THE award-winning Hereford Gilbert and Sullivan Society return to The Courtyard with The Yeomen of the Guard, a tragi-comic musical, full of mystery, romance, intrigue and trickery to rival Shakespeare all set in the Tower of London.

The Yeomen of the Guard is unique in the Gilbert and Sullivan canon in that it starts and ends with a solo rather than a full chorus, and is the nearest to Grand Opera that Sullivan achieved and contains the usual wonderful chorus numbers including Tower Warders under Orders, the sublime madrigal Strange Adventure and the tenor solo Is Life a Boon? among many others.

It must also contain the most complicated plot of all the Gilbert and Sullivan operas, featuring a nobleman condemned to death, a penniless dancer, a jester and jailer and endless complication and confusion.

The Yeomen of the Guard runs at The Courtyard, Hereford, from Wednesday, March 15 to Saturday, March 18 at 7.30pm with a matinee on Saturday at 2.30pm. To book, call the box office on 01432 340555 or visit courtyard.org.uk