Artiste: Jeff Clarke

Jeff Clarke's characteristically high-octane style seems made for the sarcastic, hyperactive existential madness that is Candide in this little gem of a production for Iford. 

We all know the story about how an opera is supposed to end, but it turns out it is definitely not over until all the fat, black-leather-jacketed, bearded gentlemen sing, and then ride triumphantly away with you on their Harley-Davidsons... 

Among the fourteen Gilbert and Sullivan operettas, it must be acknowledged that there are glimpses of weakness. The Gondoliers maintains one of Gilbert’s typically insane plots, which is best described as ‘topsy-turvy’ until the final scene, when order is restored. Likewise the music is far from Sullivan’s strongest score, but there are moments of inspired vocal writing.