February 12th: Pirates and Gondolas
St. Matthias’ was officially founded as a mission of St. George’s, Place du Canada, in 1873, which means our community is 150 this year! For the next 12 months, we’ll be diving into the archives to shine the spotlight on particularly interesting parts of our history.
An image from a 1948 fashion show at St. Matthias’, featuring several ladies in “period dress”
Things at St. Matthias’ haven’t always been as serious as vestry meetings, financial reports, and lost bells. The parish has a long and vibrant history in the arts – our choir, of course, and the succession of organs, but also operettas, fashion shows, and Christmas pageants. A program note from 1973 reminds us that, “The church, by her investment in music or any of the arts, strengthens herself by preserving and expanding our culture.”
The clues in the archives are tantalising, and we know they’re just the beginning! If you have photos, newspaper clippings, programs, ticket stubs, or any other documents relating to the artistic life of the parish, we’d love to see them! Get in touch with Rector’s Warden Jessica to see about the best way for us to document your part of our history.
The parish archives preserve the programs of 1973’s anniversary production of The Pirates of Penzance and of 1985’s The Gondoliers, as well as very flattering reviews for both productions. A ticket for Pirates cost $3, and the reception in the Guild Room promised wine and pretzels (a very interesting combination!) for the reasonable price of 75 cents - all contributing to the organ fund.
Pirates was a real community effort; a glance at the “production and administration” page of the program reveals that 80 people were involved behind the scenes, and the Fine Arts Department at Sir George Williams, in addition to two local high schools, McGill University, and a theatre company run by local theatre maven Mary Morter, Pendulum Theatre. Onstage, the Reverend Peter Hannen, who would go on to become an Archdeacon and Vicar General of the Diocese but who in 1973 had only recently returned to Montreal from Stanbridge East, traded barbs and blows with members of the St. Matthias’ choir and clergy. The Westmount Examiner called it “one of the high points of the 100th anniversary celebration,” and noted that over 1000 people attended on opening weekend.
The Gondoliers similarly received high praise; a Gazette review of the opening night lauded the “ensemble singing…with delicately balanced voices and some sensitive, beautiful cadencing passages,” and noted that “the part that stole the show was that of the Duchess, played by Brian Davies,” whose Act II Aria was the standout of the whole performance. Once again, the community support made all the difference: scores were provided by the Montreal West Operatic Society, and another local theatre company as well as Dawson College helped with costuming and makeup, and Selwyn House School loaned props, chairs, and video recording equipment. And the production needed all the help it could get; a bulletin insert notes that, for a November 5th opening night, rehearsals began only in early September. The production was one of several fundraising efforts to fund a 1987 trip to tour English cathedrals, including Durham and York; a 1977 production of the same play had furnished a similar trip.
But the parish’s history with the arts goes back at least into the 1930s; by 1934, the St. Matthias’ Players Guild was putting on two Shakespeare productions (A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Much Ado about Nothing) and donating flowers in honour of Shakespeare’s birthday. Although the Guild did not submit annual reports, so all we have left are their budgets, they seem to have been doing a brisk trade in thespianism. Today, St. Matthias’ isn’t quite so Shakespearean, or Gilbert-and-Sullivan-ian – but we do other artistic things, like Valentine’s Sing-Alongs and Sunday School decorations for the sanctuary.