-
January 29, 2018Greetings Fellow Savoyards!
My name is Steve McCary and I am the new President of the Gilbert and Sullivan Society of Houston. To say that G&S is in my blood is putting it mildly; my first show was Gondoliers when my mother was seven months pregnant with me. As a child, I helped in the Jones Hall box office cataloging ticket sales and continued my box office work after our move to the Wortham Theater. In 2013, I was elected to the Board of Directors and have most recently served as the Vice President of Production. I have watched Steve Robbins for most of my life and realize that I have huge shoes to fill, but with his help and the support of our fantastic Board of Directors, I am confident that we will continue to bring you the wonderful productions you have come to know and love.
As an aside, we will be using our annual spring gala, on March 24th, as an opportunity to thank Steve for his many years of unwavering dedication. Please save the date to come show your support. We would certainly not be the Society we are today without his help!
Speaking of where we are today, this year will bring about some changes for our summer show. Due to the devastation brought on by Hurricane Harvey, the Wortham Center is expected to be out of commission until September. The entire basement (dressing rooms, costume storage, orchestra pit, etc.) was under water and will have to be completely reconstructed. With this in mind, we will be moving our 2018 production to the Hobby Center’s Zilkha Hall. It is a beautiful space which will allow us to continue our tradition of a summer show, while presenting it on a scale that helps us achieve our goal of fiscal viability. We are excited to see our cast and orchestra shine in an intimate venue that will really highlight the superb talent we are lucky to call ours.
As for the production itself, we will be presenting what we are referring to as A Treasure Trove of Gilbert and Sullivan. Stage Director Alistair Donkin (of course he’s coming this summer!) and I have been working with the Board to develop a program that combines bits of a few of our favorite operas, as well as a fully staged offering of Trial By Jury. The final program is still being finalized so stay tuned as we will release the details as soon as they are settled. We will be performing from July 20th through 22nd, 2018 and have four performances planned, similar to our schedule from 2017.
Our community has had a rough last few months, and with the news of the Wortham Theater’s massive damage and long timeline for recovery, we were concerned about even being able to produce a show this summer. Thanks to the hard work of our Board, Stage Director and Technical Director, we are happy to keep our long-standing tradition of a summer performance. Although it may look slightly different, feel slightly different, and be in a new home, rest assured that we still hold ourselves to the high standards that have gotten us this far. If we didn’t think we could deliver a performance worthy of your attendance, then we would sit this year out, as so many other companies are having to do. But with your support, and the support of all arts lovers in this amazingly resilient city, we will continue the legacy we started in 1952 that continues to this day. We thank you for your unwavering support in the past, and look forward to the new adventures ahead!
With Kind Regards,
Steven B. McCary
President
Gilbert and Sullivan Society of Houston