''The Hunting of the Snark'' is a

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...

based on Lewis Carroll's 1876 poem '' The Hunting of the Snark'', written by

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

Mike Batt.

History

The musical began life in 1984 as a costumed concert with the London Symphony Orchestra at the

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, conducted by Mike Batt and starring Paul Jones as the Baker and

Christopher Cazenove Christopher de Lerisson Cazenove (17 December 1943 – 7 April 2010) was an English film, television and stage actor. Early life and career He was born Christopher de Lerisson Cazenove, on 17 December 1943, the son of Arnold Cazenove, Brigadie ...

as the narrator. It was created as a concept album in 1986 but withheld from sale after a dispute with the record label, CBS (Sony). The recording featured Roger Daltrey, Art Garfunkel, John Gielgud, Stéphane Grappelli,

George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...

John Hurt Sir John Vincent Hurt (22 January 1940 – 25 January 2017) was an English actor whose career spanned over five decades. Hurt was regarded as one of Britain's finest actors. Director David Lynch described him as "simply the greatest actor in ...

, Julian Lennon, Cliff Richard, Captain Sensible, Deniece Williams, and the London Symphony Orchestra. Later that year it was performed as a concert at the

. "Midnight Smoke" was released as a single on 17 November 1986. A further (costumed) production took place at the

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...

on April Fool's Day 1987, with Justin Hayward taking Art Garfunkel's role of the Butcher from the original recording, Billy Connolly replacing Cliff Richard as the Bellman and

Midge Ure James Ure (born 10 October 1953) is a Scottish musician, singer-songwriter and record producer. His stage name, Midge, is a phonetic reversal of Jim, the diminutive form of his actual name. Ure enjoyed particular success in the 1970s and 1980s ...

performing George Harrison's guitar parts. Other performers recreated their roles from the concept recording. This concert was filmed and screened as a television special in some countries. In October 1990 ''The Hunting Of The Snark'' was successfully presented, again by Batt and by Jackson-Mayo Productions, as a dramatised concert in Australia, at Sydney's State Theatre and The

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with the Elizabethan Sinfonietta, with Philip Quast starring as The Bellman, Cameron Daddo as The Butcher, Jackie Love as The Beaver, Doug Parkinson as The Barrister, Daryl Somers as The Billiard Marker, John Waters as Lewis Carroll and David Whitney as The Baker. This production also included additional songs that did not appear on the original 1986 recording. On 24 October 1991 a £2 million budget production of the show opened in London at the Prince Edward Theatre, with striking scenery and designs. 12,000 animated slides were projected from 152 computer-linked projectors arranged around the theatre. Although reviews praised Batt's visual concepts and Quast as the Bellman, the show closed seven weeks later. The show was later presented as an amateur production in July 1995 at The Crucible Theatre, Sheffield, with slightly different songs and libretto created by Batt for the occasion. The Sheffield amateur production was produced by Ian Gude for Jolly Good Musical Productions, directed by Steve Morrell, with musical direction by Ian Gude.

Album and DVD

In November 2010, Mike Batt's company Dramatico Entertainment released the original record album from 1986, together with a DVD of the Royal Albert Hall concert from 1987. A sheet music folio of the original album was released to coincide with the 2010 DVD/CD release. Cast: *Mike Batt, The Boots * Cliff Richard, The Bellman (album only) * Billy Connolly, The Bellman (DVD only) * Roger Daltrey, The Barrister * Justin Hayward, The Butcher *

, The Narrator * Julian Lennon, The Baker * Captain Sensible, The Billiard Marker *

, The Banker * Deniece Williams, The Beaver

Synopsis

''The Hunting of the Snark'' tells the tale of several characters who go on a sea journey, searching for a mythical creature called "The Snark", whatever it may be, for the Snark is different things to each of the characters. The Baker's uncle once told him, "If your Snark be a Boojum! ... You will softly and suddenly vanish away, And never be met with again!". Through this journey relationships develop, tensions rise and the Baker's worst nightmare comes true. ;Act One *Prologue *Opening Titles *Children Of The Sky *Hymn To The Snark *The Storm and Arrival *Who'll Join Me On This Escapade? *The Way We Think *The Departure *The Bellman's Speech *Midnight Smoke *The Trouble With You *Dancing Towards Disaster ;Act Two *The Banker's Fate *The Hunting *Nursery Pictures *Waiting For A Wave *The Butchery Waltz *Snooker SongChorus 1 used as the theme song for Big Break, BBC *The Pig Must Die *More Trouble *The Dismal and Desolate Valley *A Delicate Combination *As Long As The Moon Can Shine *Yet More Trouble *The Vanishing *Whatever You Believe

Creative team

*Mike Batt - Writer / Designer / Director *Jamie Hayes - Co-Director *Andrew Bridge - Lighting *Jo-Anne Robinson -

Choreographer Choreography is the art or practice of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which motion or form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A choreographer is one who cr ...

*Kim Baker - Associate Costume Designer *Derek Healey - Projection Programming and Development *John Delnero - Sound Designer *Chris Slingsby - Audio Visual

Supervisor A supervisor, or lead, (also known as foreman, boss, overseer, facilitator, monitor, area coordinator, line-manager or sometimes gaffer) is the job title of a lower-level management position that is primarily based on authority over workers or ...

*Timothy Skelly - Assistant Electrician

Original London cast

* David McCallum, Lewis Carroll * Kenny Everett, Billiard Marker * Philip Quast, Bellman * Mark McGann, Baker *David Firth, Banker *Roni Hart, Beaver *

Peter Ledbury Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...

, Broker *

Allan Love Allan may refer to: People * Allan (name), a given name and surname, including list of people and characters with this name * Allan (footballer, born 1984) (Allan Barreto da Silva), Brazilian football striker * Allan (footballer, born 1989) (Al ...

, Barrister * Gary Martin, Bishop *

John Partridge John Partridge may refer to: *John Partridge (artist) (1789–1872), British portrait painter *John Partridge (astrologer) (1644–1710s), English astrologer *John Partridge (actor) (born 1971), English actor, singer and dancer *John Bernard Partrid ...

, Butcher *

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, Bandmaster / Associate Musical Director

References

External links

*Mike Batt's Officia
Website
*''The Hunting of The Snark'' a
IMDb
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hunting Of The Snark, The West End musicals 1991 musicals Works based on Alice in Wonderland British musicals Musicals based on poems Cultural depictions of Lewis Carroll