Charles Court Opera (CCO) is now the company to go to for the best Gilbert and Sullivan. This production of Iolanthe at the marvellous Wilton’s Music Hall is full of glorious music, excellent singing and genuine comedy. I can hardly imagine a finer rendition of the Lord Chancellor’s Nightmare Song than Matthew Kellett’s here. And given that the show was written in 1882 (even allowing for the customary updates in Gilbert and Sullivan productions), the fact that it remains genuinely funny more than 140 years later makes for a truly special night at the theatre.
Strephon is the product of a secret marriage long ago between a young lawyer and the beautiful fairy Iolanthe. Now grown up and “mortal from the waist down”, Strephon falls in love with Phyllis, a Ward in Chancery. Strephon’s father, believing Iolanthe to be dead, has become the Lord Chancellor and seeks to prevent the marriage by allowing two members of the House of Lords to compete for Phyllis’s hand. Iolanthe is released from imprisonment by the Fairy Queen — since it is forbidden for immortal fairies to marry mortal men — and is compelled to intervene, at risk of her life, to ensure that true love triumphs and Strephon and Phyllis are united. All this unfolds against a background of Gilbert’s comic scorn for the idiocy of the hereditary peerage and the blindness of MPs who follow their leaders without independent thought. 1882 or 2026? You decide.
There are many fine performances. Matthew Kellett is a consummate Lord Chancellor. He has grown over the years from a bit-part singer in CCO productions into the deserved star of this and other shows. In Gilbert’s witty arias and patter songs he is superb, and his reunion with Iolanthe has something of the emotional intensity of a Verdi finale.
As the Fairy Queen, Meriel Cunningham is outstanding — the real thing: a rich, deep contralto in the great Gilbert and Sullivan tradition, yet with a thoroughly contemporary presence. Her followers understandably quail at her slightest frown. As the peers competing for Phyllis’s hand, David Menezes is an elegant Earl Tolloller and Catrine Kirkman a splendid Lady Mountararat, channelling the Iron Lady in a sharply comic performance. As Iolanthe, Eleanor O’Driscoll is serene yet quietly determined, ready to challenge her formidable Queen when her son’s happiness is at stake. Among the young lovers, Matthew Palmer has the air of a P. G. Wodehouse hero, while Llio Evans makes a spirited and engaging Phyllis. Despite being only two in number, Sarah Prestwidge and Martha Jones do admirable work representing the fairy chorus.
CCO’s artistic and musical directors, John Savournin and David Eaton, once again combine to bring out the best in this Gilbert and Sullivan classic. Eaton, moving from his usual place at the piano to the conductor’s rostrum, leads the CCO Chamber Orchestra, whose sparkling playing enhances the entire performance. Savournin, working with choreographer Merry Holden, ensures that the small stage — with minimal scenery but an imposing bookcase of parliamentary papers and some unreliable lamps — becomes a constant parade of lively action and inventive comic movement. While we inevitably miss some of the impact of the large chorus numbers of the original, we gain moments of extra sharpness in the political satire, some of which feels strikingly modern.
This is a production that deserves far more performances than the dozen or so still scheduled at Wilton’s. It has an interesting history: the original London run was halted by the Covid crisis after only four performances. Whatever its future, one hopes it will continue to flourish in intimate venues such as Wilton’s, where its musical and comic qualities can shine. Amid present gloom, it is a genuine ray of theatrical light.
Music: Arthur Sullivan
Words: W S Gilbert
Conductor: David Eaton
Director: John Savournin
Performers incl: Matthew Kellett, Matthew Palmer, Meriel Cunningham, Eleanor O’Driscoll
Running time: 2 hours 20 minutes
Dates: until 28 February 2026
Photo credit: Craig Fuller