually composed of five or six singers and a pianist, would perform on nights when D'Oyly Carte was playing ''

The Gondoliers ''The Gondoliers; or, The King of Barataria'' is a Savoy Opera, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It premiered at the Savoy Theatre on 7 December 1889 and ran for a very successful 554 performances (at that time the ...

'', since Adams was not engaged by D'Oyly Carte to play in that opera. In the early years, the pianist was often the former D'Oyly Carte assistant musical director, William Cox-Ife. In 1969 Adams left the D'Oyly Carte Company, and he joined Gilbert and Sullivan for All full-time. The group's repertory included highlights from ''

Cox and Box ''Cox and Box; or, The Long-Lost Brothers'', is a one-act comic opera with a libretto by F. C. Burnand and music by Arthur Sullivan, based on the 1847 farce '' Box and Cox'' by John Maddison Morton. It was Sullivan's first successful comic o ...

'', ''

Trial by Jury A jury trial, or trial by jury, is a legal proceeding in which a jury makes a decision or findings of fact. It is distinguished from a bench trial in which a judge or panel of judges makes all decisions. Jury trials are used in a significant ...

'', ''

H.M.S. Pinafore ''H.M.S. Pinafore; or, The Lass That Loved a Sailor'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and a libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It opened at the Opera Comique in London, on 25 May 1878 and ran for 571 performances, whic ...

'', ''

The Pirates of Penzance ''The Pirates of Penzance; or, The Slave of Duty'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, W. S. Gilbert. Its official premiere was at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York City on 31 ...

'', ''

Iolanthe ''Iolanthe; or, The Peer and the Peri'' () is a comic opera with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, first performed in 1882. It is one of the Savoy operas and is the seventh of fourteen operatic collaborations by Gilbert ...

'', ''

The Mikado ''The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, their ninth of fourteen Gilbert and Sullivan, operatic collaborations. It opened on 14 March 1885, in London, whe ...

'', ''

Ruddigore ''Ruddigore; or, The Witch's Curse'', originally called ''Ruddygore'', is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It is one of the Savoy Operas and the tenth of fourteen comic operas written tog ...

'', ''

The Yeomen of the Guard ''The Yeomen of the Guard; or, The Merryman and His Maid'', is a Savoy Opera, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It premiered at the Savoy Theatre on 3 October 1888 and ran for 423 performances. This was the eleventh ...

'', and ''

''.Shepherd, Marc
"The Gilbert and Sullivan for All recordings"
''The Gilbert and Sullivan Discography'', accessed 3 February 2018 Round, and sometimes Adams, acted as director for the company. Meadmore acted as producer. In 1972, the group recorded staged and costumed abridged productions of these nine operas, both on video and for audio recordings. The soprano roles were split between former D'Oyly Carte artists

Valerie Masterson Margaret Valerie Masterson (born 3 June 1937), is a retired English opera singer, a lecturer and Vice-President of British Youth Opera. After study in Italy, she began to sing opera in Europe. Returning to England, Masterson performed as princ ...

and Gillian Humphreys, and all included Round and Adams. Introductions and linking narration were included and later re-recorded by Round. Helen Landis played the

contralto A contralto () is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range is the lowest female voice type. The contralto's vocal range is fairly rare; similar to the mezzo-soprano, and almost identical to that of a countertenor, typically b ...

roles in seven of the recordings and videos. In the ''Gilbert and Sullivan Discography'', Marc Shepherd writes, "The productions, despite being heavily abridged, are beautifully costumed and staged. Business and blocking are in the traditional manner, but do not slavishly reproduce D'Oyly Carte stagings. ... These films provide rare glimpses of many former D'Oyly Carte stars." Peter Murray, another former assistant D'Oyly Carte musical director, who had become the group's regular touring pianist around 1970, conducted the orchestra, except for ''Cox and Box'', which they performed with piano accompaniment. Other former members of D'Oyly Carte who appeared with Gilbert and Sullivan for All, include

Gillian Knight Gillian Knight (born 1 November 1934) is an English opera singer and actress, known for her performances in the contralto roles of the Savoy operas. After six years from 1959 to 1965 starring in these roles with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company ...

, Ann Hood, Mary Sansom, John Cartier, Thomas Lawlor,

Pauline Wales Pauline Wales (12 December 1937 – 23 January 2020) was an English singer and actress best known for her performances in the mezzo-soprano roles of the Gilbert and Sullivan operas with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company. After beginning her career ...

, and

Geoffrey Shovelton Geoffrey Richard Shovelton (27 April 1936 – 4 July 2016)

.Stone, David
"Geoffrey Shovelton"
''Who Was Who in the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company'', 7 September 2003, accessed 12 March 2014 During their Gilbert and Sullivan for All years, Round and Adams also appeared on tour as

Arthur Sullivan Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan (13 May 1842 – 22 November 1900) was an English composer. He is best known for 14 comic opera, operatic Gilbert and Sullivan, collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including ''H.M.S. Pinaf ...

and

W. S. Gilbert Sir William Schwenck Gilbert (18 November 1836 – 29 May 1911) was an English dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his collaboration with composer Arthur Sullivan, which produced fourteen comic operas. The most f ...

, respectively, in ''Tarantara! Tarantara!'', Ian Taylor's musical about the Gilbert and Sullivan partnership. Gilbert and Sullivan for All remained active throughout the early 1980s, until Adams's growing career as an operatic singer and Round's increasing age forced it to close. They occasionally reunited for concert performances thereafter.

Notes

External links

* Autobiography. {{DEFAULTSORT:Gilbert and Sullivan for All Musical groups established in 1963 British opera companies Gilbert and Sullivan performing groups 1963 establishments in England