Lamplighters Music Theatre
Lamplighters Music Theatre is a semi-professional theatrical company based in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1952 by Orva Hoskinson and Ann Pool MacNab, the Lamplighters specialize in light opera, particularly the works of Gilbert and Sullivan, as well as such works as The Merry Widow, Die Fledermaus, Of Thee I Sing, My Fair Lady, Candide, and A Little Night Music.[1]
The company's season usually comprises four productions: a fully-staged production in January/February; a staged concert in the spring; a fully-staged production in July/August; and a full-length original musical comedy, presented as a champagne gala fundraiser and silent auction, in November. The company's artistic director is Barbara Heroux,[1] and its musical director is Baker Peeples.
The Lamplighters performed at Harding Theater from 1961 to 1968 and then at the University of San Francisco's Presentation Theater until 1995. Since then, it has performed at San Francisco's Novellus Theater at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, Lesher Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek and several other Bay Area theaters.
The San Francisco Chronicle review called the company's 2010 production of Gilbert and Sullivan's Patience, "a splendid and loving production", commenting that the performance "used the company's long experience of the Savoy operettas to fine effect. At their best, the Lamplighters' productions take an approach to this material that is mindful of tradition without ever seeming musty or warmed over."[2]
References
- ^ a b Martinfield, Seán. "H.M.S. Pinafore sails the Lamplighters Music Theatre into 55th Season". San Francsco Sentinel, August 2, 2007, accessed April 21, 2010
- ^ Kosman, Joshua. "Operetta review: Lamplighters' Patience. San Francisco Chronicle, January 19, 2010