“It is a great theatrical experience”.

So says Vivienne Elborne, the visiting stage director of the upcoming Bermuda Musical & Dramatic Society production of the musical theatre comedy, ‘Drood’ — or, ‘The Mystery of Edwin Drood’, to give it its full title.

Written by Rupert Holmes, and based on a unfinished story by Charles Dickens, the musical is very dear to Mrs. Elborne’s heart, being one of the first shows she directed as artistic director of the San Pedro Playhouse in San Antonio, Texas.

In fact, it was a combination of sentimental reasons and fate which brought her to Bermuda for the first time.

As a professional producer/stage director who travels extensively, Mrs. Elborne regularly scans websites to see what’s on offer, yet there was one site which she had not visited for almost a year. One day, on a whim, she clicked on it and saw the BMDS advertisement. Ironically, it was the only website on which the local theatre organisation had placed the advertisement — for someone to direct ‘Blood Brothers’.

“I thought, ‘Bermuda — I haven’t been there. I am British, ‘Blood Brothers’ is British. Why don’t I apply for that? What have I got to lose? It was an out-of-the-blue thing, so I sent in my resumé and here I am!” she said.

Meanwhile, for various reasons, ‘Blood Brothers’ was dropped for ‘Drood’, which made her decision all the sweeter.

As a professional with an extensive history of singing, acting, producing and directing to her credit, both in her native Britain and the United States where she now lives, Mrs. Elborne did wonder what sort of talent she would find on a tiny, mid-Atlantic Island, and also how ‘Drood’ would play to the audience — but then similar thoughts often cross her mind heading into the unknown. Happily, the auditions set her mind at rest.

“I felt very comfortable because (a) I had a cast, (b) I knew that the organisation was strong, and (c) I knew that the audience were going to love ‘Drood’, based on what people told me about their response to the BMDS pantomines,” she said. “So when I came back to begin rehearsals I felt we were certainly going to have a success on our hands, and I have no doubt people will love the show.”

Mrs. Elborne sums up ‘Drood’ as “a melodrama with substance, because it is extremely funny, very much a musical theatre comedy, and all the characters are really two-faced. They all have a secret in their past somewhere, and that is what makes the mystery. It is very, very different.

“The wonderful part is that the audience has to become engaged in what is going on as it gets to vote on who the murderer is, and who the lovers are, so no two performances are the same,” she continued. “There is a lot of inter-action, rather like the panto tradition. It is not one of those things where the audience sits back and lets it wash over them,” she said.

The visiting director is more than happy with the cast, which she describes as “very, very strong. I am delighted with every single character in the show. It is an ensemble cast, meaning there is no chorus. Every person in the show has a pretty heavy workload, so there are no ‘passengers’ — everyone gets to work hard. There are 11 people in the cast, and I have 11 wonderful performers with whom I am enjoying working very much.”

Whether she works with professionals or amateurs, Mrs. Elborne says her approach is consistent. “I treat every cast in the same way, whether they get paid or not. I expect them to do their best. Sometimes the ones who don’t get paid give far superior performances to the ones who do.”

In terms of the current cast, she has no doubt “they are going to do the best they can and give a wonderful performance”.

“Burton Mazzone (Jasper) is a very experienced professional who has done a lot of Broadway and movies. His resumé is huge, and he’s done a lot in New York so he adds richness to the cast — but everyone else gives him a run for his money, they really do,” she says. “Jenn Osmond is wonderful as Edwin Drood; I am thrilled with her performance. Alison Evans (Rosa Bud) sings like an angel. John Ross (Crisparkle), Stephen Notman (Bazzard) and Dal Tucker (Durdles) are all very, very funny. Paul Harney (Neville) and Gillian Henderson (Helena), who play the brother and sister with a secret, are very strong performers, and Rajai Denbrook (Deputy), a 16-year-old from Warwick Academy who is a first-timer at BMDS, is great. What a great experience for him.

“Carol Birch (Princess Puffer), who has been involved in many, many productions as a performer and director, is also very funny, and holding it all together is Shawn Angiers as the good old-fashioned music hall chairman, for ‘Drood’ really does have that old English music hall feel to it, which of course is very familiar to some of your expats.

“I think the cast all find this very, very rewarding, and I always say theatre is very therapeutic. You get to meet people, you express yourself in your performance, you have that interaction with the audience, so what better way to spend you free time than doing theatre? But then, that would be my attitude because I love it so much.”

On the production side, Mrs. Elborne pays tribute to Lisa Maule, whom she says is doing a great job as the music director, while producer Jo Shane “has her work cut out for her putting it all together, but she is very capable”.

She is thrilled to be working with assistant director Barbara Jones, whom she describes as “just phenomenal”. “She has made my life so much easier,” she says.

The British-born director has been similarly impressed by the talents of all the people who work behind the scenes on such things as sound, lighting, sets and costumes, and when she was shown an old BMDS panto programme she couldn’t believe her eyes at how many people gave of themselves to mount the production.

“The BMDS has creativity in spades,” she marvelled. “So many people working towards putting on a good show. What a wonderful asset the BMDS is to Bermuda, and what a wonderful organisation it is,” she says.

Beyond the theatre doors the charming and delightful first-time visitor is amazed at how beautiful Bermuda is — so much so, in fact, that she insisted her husband join her from their home in Texas.

“It is a stunningly beautiful Island. The colours of the ocean — oh my goodness me. I am just stunned at how beautiful it is. I am enjoying it very much, and now that my husband is here I can get out a little more.”

Meanwhile, Mrs. Elborne’s final word on the show is to “encourage everyone to see it at least once because, don’t forget, every performance is a little bit different”.

The box office for ‘Drood’ opened at Daylesford Theatre last night and tickets are $35. The show runs from May 2 to 12 with matinees on May 5 and 12.