ONFife having announced that their theatres (Carnegie Hall, Adam Smith Theatre, Lochgelly Centre and Rothes Halls) will remain closed until at least April/May 2021, we have decided to postpone our special anniversary production of The Pirates of Penzance until February 2022, so the Carnegie Hall has been booked for Thursday to Saturday 17–19 February 2022.

We are also planning to perform our postponed concert version of The Mikado in June 2021. Between now and when we are next able to rehearse together, members will continue to keep in touch, and to keep G&S alive in West Fife, by appropriately COVID-compliant means!

This is the question that Don Alhambra asks in Act 1 of The Gondoliers, and gets the unexpected reply that it’s everybody’s birthday, this “curious coincidence” being explained by the fact that the two couples have just been married!

Today is the Society’s 50th birthday – as you’ll read at this link, DGASS was formed at a public meeting held on Wednesday, 13 May 1970. And today would also have been Sir Arthur Sullivan’s birthday – Radio 3 remembered this year, and played the music for one of the tableaux for his 1897 Victoria and Merrie England – though sadly he died in 1900.

Funny sort of birthday it will be, given the current epidemic, but at least we’ll get a chance to meet on-line, and perhaps raise a glass to the continuing prosperity of the Society!

Our HMS Pinafore quarter-deck had five happy cast members after the Saturday matinée. To find out who they are, and why they are happy, go to this link!

Our worthy bo’sun has given the production the thumbs up … as did everyone we spoke to after the show. One email we received said: “We thoroughly enjoyed the show yesterday – as always the performance was superb. It was good to see younger members performing. The backdrop as always was stunning. Well done to everyone. Next year will see … 20 years supporting the Dunfermline G&S. Book our usual seats!”

So, thank you to our loyal audience members, thank you to the cast (who will be missing their nightly intake of the goodies from Jack’s Caff!), and a special thank you to the Director, MD and stage staff who pulled the show together and made it something of which the Society can be proud.

We’ll have an archive page shortly, but don’t forget the next date for your diary, which is Friday 19 June, when our concert performance of The Mikado will have a very special guest in the role of Katisha! Watch this page for details.

… to see our HMS Pinafore team in action at Dunfermline’s Carnegie Hall. Rae put it well on Facebook when she said: “Loved the show last night! What a well-drilled crew and Porter family. Everyone was clearly having a ball, and that’s what I like to see.”

Your webmaster was also in the audience for the first performance of the Society’s latest production and was very impressed. Some fine singing, excellent characterisation, and a truly amazing number of moves for everyone in the chorus numbers – he was told later that one of the apparently simpler numbers had 60 moves – but, above all, great fun on stage, which came over very clearly to the audience.

We’re deliberately not showing any pictures of the set (appropriately nautical, and with some challenging changes in level, just like a real ship of the line), or the costumes (excellent to look at and, for the crew at least, claimed to be surprisingly comfortable), because we want to encourage you to ignore the present inclement weather, and head to Portsmouth harbour, where you will enjoy some splendid entertainment!

Did you see these guys in the Kingsgate Centre last Saturday? On stage right is Morag, our Chair; on stage left is Anne, our Finance Manager. Anne doubles as Ticket Sales Manager, so she’s the one who you need to speak to soon, to get your choice of tickets for what will be a great show! Phone our ticket hot-line on 07703 483083 or email ku.gro.ssagdnull@selastekcit.

Incredible as it seems to those who started work on HMS Pinafore back in August, Show Week is now next week, with our first performance at Carnegie Hall at 7.30pm next Thursday, 20 February.

Our gallant crew – ladies as well as men – tried on their costumes on Wednesday, and were well pleased. As will you be when you buy your tickets (head for this post for how to do that) and see the brilliant overall effect on the stage – 18 orchestral players in the pit (plus Eddie, of course!), 8 dancers and 32 crew members.

After you’ve made that bargain purchase, take a look at our Facebook page for more pictures of our crew in rehearsal action.