ONE of Gilbert and Sullivan's less performed works is coming to a county town stage.

Gilbert & Sullivan’s Patience will be performed by Opera Anywhere on Friday, October 4 at 7.30pm.

Patience is an extremely witty masterpiece about the Aesthetic Movement of the 1880s, with willowy poets, sighing maidens, hearty milkmaids and burly officers galore. Every tune is memorable, every word worth hearing, and the humour is as fresh as it was at the first performance.

Dorchester Arts’ artistic director Mark Tattersall said: “Patience is a high-spirited tale full of misplaced desires. There’s Reginald Bunthorne, the rakish, sulky ‘so-called’ poet with whom all the village maidens are besotted.

"Unbeknownst to them however is the fact that he doesn’t even like poetry and not only that, they find, he’s in love with Patience the milkmaid! Now Patience only has eyes for Archibald, a real poet who is just a little too perfect to marry. Meanwhile, a regiment of Dragoon Guards arrive perplexed to find the village maidens, who they were due to marry, very much disinterested. Will everyone find their wished-for suitor? It’s a lively operetta that playfully pits the strict morals of the Victorian era against the passionate indulgences of 1870s aestheticism.”

Opera Anywhere’s mission is to bring accessible opera to wider audiences of all ages. The D’Oyly Carte Charitable Trust generously supports Opera Anywhere in making this tour.

Tickets are £20 full price or £18 for Members of Dorchester Arts, under-18s or those on low income and are available from the Dorchester Arts box office on 01305 266926, in person at the Corn Exchange (weekdays 10am - 4pm) or via www.dorchesterarts.org.uk.

*Gilbert & Sullivan’s Patience by Opera Anywhere, Dorchester Corn Exchange, Dorchester, Friday October 4, 7.30pm. Contact Dorchester Arts for tickets.