Southampton Operatic Society began life in 1924 as the Guild of the Above Bar Congregational Church and is the oldest musical society in the city. Miss Edith Ashdown, the daughter of a Southampton businessman and a member of the Above Bar Congregational Church, gathered her friends (including Evelyn Thorne who ran a local ladies’ choir) to perform a musical play ''Princess Juju''. This was well received so they decided to form a society and present '' Merrie England'' by

Edward German Sir Edward German (17 February 1862 – 11 November 1936) was an English musician and composer of Welsh descent, best remembered for his extensive output of incidental music for the stage and as a successor to Arthur Sullivan in the field of En ...

at the Watts Hall. For the next five years, the society alternated between dramatic and musical productions under the title of Southampton Above Bar Musical and Dramatic Society but in 1930 it separated into two distinct bodies - operatic and dramatic. The latter group, The Southampton Amateur Dramatic Society (SADS) no longer exists. The

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

curtailed the activities of the society between 1939 and 1945 but it soon reformed to perform “Merrie England” once more in 1946. The works of

Gilbert & Sullivan Gilbert and Sullivan was a 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 ''H.M.S. Pina ...

soon became the society’s annual offering and it was not until 1980 that it began to perform two shows a year – even then it did not perform the full set of G&S operettas until its production of

The Grand Duke ''The Grand Duke; or, The Statutory Duel'', is the final Savoy Opera written by librettist W. S. Gilbert and composer Arthur Sullivan, their fourteenth and last opera together. It premiered at the Savoy Theatre on 7 March 1896, and ran for 12 ...

in 2006. Since 1978 it has added musicals and classical operas to its repertoire. Several past members have moved onto the professional stage including Barry Clark, Valerie Nunns, Anne Osborne. and Claire Rutter (who is Vice President of the Society). In 1987 a junior section was formed in an effort to introduce younger members to its ranks and this has been a successful development. Now called Debut Youth Theatre it too has been the launch pad for several professional careers, notably Rae Baker, Nyle Wolfe,

Laura Carmichael Laura Elizabeth Carmichael (born 16 July 1986) is an English film and television actress, most widely known for her performance as Lady Edith Crawley in the ITV (UK) and PBS (US) television period drama series'' Downton Abbey''. Her other wo ...

and, Simon Pontin. Since 1998 the Society has been a regular contestant at the

International Gilbert and Sullivan Festival The International Gilbert and Sullivan Festival was founded in 1994 by Ian Smith and his son Neil and is held every summer in England. The two- or three-week Festival of Gilbert and Sullivan opera performances and fringe events attracts thousands ...

held annually at

Buxton Opera House Buxton Opera House is in The Square, Buxton, Derbyshire, England. It is a 902-seat opera house that hosts the annual Buxton Festival and the International Gilbert and Sullivan Festival, among others, as well as pantomime at Christmas, musicals ...

and has won several awards, most recently for the Best Concerted Item in for 'The Matter Trio' from

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 ...

in 2008.

References

{{authority control Amateur theatre companies in England Organisations based in Southampton British opera companies Arts organizations established in 1924 Musical groups established in 1924