Pirates and maidens and cops, oh my!

The idea of having a performance of excerpts from Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Pirates of Penzance as part of the 50th reunion of the class of 1954 was the brainchild of class members Abe Bergman and Don Green, both of whom had been in the chorus of Pirates during their senior year. The event became a multigenerational project, featuring performances by several members of the class of 1964, with advice from original director Herb Gladstone and current professor of music Virginia Hancock ’62, and piano accompaniment by Rob Fishel ’03. Soloists were the original Mabel, Rita Udell ’54; Frederic, Dick Udell ’55; Pirate King, Dugan Barr ’64; Major General, Jim Kahan ’64; Sergeant of Police, Bill Peck, professor of philosophy emeritus; Ruth, Suzanne Meyer Mittenthal ’64; and Edith, Vera Alcorn ’06. A chorus of maidens, pirates, and police included members of classes ranging from 1951 to 2006, singing lustily (if not always perfectly accurately) to an enthusiastic audience that packed the chapel on Saturday night.