Johann Strauss's operetta, full of sweeping melodies, is a farce with the usual themes of infidelity and disguised identities. It is a tale of revenge by Dr Falke on his friend Von Eisenstein for a previous embarrassing prank.

Enlisting the help of Prince Orlofsky, a ball is held to which Von Eisenstein attends and woos a masked Hungarian countess who is in fact his wife, Rosalinda. The wife is not entirely blameless as she has recently been entertaining Alfred, a former suitor. The plot twists and turns until all is revealed and forgiven.

Helen Hardwick, playing Rosalinda, was suffering from a chest infection. Despite this her performance was very strong with the voice faltering only on a couple of occasions. As her husband, Mike MacKenzie’s singing could have been stronger, as it was not always possible to hear his words over the musical accompaniment. Matt Clark and William Revels had no such problems.

Special praise for the quality of their singing is due to Charlotte Fane as the maid Adele and Hilary Jane Andrews, the Prince. Mark Langham as Alfred also impressed with his fine voice and comedic talents. The large chorus, under Simon Gray’s assured direction, produced a well-balanced sound.