The Denison Singer's Theatre Workshop group will perform music from the comic light operaIolantheby Gilbert and Sullivan at 3 p.m. on Sunday (April 22) in Burke Recital Hall.Iolanthetells the love story of a shepherd and shepherdess - mixed in with "fairies" and "peers of Parliament." The concert is free and open to the public.

The production by the Singer's Theatre Workshop is fully staged with costumes and numerous dance numbers, including a ballet.Iolantheincludes the comic patter songs so typical of Gilbert and Sullivan as well as a gospel revival tune. Choreography for the production was provided by Erin Roberts, who also will be singing in the chorus of fairies. Accompanist is Sarah Ramsey, a 1961 Denison graduate and professional musician.

"Gilbert and Sullivan's most popular work is probably thePirates of PenzancebutIolantheis considered their most beautiful production," says Belinda Smith, an instructor at Denison and director of the group. Last spring, the Singer's Theatre Workshop performed numbers from Gilbert and Sullivan'sThe MikadoandThe Pirates of Penzance.

Smith has taught at Denison for the past three years and also has taught at Ohio University. She earned her doctorate at Ohio State in 1992 and performs regularly with Opera Columbus. She will be seen in the role of Praskovia this summer in Opera Columbus' production ofThe Merry Widow. Smith also performs in recital and is a soloist for oratorio and symphonic works.

Featured performers in this concert are: Blake Whyte, a first-year student from Kalamazoo, Mich.; Kirstra Otto, a senior from Rochester, N.Y.; Michelle Robinson, a senior from Guilford, Conn.; Tiana Gabriel, a sophomore from Cleveland Heights; James Clawson, a junior from Jeffersonville; and William Kempey, a senior from Allendale, N.J.

About Denison:

Denison University, founded in 1831, is an independent, residential liberal arts institution located in Granville, Ohio. A highly selective college enrolling 2,100 full-time undergraduate students from all 50 states and dozens of foreign countries, Denison is a place where innovative faculty and motivated students collaborate in rigorous scholarship, civic engagement and the cultivation of independent thinking.

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