Bradley University’s Opera Workshop, under the direction of Kerry Walters, and the Bradley Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of Tim Semanik,will perform Gilbert & Sullivan’s Patience or Bunthorne’s Bride on Friday, April 10, at 7:30 p.m. in Dingeldine Music Center, located at 1417 W. Barker Avenue.
First performed on April 23 1881, this rollicking operetta pokes fun at the aesthetic craze of late 19th century England. The movement’s free-thinking, long-haired constituents were marked by their affected speech and dress and attracted a large following of poseurs who mimicked their superficial behavior. Gilbert’s amusing libretto focuses on Reginald Bunthorne, a pompous poet who is swooned over by every maiden in the village, much to the chagrin of their fiancés, all of whom are officers of the 35th Dragoon Guards. Bunthorne, however, is in love with Patience, the simple, village milkmaid. The plot is further complicated when Archibald Grosvenor, another aesthete, attempts to woo Patience and inadvertently attracts the flock of hovering maidens.
Bradley music alumnus Peter Wessler will lead the cast as Reginald Bunthorne with alumna Katie Burnham as Patience, Seth Johnson as Archibald Grosvenor, Mikaela Wilmoth as Lady Jane, Brad Donze as the Colonel and Aaron Roos as the Duke. Rounding out the cast are a bevy of love-sick maidens and a band of officers of the 35th Dragoon Guards.
Admission is $5 for adults and tickets will be available at the door. Students are admitted free. Call 677-2601 for more information.
