Off-Monroe Players present A SENSATION AT THE ZOO!

Off-Monroe Players present A SENSATION AT THE ZOO!

By W.S. Gilbert (A SENSATION NOVEL) and Arthur Sullivan (THE ZOO)

Directed by Charles Palella and David Raymond (A SENSATION NOVEL) and Amanda Lobaugh (THE ZOO)

Fri, March 10 at 7:30 pm Sat, March 11 at 7:30 pm Sun, March 12 at 2 pm

Free admission for all ages

About 2 1/2 hours with an intermission

Two one-acts -- one musical, one not -- by the Victorian theatrical masters Gilbert and Sullivan.

For its winter production, the Off Monroe Players offer A Sensation at The Zoo: a double bill of Gilbert and Sullivan … before “Gilbert & Sullivan”! A Sensation Novel is an early one-act play by William S. Gilbert, and one of the cleverest examples of his “topsy turvy” sense of humor. The characters in a trashy Victorian “sensation novel”– an evil nobleman, a pure young maiden, a virtuous Sunday School teacher, a “panther-like” femme fatale – come to life and refuse to finish the story unless their author makes a few changes in their cliched characters and plots before the final pages. (We have made a few changes to the original script that should please Gilbert & Sullivan fans.) The Zoo is a musical farce by Arthur Sullivan with words by Bolton Rowe. The main characters are two couples whose stories play out at the London Zoo: a nobleman wooing the girl who sells snacks, and a young apothecary who believes he has poisoned his beloved by mixing up her father's prescription with peppermint. All ends happily, of course, as the British Public looks on and comments in true comic opera style.

About the Company: Since 1977, the Off-Monroe Players (OMP) have been Rochester's Gilbert and Sullivan Company, presenting all 13-plus operettas by the Victorian masters of operetta, along with many other G&S related plays, revues, and other theatrical works. OMP’s mission is to foster regional interest in the "G&S" legacy and to encourage participation in the performing arts through acting, direction, stagecraft, and musical performance. It is a true community theater group, and all are welcomed to take part onstage or backstage. Leading roles are auditioned, but no auditions are necessary for chorus singers.

Cast List

For A SENSATION NOVEL: THE AUTHOR – Kathy Coughenour THE SPIRIT OF ROMANCE – Lory Love Restivo SIR RUTHVEN GLENALOON, a “Bad Baronet” and the Villain of the Novel – Larry Ploscowe HERBERT, a mild-mannered Sunday School teacher – Tristan Berlet LADY ROCKALDA, a “panther-like” femme fatale – Liz Ferderbar ALICE GREY, a mousy young woman – Amanda Kish GRIPPER, bumbling detective in disguise – Suzanne Bell For THE ZOO: AESCULAPIUS CARBOY - Ron Herman LAETITIA - Emily Mills Woodruff ELIZA SMITH - Robin Morris-Gaylord THOMAS BROWN (the Duke of Islington) - Schuyler Kelley MR. GRINDER - Albert Young Jr. CHORUS - Carla Cogliandro, Edward Medina-Torres, Charles Palella