Tickets Now On Sale For Gilbert & Sullivan Society Of Houston’s THE GONDOLIERS
The Goondoliers will return to Wortham Theater Center's Cullen Theater, directed by Alyssa Weathersby.
Tickets are now on sale for the Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Houston's summer production of The Gondoliers, celebrating the company's 75th season. In a full-circle moment, The Gondoliers was the Society's very first production in 1952.
Performances will take place July 18–19 and July 25–26 at the Cullen Theater in the Wortham Theater Center, with Saturday performances at 8 p.m. and Sunday matinees at 2:30 p.m. The production also coincides with the 40th season of the Wortham Theater Center, where the Society staged The Gondoliers for the inaugural performance in the Cullen Theater in 1987.
Houston's longest-running opera company brings this lively, satirical tale back to the stage for the first time since 2017. A hallmark of Gilbert and Sullivan's signature wit, The Gondoliers blends romance, mistaken identity, and playful commentary on class and duty.
Returning as stage director is Alyssa Weathersby, a Houston–native and New York–based director, choreographer, and performer who helmed last season's acclaimed Iolanthe. Known for inventive productions that bridge opera and musical theater, Weathersby brings a vibrant, movement-driven approach to the production.
Music Director Dr. Clifton Evans also returns to the company, having previously served as assistant conductor (2000–2003) and music director (2003–2008). He is currently Director of Orchestral Activities and Professor of Conducting at Oklahoma City University, as well as Artistic Director of the Oklahoma Youth Orchestras.
Assistant Music Director for The Gondoliers is Gregory D. McDaniel, a Houston native, an active conductor and educator. He currently serves as artistic director of the Houston Ebony Opera Guild and is the New Jersey Symphony's 2025–26 Colton Conducting Fellow.
Set in a colorful Venice, The Gondoliers follows two charming gondolier brothers, Marco and Giuseppe, who discover that one of them is heir to a distant throne—but no one knows which. Complicating matters, the rightful king was married as an infant, leaving one brother accidentally with two wives. What follows is a whirlwind of romance, mistaken identity, and comedic twists, all resolved with a signature Gilbert and Sullivan ending.
The cast features Riley Ortega as Fiametta, Ilana Walder-Biesanz as Vittoria, Valeria Bautista as Giulia, Riley Vagis as Tessa, Laura Coleman as Gianetta, Ben Rorabaugh as Francesco, Ennis Watt as Antonio, Micah Zimmerman as Giorgio, Jason Watt as Annibale, Grant Peck as Marco Palmieri, Sean Holshouser as Giuseppe Palmieri, Sarah Lee as The Duchess of Plaza-Toro, Dennis Arrowsmith as The Duke of Plaza-Toro, Kaitlin Stavinoha as Casilda, Nathan Holmes as Luiz, Richard Paul Fink as Don Alhambra del Bolero, and Raquel Bowman as Inez.
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