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Penn Singers
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The Penn Singers is a light opera company at the University of Pennsylvania. The group was founded in 1957 as the University's first all-female choir and was converted into a co-ed light opera company in 1972. The group performs two major productions each year - a Broadway-style musical or revue in the fall, and a Gilbert and Sullivan operetta in the spring. History The Penn Singers Light Opera Company had its origins in the Pennsyngers, an all-female chorus founded in 1957 by two University of Pennsylvania students, Meryl Moss and Edie Herman. Moss and Herman created the group as an outlet for female singers as an alternative to the all-male Penn Glee Club. In that first year, the women directed themselves. The next year, Bruce Montgomery, then head of Student Performing Arts, hired Ernest Ganz as their director. A number of other directors followed over the next thirteen years. Then, in 1970, the Philadelphia Orchestra premiered Montgomery's Herodotus Fragments, a concert piece written for orchestra and two choruses. The Pennsyngers and Penn Glee Club sang at the piece's premiere . In 1971, Montgomery took over as their director and made the group a co-ed ensemble. That year, the group was renamed the Penn Singers. In 1972, the Penn Singers performed a two act show: the first act contained the Buxtehude Missa Brevis, Mass in G, and five pieces from Jesus Christ Superstar. The second act was Trial By Jury. With the arrival of Montgomery as a full-time director and the opening of the ensemble to male singers, the group then decided to transform itself into a light opera company. The next year, the Penn Singers performed a fully-staged The Pirates of Penzance followed by a modernized version of Gilbert and Sullivan's Patience. The Singers have performed a Gilbert and Sullivan light opera every year since 1972 (except 1996 and 2006), alternating with an operetta or musical. In addition to their two major productions each year, the Singers travel each year to perform a concert version of their spring show for the Gilbert and Sullivan Society of New York. List of Productions In 1996 and 2006, the Singers performed Spindrift, an original musical written by Montgomery. * 1972: Three Ages of Faith/Trial by Jury * 1973: Pirates of Penzance * 1974: The Mikado * 1975: The Gondoliers * 1976: Iolanthe * 1977: Patience * 1978: Utopia, Limited * 1979: Pirates of Penzance * 1980: The Mikado * Spring 1981: Spindrift * Fall 1981: Trial by Jury * Spring 1982: The Yeomen of the Guard * Fall 1982: A Night of Light Opera * 1983: H.M.S. Pinafore * 1984: Iolanthe * 1985: Pirates of Penzance * Spring 1986: The Mikado * Fall 1986: Red, Hot and Cole * Spring 1987: The Gondoliers * Fall 1987: Berlin's Birthday Bash * Spring 1988: Patience * Fall 1988: Radio Days * Spring 1989: H.M.S. Pinafore * Fall 1989: Broadway Rhythm * Spring 1990: Ruddigore * Fall 1990: Lend Us Your Ears * Spring 1991: Pirates of Penzance * Fall 1991: Hooray for Hollywood * Spring 1992: Thespis * Fall 1992: Broadway to Heaven * Spring 1993: The Mikado * Fall 1993: Overtures * Spring 1994: Trial by Jury/The Sorcerer * Fall 1994: * Spring 1995: H.M.S. Pinafore * Fall 1995: Anything Goes * Spring 1996: Spindrift * Fall 1996: Brigadoon * Spring 1997: Iolanthe * Fall 1997: A Nightmare on Walnut Street * Spring 1998: Princess Ida * Fall 1998: Love...and Other Natural Disasters * Spring 1999: Pirates of Penzance * Fall 1999: Once Upon a Mattress * Spring 2000: Patience * Fall 2000: The Secret Garden * Spring 2001: The Mikado * Fall 2001: My Favorite Year * Spring 2002: Ruddigore * Fall 2002: Fiddler on the Roof * Spring 2003: Utopia, Limited * Fall 2003: The Most Happy Fella * Spring 2004: The Gondoliers * Fall 2004: The Mystery of Edwin Drood * Spring 2005: H.M.S. Pinafore * Fall 2005: Kiss Me, Kate * Spring 2006: Spindrift * Fall 2006: Candide * Spring 2007: Pirates of Penzance * Fall 2007: Ragtime * Spring 2008: Iolanthe * Fall 2008: Crazy for You * Spring 2009: The Mikado * Fall 2009: Curtains * Spring 2010: The Sorcerer * Fall 2010: Parade 2010-2011 Board of Executives President: Alexandra Feinson (C11) Vice Presidents: Shannon Kim (C12) and Sarah Tomberlin (C13) Business Manager: Lauren Amira (W11) Publicity Managers: Kristen Kinstrey (W12) and Madeline Vincent (W13) Secretary: Mary Lou Secules (C13) Librarian: Leah Mintz (C11) Members-at-Large: Veronica Decker (C11) and William Connell (C13) See Also
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