Thespis & Trial by Jury

We had a fabulous 2017 season! The Grand Duke was the final collaboration of Gilbert & Sullivan, and was our main stage show in the spring of 2017. Thespis was their first work, for which most of the music has been lost. Our own Maestro Alan Riley Jones has composed a fantastic fully orchestrated score for Thespis, which we premiered along with a performance of Gilbert & Sullivan’s one-act comic opera, Trial by Jury, in October, 2017.

Performances of Trial by Jury and Thespis were October 12-15, 2017, at East Chapel Hill HS.

Our Public Sing-Through of Thespis and Trial by Jury was Sunday, May 7th, 2017 at 2pm in the Durham Arts Council. Auditions for Thespis and Trial by Jury were May 22–May 25. Rehearsals began July 3oth, although planning for these shows began more than a year earlier, and Maestro Jones began work on the music more than 25 years before the fully orchestrated Thespis premiered.

Thespis and Trial by Jury

directed and choreographed by: Derrick Ivey

music direction (and composition) by: Alan Riley Jones (Thespis) and Jackson Cooper (Trial by Jury)

Performances of Thespis and Trial by Jury were October 12-15, 2017, at East Chapel Hill HS.

Thursday (Preview Night), October 12, 8:00 PM
Friday, October 13, 8:00 PM
Saturday, October 14, 7:00 PM (note earlier time!)
Sunday, October 15, 3:00 PM (matinee –note later time! )

More about our show:

Our director, Derrick Ivey, set up his own blog for the Durham Savoyards shows he has directed. His blog usually has interesting rehearsal-by-rehearsal accounts throughout the production process.
Learn about the people involved in putting together Thespis and Trial by Jury. Want to be involved in putting on the show? You can participate!
Our shows have garnered much media attention over the years. Read previews and reviews of recent shows.

More about Thespis:

All about Thespis at the Gilbert & Sullivan archive, including its earliest performances, historical costume sketches, other artwork, original cast list, and an archived discussion.

More about Trial by Jury:

All about Trial by Jury at the Gilbert & Sullivan archive, including its earliest performances, historical costume sketches, other artwork, original cast list, and an archived discussion.
Plot summary, also on the Gilbert & Sullivan archive.