In a time of global uncertainty, Lamplighters Music Theatre is leaning into the chaos with a bold new vision. To anyone who has been concerned about recent leadership changes, let us be clear: Lamplighters Music Theatre is not going anywhere. What began as a period of transition has transformed into a dynamic opportunity for reinvention, resulting in a groundbreaking new artistic structure and a summer production that promises to be magical. Our journey towards long-term financial sustainability is well underway!

The organization has forged a new Artistic Oversight Committee to harness the collective wisdom of a Board steeped in rich theatre experience, and prepared to adapt our traditional mode of presentation to new concepts, new audiences, and new artists. Chaired by the illustrious Dennis Lickteig, the Committee is poised to guide the company into a vibrant new chapter.

“Contemporary American life has never resembled the Victorian age more closely,” said Chris Uzelac, Board President. “The satire, the bureaucracy, and the absurdities of the past are mirroring our present in real-time. We knew we needed a fresh perspective to illuminate these parallels.”

To bring this vision to life, Lamplighters threw open its 74-year-old doors to the Bay Area’s boundless talent pool, launching an inaugural Request for Proposal (RFP) process. The goal was simple yet ambitious: to reimagine a classic Gilbert & Sullivan gem for a modern audience while at the same time opening Lamplighters’ doors to allow the widest and most diverse array of talent to join its longstanding pool of superb artists.

The RFP yielded an overwhelming number of submissions, with more than half coming from diverse, local stage directors eager to put their stamp on the canon. After careful consideration, Lamplighters is thrilled to announce Ted Zoldan will serve as Stage Director for this summer’s production of Iolanthe in San Francisco.

“We are incredibly excited to see what Ted has in store,” said Dennis Lickteig, Chair of the Artistic Oversight Committee. “Ted’s passion for the material is unmatched. He is a die-hard Gilbert & Sullivan devotee who understands the nuance of the work, but brings a modern eye that is exactly what we need right now.”

Lamplighters is also proud to announce that Jennifer Ashworth will make her debut as Music Director. Rising through the ranks from chorister to principal, and recently serving as assistant music director to the inimitable Baker Peeples, Ashworth now takes the baton to lead the orchestra herself.

This summer, Iolanthe will not just be a show; it will be a reflection of our times, full of wit, beauty, and a little bit of fairy dust. We hope to see you there! Tickets will be available soon at www.lamplighters.org/iolanthe-26.

Stage Director Ted Zoldan is an actor, director and arts maker who has been active in the Bay Area theatre for 15 years. After graduating from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, he became a founding member of the community arts collective Waffle Opera, directing the West Coast premiere of Nicholas Isouard’s Cendrillon there, alongside Die Zauberflöte and The Threepenny Opera. Zoldan has directed for San Francisco Pocket Opera, Custom Made Theatre Company, and the Hot Air Music Festival, and has taken the stage at West Edge Opera, San Francisco Playhouse, Ray of Light Theatre, Hillbarn Theatre, and the San Francisco Shakespeare Festival. He last worked with Lamplighters as a chorus member in his first professional job at age 20 and is thrilled to be back.

Iolanthe, a Gilbert and Sullivan’s beloved operetta that tells what happens when magical forces come up against the least magical thing in the world: Politics. The half-mortal son of the fairy Iolanthe earns the ire of the British Government when he falls in love with the ward of the Lord Chancellor, and in revenge for the insult, a troupe of Fairies take it upon themselves to turn the Parliamentary system upside-down. In this intimate, wildly theatrical production, a celebration of magic both musical and artistic, the fairies are our storytellers and guides through this chaotic tale of love lost and found, freedom restored, and politicians who don’t stand a chance against a fairy with an agenda. All’s Fairy in Love and War.