Gilbert & Sullivan concert honours Sussex expert

Featuring celebrated performers from the D’Oyly Carte and world of G&S both on stage and in the audience, Topsy Turvy 2 will take place at 2.45 pm on Sunday, October 22 at the New Bury Theatre, Hurstpierpoint College.

Proceeds will go to Cancer Research in memory of the founder of the Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Sussex Melvyn Tarran. He was president of Sussex (jointly with opera singer Valerie Masterson) and a vice-president of the national G&S Society. Tickets priced at £15 are available from https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/topsy-turvy-2. Further information: 01444 235475/07885 373394

International soloists and a large chorus will perform popular excerpts from all the G&S operettas. Famous names from the world of opera and musicals will join the chorus comprising singers from 57 musical societies in Sussex and far beyond.

The soloists are Bruce Graham, Fenton Gray, Stephen Anthony Brown, Louise Crane, Barry Clark, James Cleverton, Alexandra Hazard, Elinor Jane Moran, Jane Metcalfe and David Steadman. The musical director is Simon Gray with accompanist Julie Mackrill.

Two close friends of Melvyn, Susan Fleet and Laurence Leng – who met singing G&S 50 years ago and still perform it together as recently as two weeks ago – are the producers. They staged a charity concert for St Peter & St James Hospice last October at Wivelsfield, but felt a high-profile concert was needed to do justice to Melvyn’s memory.

Susan is promising “rousing choruses, celebrated soloists, nostalgia aplenty and all for a great cause.”

Laurence E Leng, a friend of Melvyn’s, said: “Melvyn was a great lover of music but, especially, from the age of 16, the works of Gilbert & Sullivan. Although he was keen to have a stage career himself he ultimately went into catering and actually owned a number of restaurants. The most appropriate, considering his love of G & S, was one called Sullivan’s in Hassocks which opened in 1979.”