WELCOME TO OUR WEBSITE

Hello and welcome to the online home of Leeds Gilbert & Sullivan Society! If you want more that you find on these few pages, do reach out - click on "CONTAST US" in the menu.

If you're interested in learning a little history of the society, just click the four brief HISTORY links on this page, and to meet the team who run the show scroll down.

To see galleries from previous shows, click "PAST SHOWS" below.  We are building pages for as many of our previous shows as we can, but so far have only the last few years.  For a full list of shows see the bottom of this page.

PAST SHOWS

In the beginning

Leeds Gilbert and Sullivan Society was first known as Hunslet St Silas Choral and Operatic Society and it began its life over 100 years ago - in 1909 to be precise. A group of young people decided to support the local church “as a means of healthy recreation and to foster and develop a love of music in Hunslet.” This area of Leeds was at the time a thriving centre for the engineering industry in Leeds and the Society had many members who were, by day, involved in some way or another, with that industry.

The Society not only survived through two world wars, economic depression and major slum clearance in Hunslet but still went from strength- to- strength, producing Gilbert and Sullivan shows, other musicals and choral work. In 1953 the Society took their production of HMS Pinafore to the Leeds Civic Theatre and in 1954 was granted permission by Leeds City Council to use the Leeds Coat of Arms on its stationery. That same year the name of the Society was changed to The Leeds Gilbert and Sullivan Society.

The Society continued to enjoy enormous success at the Civic Theatre and then more recently at the Carriageworks Theatre in the centre of Leeds, winning many awards. and Leeds Gilbert and Sullivan Society (like the character in The Mikado) has always been the ‘Go-To’ Society for quality productions. The Society continues to offer “healthy recreation”, on and off stage, to our 90+ members whilst sharing a passion for Gilbert and Sullivan and many other forms of Musical theatre. In 2016, we produced Offenbach’s Orpheus in the Underworld and other smaller recent productions have included I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change, Into the Woods and She Loves Me.

The Society continues to stay fundamentally the same, while evolving and exploring new ideas.  In 2018 we premiered a brand new musical based on the works and characters of Gilbert & Sullivan, A Nice Dilemma, written and produced by Yorkshire-based Director Sarah Case. 2018 saw us return to The Mikado, in a completely new and innovative production.  2019 will bring the glorious musical classic:  Guys & Dolls.  2020?  We have plenty of ideas, but nothing we can share quite yet.

The Team

Janet Johnston
Chairman

Janet has chaired the committee for 19 years and is actively involved in everything we do. If you have a question about pretty much anything, Janet is the person to go to! Janet will often be the person who makes announcements and gives information at rehearsals.

Emma Stirk
Business Manager

Running our Society involves many moving parts, many of which need financial and business management.  Emma takes on these numerous and often unseen elements.

David Naylor
Treasurer

David looks after the purse strings for our society, including the 500 Club. David often sings with the tenors and Emma Stirk helps out by supporting him in all matter financial when he’s not around.

Katie Lister
Secretary

Katie leads the admin for the society and coordinates new members, auditions, correspondence and supports the committee. She also works on publicity and communications including the website and is one of the ‘Tweeters’ on our Twitter account. Katie can be found singing with the altos.

Trustees

Steve Limb

Richard Naylor

Judith Smith

Committee

Becky Barwick

Phil Case

Anne Futers

Heather Greenwood

Shirley Hoyland

Judith Huntley

Richard Pascoe

Judith Smith

Matt Stirk

List Of Shows

1953 HMS Pinafore

1954 The Mikado

1955 The Gondoliers

1956 Yeomen of the Guard

1957 Trial by Jury & Pirates of Penzance

1958 Iolanthe

1959 Ruddigore

1960 The Mikado

1961 Patience

1962 The Gondoliers

1963 Princess Ida

1964 HMS Pinafore

1965 Yeomen of the Guard

1966 Iolanthe

1967 Trial by Jury & Pirates of Penzance

1968 The Mikado 1969 Ruddigore

1970 Patience

1971 The Gondoliers

1972 Princess Ida

1973 Yeomen of the Guard

1974 Iolanthe

1975 HMS Pinafore

1976 Utopia (Limited)

1977 The Mikado

1978 Ruddigore

1979 Patience

1980 The Gondoliers

1981 Trial by Jury & Pirates of Penzance

1982 Yeomen of the Guard

1983 Princess Ida

1984 Iolanthe

1985 The Mikado

1986 HMS Pinafore & The Zoo

1987 The Sorcerer

1988 The Gondoliers

1989 Ruddigore

1990 Patience

1991 Pirates of Penzance

1992 Yeomen of the Guard

1993 Iolanthe

1994 The Mikado

1995 Princess Ida

1996 HMS Pinafore & Trial by Jury

1997 The Gondoliers

1998 Ruddygore

1999 Pirates of Penzance

2000 Yeomen of the Guard

2001 The Sorcerer

2002 Iolanthe

2003 The Mikado

2004 Patience

2005 HMS Pinafore & The Zoo

2006 Pirates of Penzance

2007 The Gondoliers

2008 Ruddigore

2009 Princess Ida

2010 The Mikado

2011 Yeomen of the Guard

2012 Iolanthe

2013 The Sorcerer

2013 I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change

2014 Pirates of Penzance

2014 Into The Woods

2015 Patience

2015 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

2016 Orpheus & The Underworld

2016 She Loves Me

2017 Kiss Me Kate

2017 Trial By Jury

2017 A Nice Dilemma

2018 The Mikado

2018 Closer Than Ever