In most circumstances, sword fighting, piracy and kidnapping are frowned upon, but they are all in a day’s work for the members of the College of William & Mary’s Sinfonicron Light Opera Company.
This week marks the start of Sinfonicron’s 50th season at William & Mary. To mark the occasion, the completely student-run group is performing one of its most beloved shows — Gilbert and Sullivan’s “The Pirates of Penzance,” opening Thursday at William & Mary’s Phi Beta Kappa Hall.
The show tells the story of the noble pirate Frederic, as he struggles with his sense of duty to his pirate band and his love for the beautiful Mabel. Tensions rise between Frederic, the pirates and Mabel’s Major-General father, culminating in a singing-showdown at a seaside estate — and a lesson on what it means to be noble.
The comic opera, penned by librettist W.S. Gilbert and composer Arthur Sullivan, debuted in 1879, and has entertained audiences ever since.
But it takes more than Gilbert’s witty lyrics and Sullivan’s music to stage one of the duo’s compositions. It requires hard work, long hours and bit of fun to pull off.
Every January since 1964, the students who make up Sinfonicron have cut short their winter breaks and returned to campus to begin production on the next season’s show.
The organization was the creation of four of William & Mary’s music societies. Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia and Delta Omicron spearheaded the group — its name, “Sinfonicron,” is a combination of the two organization’s names. Two other organizations, Nu Kappa Epsilon and the Student Theater Organization, later joined the group to create its current construction.
Publicity director Lucy King said much has changed over the past 50 years. Things have gotten bigger, she said, from the size of the cast to the setting of the show. The group’s first production in 1964, “The Mikado,” was performed in the Little Theater in the basement of the Campus Center. This year’s show is in Phi Beta Kappa Hall’s main theater.
Despite the changes, King said many aspects of the group had remained the same.
“It still maintains that really awesome Sinfonicron core excitement and values,” she said.
That includes building the sets, learning the music and rehearsing the show — all in two to three weeks.
“It’s a whirlwind,” King said. “We do a lot of work in a very short period of time, but that’s part of what makes it so fun.”
It begins with the music. The actors and musicians have less than a month to learn the songs — 28, in total — and how to perform together as one ensemble. It takes much work, vocal director Emerson Sieverts said, but “Pirates” is one of Gilbert and Sullivan’s more engaging shows.
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See “The Pirates of Penzance in Concert”
The show opens Thursday and runs through Sunday. Showtimes are at 8 p.m. Jan. 22 through 24 at Phi Beta Kappa Hall at the College of William & Mary, with matinees at 2 p.m. Jan. 24 and 25.
Admission is $15 for premium seating, $5 for children and students, and $10 for all other seating.
For more information, call the William & Mary ticket office at 757-221-2674, or visit their website here.
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“It’s very easy to execute and realize,” Sieverts said. “There’s not a weak number in the show; a lot of melody. Not too much in the way of difficult choral passages. It’s just very sing-able. You’ll leave humming every single tune.”
It is a different story for the set design crew. The show requires three large-scale sets: a piratical ship, a rocky beach and the graveyard of a manor house. Each has to be convincing to the audience, but simple enough to build in short notice and move during a performance.
The costumes also require much attention. The production’s large cast includes the eponymous pirates, English ladies, a police battalion and a military officer. Sinfonicron cast members make each of the costumes from scratch for every show. Assistant costume designer Coca Strickland said the costumes for “Pirates” required historical research to achieve the necessary “antique” quality.
The amount of work has not lowered his enthusiasm.
“I’ve made nine dresses, 10 pirates, working on five police right now,” Strickland said. “It’s great.”
Director Taylor Schwabe said all the work was worth the effort, and the Williamsburg community has been supportive.
King said Sinfonicron would recognize its 50th anniversary, and thank its alumni and donors, with a “golden jubilee” celebration after one of the shows.
Before that can happen, the show must go on.
“It sort of feels like a race to the finish line, but what’s really important is the company we build,” Schwabe said. “We definitely have the talent to put on an amazing production, and at the end we always get it done, and it’s really making sure that we continue to believe that it’s going to get to the end of that final product.”
For show times and ticket information, visit Sinfonicron’s website located here.
