Patience performed thanks to Woodley Light Operatic Society

Patience, a Gilbert and Sullivan comedy, is being performed in Woodley this week.

Members of the Woodley Light Operatic Society are singing their way through the story of love and absurdity.

The two-act show tells the story of a group of lovesick maidens who are in love with the poet Bunthorpe.

But the bard has designs on someone else … the milkmaid Patience.

The innocent girl has never found love before so does not know what it is like.
Meanwhile, the 35th Dragoon Guards appear, led by Major Murgatroyd. These soldiers are keen to propose to the maidens, but they have other ideas.

And so begins the comedy of love, rejection, love and happy endings.

A satire of the aesthetic movement, people identified with the themes, making it a big hit. It can also be set in any period, with some revivals set in the swinging 60s.

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Originally performed in London in April 1881, the show was the first to be lit entirely by electricity… and was a such a hit at the Savoy Theatre that Gilbert and Sullivan’s works became known as Savoy Operas.

It was their sixth operatic collaboration, and ran for 578 performances … seven more than HMS Pinafore.

There are 20 songs in the show, including Twenty love-sick maidens we, The Soldiers Of Our Queen, If You Want A Receipt For That Popular Mystery, and A Magnet Hung In A Hardware Shop.

When is Patience being performed and how much are tickets?

The show is performed in the Alan Cornish Theatre in The Oakwood Centre in Woodley from Wednesday, December 4, through to Saturday, December 7.

The show is at 7.45pm nightly, and there is a matinee at 3pm on the Saturday.

Tickets cost £20, £19 for seniors or students, £14 for under 16s, or £54 for a group of three.

There is the option to purchase a programme when booking, these cost £2.

Details on the show can be found on Woodley Light Operatic Society’s website, while tickets can be booked via TicketSource.

What’s next from Woodley Light Operatic Society?

Once Patience is finished, the group will not be resting on its laurels.

Instead, they will be starting work on their summer musical, Me and My Girl.

This show will be performed at the Kenton Theatre in Henley, from June 11-14.

It will be directed by Lucy Seymour, and the musical director will be Neil Matthews. Lucinda Belcher will be the choreographer.

Set in the 1930s, it tells the story of Cockney gentleman Bill Snibson who discovers that he is actually the 14th heir to the Earl of Hareford.

The musical was first performed in 1937, and features songs by Noel Gay, Douglas Furber and L Arthur Rose.

Songs in it include The Lambeth Walk, and it was under this title that a film was released in 1939.

Other songs that feature include The Sun Has Got His Hat On, Love Makes the World Go Round, and in the 1980s revival, Leaning on a Lamp-post.

Who are Woodley Light Operatic Society?

Founded in 1968, they have been performed amateur operatics ever since.

Productions over the years include Fiddler On The Roof, and Anything Goes.

It marked its 50th anniversary with a special revue held in The Oakwood Centre.

Members get involved in all aspects of productions from helping backstage, front of house, and performing on stage.

Many of its members have won NODA (National Operatic and Dramatic Association) awards.

Weekly rehearsals are held on Tuesdays at a Woodley primary school, while principal cast members can have additional rehearsals on Thursdays.

It welcomes new members to join its ranks, with more details available on its website and Facebook page.