Not many opera companies begin in high school auditoriums.
In 1975, however, a high school auditorium was exactly where Valley Light Opera got its start. This weekend, the company will celebrate their 50th anniversary with a production of “H.M.S. Pinafore or The Lass That Loved a Sailor” — the same Gilbert and Sullivan comic opera that they first put on — in an even bigger venue, celebrating their storied company history.
When Valley Light Opera first put on “H.M.S. Pinafore” in 1975, the production took place in Amherst Regional High School’s auditorium.
“We were flying by the seat of our pants,” said Michael Greenebaum, founding member of the Valley Light Opera. “We were a bunch of middle-aged folks and we wanted to do a Gilbert and Sullivan opera, but we’d never really been in a position of having to do everything — get the cast together, get a [performance space], get rehearsal places, the whole works — so it was brand new to all of us.”
“50 years later, it’s not brand new to anyone,” he added. “The company has a tradition and history and a structure.”
In fact, two of the members of the orchestra who play in this year’s production were part of the 1975 production’s orchestra, which Greenebaum says speaks a lot of the quality of the company and what it means to people.
“We do this because we like being together and we like doing it for each other,” he said. “We’re more than just putting on a show. We’re people who love performing, and we love the works that we perform.”
The group had one production at the Academy of Music in 1991, but continued to hold shows at Amherst High School, and other venues like churches and a library, until 2012, when the group moved their mainstage productions to the Academy, starting with Gilbert and Sullivan’s “Patience.” They had their next performance of “H.M.S. Pinafore” the following year, in 2013.
“H.M.S. Pinafore” is about the sailor Ralph Rackstraw, who’s in love with Josephine, the daughter of Captain Corcoran. Josephine is engaged to Sir Joseph Porter, who boasts having worked his way up to running the Admiralty without ever having stepped foot on a ship. However, Josephine finds Sir Joseph “tedious, fretful and dictatorial.”
The main cast includes Michael Budnick (Sir Joseph Porter), Jonathan Evans (Captain Corcoran), Michael Gonzalez (Ralph Rackstraw), Matt Roehrig (Dick Deadeye), Christopher Allison (Boatswain), Steven Williams (Carpenter), Leah Najimy James (Josephine), Heather Williams (Cousin Hebe), Kathy Blaisdell (Little Buttercup), and Tzina Schulman (Midshipmite).
Budnick, who plays Sir Joseph, also performed in Valley Light Opera’s 2013 “H.M.S. Pinafore” as the cynical sailor Dick Deadeye. That show was one of his first in the Valley, his first show with Valley Light Opera and his first-ever Gilbert and Sullivan show. Budnick is also the president of Easthampton Theater Company. Performing in this year’s production is something of a homecoming for him, he said, and all the more rewarding because “H.M.S. Pinafore” has had lasting influence in musical theater and beyond.
“It’s witty, it’s hilarious, with political and social jabs that survive to this day,” he said. “It’s amazing how much of it is still relevant. It pokes fun at aristocracy, all the great targets of satire of its time and also of our time. Same politics, social trends, social class — all of that is under Gilbert’s microscope, and he does it so well.”
This production, in fact, will have a few “Easter eggs” for modern audiences, as is tradition in contemporary Gilbert and Sullivan productions, though Budnick didn’t want to give away specific examples, for the sake of not spoiling any surprises.
In any case, as the cast finishes up its final dress rehearsals, Budnick is excited for audiences to see the fruits of the cast and crew’s labors.
“Every time we do a production with [VLO], I think it gets better, because we just keep attracting more and more talent from all over the region, and the talent for this one is just first-rate,” Budnick said.
“We’re ready,” he added. “We’re going from good to great, from great to excellent.”
Valley Light Opera will present “H.M.S. Pinafore or The Lass That Loved a Sailor” at the Academy of Music on Thursday, Nov. 6 and Friday, Nov. 7 at 7:30 p.m.; and on Saturday, Nov. 8 and Sunday, Nov. 9 at 2 p.m. Each show will have a 15-minute intermission. Greenebaum will give a pre-show talk at 1 p.m. before both performances.
For more information about tickets, visit aomtheatre.com.
