THE Cotswold Savoyards invite you to join them aboard the SS American for their production of Anything Goes by Cole Porter at the Everyman Theatre in Cheltenham from Tuesday, May 17 to Saturday, May 21.

Anything Goes is a musical comedy with music and lyrics by Cole Porter. The original book was a collaborative effort by Guy Bolton and P.G. Wodehouse, heavily revised by the team of Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse.

The story picks up as Billy Crocker finds that Hope Harcourt, the girl he fell in love at a party one night, is sailing for England with her mother and fiancé.

Determined to win her heart he stows away and enlists the help of Reno Sweeney (an evangelist turned nightclub singer) and an enthusiastic but hapless gangster Moonface Martin and his vivacious moll Bonnie.

The Wodehouse story is supported by some of Cole Porter’s unforgettable and well-loved songs including Anything Goes, I Get A Kick Out Of You, Let's Misbehave, Take Me Back To Manhattan and De-Lovely.

Tricks, entrapments and mistaken identities abound in show.

Gill Cogzell, vice president of the Cotswold Savoyards said: “We’re delighted to be putting on this gem of a show and have thoroughly enjoyed bringing Cole Porter’s songs to life with dynamic choreography and rip-roaring slapstick.”

One of the challenges facing all dramatic societies is finding shows that casts want to perform in and that audiences will want to see.

The Savoyards have clearly hit on a winning combination with Anything Goes; the fast-paced witty script and well-known and loved songs allow the Society to really show off their talents.

One of the newest members of the Cotswold Savoyards is Lola the Show Dog, making her on stage debut as the faithful companion to Mrs Harcourt and is a consummate professional throughout the show, even with the distraction of a troupe of tap dancers and a full chorus of singers.

The Cotswold Savoyards was formed in 1962 to produce the works of Gilbert and Sullivan.

They have presented staged versions of all 13 surviving operas, a reconstruction of Thespis, and other operettas by Sullivan, Lehar, Offenbach and Strauss.

  • Go to cotswoldsavoyards.com or everymantheatre.org.uk for more.