American Light Opera Company
Encyclopedia
The American Light Opera Company was a semi-professional theatre company performing light operas
and musicals
in Washington, D.C.
from 1960 to 1968. It was founded by a group of former and (at the time) current members of the University of Michigan
's Gilbert & Sullivan Society.
Its first production, The Mikado
, took place on 17 June 1960 at Naval Ordnance Laboratory
in White Oak, Maryland
. Over the next few years, the company grew rapidly, with five to six productions a season, usually performed in the Lisner Auditorium at George Washington University
. The company also performed at the White House
, and its chorus appeared several times with Washington's National Symphony Orchestra. Their final performance was West Side Story performed at Western High School
in Washington D.C. on 28 January 1968.
Notable past performers with the company include the actress Georgia Engel,the dancer and choreographer George Faison
, the opera singer Richard Stilwell, and the performer "Rusty" Russ Thacker. The President and Executive Director of the National Theatre
in Washington, D.C., Donn B. Murphy
, directed several productions for the company – Show Boat
(1961), Finian's Rainbow
(1962), South Pacific
(1963), The King and I
(1964), Camelot
(1965) and West Side Story (1966).
Comic opera
Comic opera denotes a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending.Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a new operatic genre, opera buffa, emerged as an alternative to opera seria...
and musicals
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
from 1960 to 1968. It was founded by a group of former and (at the time) current members of the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
's Gilbert & Sullivan Society.
Its first production, The Mikado
The Mikado
The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, their ninth of fourteen operatic collaborations...
, took place on 17 June 1960 at Naval Ordnance Laboratory
Naval Ordnance Laboratory
The Naval Ordnance Laboratory , now disestablished, formerly located in White Oak, Maryland was the site of considerable work that had practical impact upon world technology. The White Oak site of NOL has now been taken over by the Food and Drug Administration.-History:The U.S...
in White Oak, Maryland
White Oak, Maryland
White Oak is a census-designated place and an unincorporated area in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States.-Geography:As an unincorporated area, White Oak's boundaries are not officially defined...
. Over the next few years, the company grew rapidly, with five to six productions a season, usually performed in the Lisner Auditorium at George Washington University
George Washington University
The George Washington University is a private, coeducational comprehensive university located in Washington, D.C. in the United States...
. The company also performed at the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
, and its chorus appeared several times with Washington's National Symphony Orchestra. Their final performance was West Side Story performed at Western High School
Duke Ellington School of the Arts
The Duke Ellington School of the Arts is a high school located at 35th Street and R Street, Northwest, Washington, D.C., and dedicated to arts education. One of the high schools of the District of Columbia Public School system, it is named for the American jazz bandleader and composer Edward...
in Washington D.C. on 28 January 1968.
Notable past performers with the company include the actress Georgia Engel,the dancer and choreographer George Faison
George Faison
George Faison is an African-American dancer and choreographer.-Biography:Faison was born in Washington, D.C. where he studied dance with the Jones-Haywood Capitol Ballet and Carolyn Tate of Howard University while attending Dunbar High School, and appeared with The American Light Opera Company in...
, the opera singer Richard Stilwell, and the performer "Rusty" Russ Thacker. The President and Executive Director of the National Theatre
National Theatre (Washington, D.C.)
The National Theatre is located in Washington, D.C., and is a venue for a variety of live stage productions with seating for 1,676.Despite its name, it is not a governmentally funded national theatre, but operated by a private, non-profit organization....
in Washington, D.C., Donn B. Murphy
Donn B. Murphy
Donn B. Murphy taught theatre and speech courses at Georgetown University from 1954 to 2000. At the invitation of Jacqueline Kennedy and Letitia Baldrige, he became a theatrical advisor to the John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson Administrations for White House dramatic and music presentations in...
, directed several productions for the company – Show Boat
Show Boat
Show Boat is a musical in two acts with music by Jerome Kern and book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II. It was originally produced in New York in 1927 and in London in 1928, and was based on the 1926 novel of the same name by Edna Ferber. The plot chronicles the lives of those living and working...
(1961), Finian's Rainbow
Finian's Rainbow
Finian's Rainbow is a musical with a book by E.Y. Harburg and Fred Saidy, lyrics by Harburg, and music by Burton Lane. The 1947 Broadway production ran for 725 performances. Several revivals and a 1968 film version followed. A Broadway revival ran from October 8, 2009 until January 17, 2010...
(1962), South Pacific
South Pacific (musical)
South Pacific is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and book by Hammerstein and Joshua Logan. The story draws from James A. Michener's Pulitzer Prize-winning 1947 book Tales of the South Pacific, weaving together characters and elements from several of its...
(1963), The King and I
The King and I
The King and I is a stage musical, the fifth by the team of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. The work is based on the 1944 novel Anna and the King of Siam by Margaret Landon and derives from the memoirs of Anna Leonowens, who became governess to the children of King Mongkut of Siam in...
(1964), Camelot
Camelot (musical)
Camelot is a musical by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe . It is based on the King Arthur legend as adapted from the T. H. White tetralogy novel The Once and Future King....
(1965) and West Side Story (1966).
Productions
The Mikado, Menotti's Old Maid and the Thief with Sullivan and Burnand's Cox and Box, G&S The Gondoliers, Brigadoon, South Pacific(twice), Carousel, Kiss Me Kate, Paint Your Wagon(scheduled to open the night JFK was assassinated),The Fantasticks, Showboat, Guys and Dolls, New Moon, Little Mary Sunshine, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, My Fair Lady, Carnival, Camelot, Oklahoma!, Once Upon A Mattress,The Music Man, Desert Song,The King and I,Kismet(at Howard University's Cramton Auditorium for Cherry Blossom Festival),How to Succeed in Business etc., Gypsy, Annie Get Your Gun(both at DC's Gallaudet Theatre), West Side Story. Some productions toured to Baltimore, Richmond and Norfolk, VA.Sources
- Borgen, Betty, History of The American Light Opera Company of Washington, DC, 2003
- Shuster, Alvin, Washington: The New York Times Guide to the Nation's Capital, R. B. Luce, 1967, p. 251