Birth:16 September 19273130 -- Millicent, South Australia, Australia Death:7 March 2013 (Age 85) -- Southampton General Hospital, Southampton, Hampshire, England
Baritone Jeffrey Skitch made his first appearance on the London Stage as an extra in She Stoops to Conquer (Arts Theatre, April-May 1949). Later that year he was an assistant stage manager at the same theatre for The Romantic Young Lady (August-September 1949).
He joined the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company in May 1957, making his debut as Luiz in The Gondoliers. Skitch began the 1952-53 season as Luiz and Second Yeoman in The Yeomen of the Guard, but in October 1952, when Alan Styler left for a time, swapped Luiz for Giuseppe, and took over Archibald Grosvenor in Patience, Strephon in Iolanthe, and Pish-Tush in The Mikado.
When Styler returned in January 1953, Skitch reverted to Luiz, but continued to appear as Grosvenor, Strephon, and Pish-Tush, though Styler shared these roles with him. By September 1953, Skitch's roles were Captain Corcoran in H.M.S. Pinafore, Samuel in The Pirates of Penzance (shared with Trevor Hills), Grosvenor, Pish-Tush, and Luiz. For the following seasons (1954-56), he yielded Samuel to Hills, added Florian when Princess Ida was revived in September 1954, and filled in on occasion for Styler as Strephon.
In May 1956 Arthur Richards joined the Company, taking over Grosvenor for a season. Skitch's regular roles were reduced to Captain Corcoran, Pish-Tush, and Luiz in 1956-57 (though he filled in from time to time as Grosvenor and Strephon). He left the Company in May 1957.
Upon his return in December 1957, Skitch assumed only Captain Corcoran and Pish-Tush, but during the 1958-59 season added the Counsel for the Plaintiff in Trial by Jury (shared with Styler), reclaimed Florian when Princess Ida was revived in December 1958, and made the occasional appearance as the Learned Judge in Trial.
For 1959-60, Skitch was the Judge, Captain Corcoran, Pish-Tush, and (from November 1959 onward) Luiz. From 1960-62, he played the same four roles plus a share of Strephon (shared with Styler in 1960-61), and filled in on occasion for Styler as Giuseppe (1960-61) and Kenneth Sandford (1961-62) as Grosvenor.
The 1962-63 was disrupted by another Styler departure (from December-April). Skitch's roles for the entire season were Captain Corcoran, Strephon, and Florian. He also played the Judge (August-December) and the Counsel (December-April) in Trial, Pish-Tush (briefly in August, then October-August), Luiz (on occasion) and Giuseppe (December-April) in The Gondoliers.
Skitch began the 1963-64 season as the Judge, Captain Corcoran, Strephon, and Giuseppe. He reclaimed Pish-Tush in November, yielded Giuseppe to the returning Styler in December, played Florian in the January-April revival of Princess Ida, and appeared now and then as Grosvenor. For his last season with the Company (1964-65), Skitch was the Judge, Captain Corcoran, Strephon, and (on occasion) Grosvenor.
During his tenure with the D'Oyly Carte, Skitch recorded Doctor Daly in The Sorcerer (1953), Florian (1955, 1965), Captain Corcoran (1960), and Luiz (1961). After leaving the Company he taught at Oakham School, Rutland, went on to Melvern College as head of the Biology Department, and later became head of the Elmhurst Ballet School.
Arriving on the D'Oyly Carte scene in May 1952, Jeffrey Skitch, the possessor of a baritone voice of real charm, made his debut as Luiz in "The Gondoliers". He was to play this role with great sympathy and success, with practically no interruption, for more than ten years - until in fact he surrendered it to Philip Potter in August 1962. This, however, was for Jeffrey only a beginning. Later the same year (1952) he began to double with Alan Styler the parts of Grosvenor (for which part he had considerable feeling), Strephon, Pish-Tush, and Giuseppe.
In September 1953 he took over what was perhaps his most famous part, Captain Corcoran. It is a role which has been well played by a number of artists, including Leslie Rands, Charles Dorning, and Thomas Lawlor, not to mention Alan Styler; but no one who saw Jeffrey Skitch in this part is likely to forget him. For a fairly brief period he also appeared as Samuel, but at this time dropped Strephon.
A year later, with the first revival of "Princess Ida" since 1939, he began to sustain the role of Florian - and how good he was! Since 1939, it is probable that no trio representing Hilarion, Cyril, and Florian has been as strong as, respectively, Thomas Round, Leonard Osborn, and Jeffrey Skitch. In July 1955 he dropped Grosvenor. Originally this was due to the absence of "Patience" from the repertoire; but in 1957, when a new production was mounted at the Princes Theatre, the part was played by Arthur Richards - a fine singer who succeeded Fisher Morgan but was perhaps more at home on the concert platform.
Jeffrey left briefly in 1957, and on his return in December played only Captain Corcoran and Pish-Tush. The following year he added Counsel in "Trial by Jury", and resumed Luiz once more. About a year later he again appeared as Strephon. During the 1962-1963 tour he dropped Luiz, Strephon, and the Judge, but resumed the two latter the next year.
On his last tour he played only the Judge, Captain Corcoran, and Strephon. Well as he performed as Strephon, he was possibly a little too heavy in style for the part; but he will certainly be remembered with affection, first and foremost for his Captain Corcoran and then for Florian, Luis, and a very good Archibald Grosvenor.
He was a most successful recording artist, and his work includes a very fine Dr. Daly, an equally fine Florian (1955 and 1965), Captain Corcoran, and Luis - all for Decca, the two last being with dialogue.
Jeffrey Skitch toured the U.S.A. and Canada with D'Oyly Carte three times; after leaving the Company he taught at Oakham School, Rutland, where he was also persuaded to introduce Gilbert and Sullivan, and later he went on to Malvern College as Head of the Biology Department.
Note: Jeffrey Ralph Skitch (September 1927 – 7 March 2013) was an actor, operatic baritone and teacher best known for his performances and recordings with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company from 1952 to 1965.
Born in Australia, Skitch moved with his mother to England when he was two years old. He served in the RAF during World War II and began acting by 1949. After his career with D'Oyly Carte, he turned to teaching, and from 1981 to 1995 he was the Principal of Elmhurst Ballet School.
Early life and career Skitch was born in Millicent, South Australia, the son of Ralph Aubrey Skitch (1896–1959), a land agent, and Magda Katie Helena Herman (1897–1959), who met in London during the First World War. The couple married in Australia in about 1920. In 1929, Skitch and his older brother Robert Ernest (1923–1999) travelled with their mother on a visit to London and did not return to Australia. His parents divorced, and his father remained in Australia, later remarrying. Skitch was educated in England. After National Service with the Royal Air Force, he trained as an actor and singer at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and The Old Vic Theatre School.
Skitch first performed professionally in London in 1949, in "She Stoops to Conquer", as an extra at the Arts Theatre. That autumn, he served at the Arts Theatre as an assistant stage manager and actor for the play "The Romantic Young Lady". He appeared in "Idomeneo" with the Glyndebourne Festival Opera in 1951. In 1952 he joined the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company for the 1952-53 season. His first roles with the company were Luiz in "The Gondoliers" and the small role of Second Yeoman in "The Yeomen of the Guard". When Alan Styler temporarily left D'Oyly Carte later that year, Skitch began to share the larger role of Giuseppe in "The Gondoliers" and added to his repertory the roles of Archibald Grosvenor in "Patience", Strephon in "Iolanthe" and Pish-Tush in "The Mikado". The next season, Skitch added the role of Captain Corcoran in "HMS Pinafore", the role for which he is perhaps best remembered, and also briefly appeared as Samuel in "The Pirates of Penzance". During this period, he dropped the role of Strephon and switched back to Luiz in "The Gondoliers". In 1954, he took over the role of Florian in "Princess Ida" and, in addition to his other roles, occasionally played Strephon. Except for a break from the company in the second half of 1957, Skitch played some or all of these roles through 1965, also sometimes playing the Counsel for the Plaintiff or the Learned Judge in "Trial by Jury". The company toured extensively in Britain and also toured the U.S. during these years.
Skitch recorded several roles with D'Oyly Carte on the Decca label, including Doctor Daly in "The Sorcerer" (1953), Florian in "Princess Ida" (1955, 1965), Captain Corcoran in "H.M.S. Pinafore" (1960) and Luiz in "The Gondoliers" (1961). He also participated in several radio broadcasts with the company during his tenure. In 1975, during the company's centennial season, Skitch was invited to participate in the final performance of "Trial by Jury", in which the regular D'Oyly Carte chorus was augmented by fourteen former stars of the company.
Family, teaching career and later years While touring with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company in Los Angeles, Skitch met an American singer, Stella Maria Hawley, and the two married in the Actors' Church in New York City. They had two sons, Robert and Phillip, respectively a schoolmaster and a hotel manager.
After leaving the company, Skitch obtained a BSc in Biological Science from London University and subsequently became a teacher, working at Oakham School in Rutland before moving on to Malvern College as head of the Biology Department. In 1981 he became the Principal of Elmhurst Ballet School. On his retirement in 1995, Skitch moved to Lymington in Hampshire, where he served as a director of a property management company called "South Grove Maintenance (Lymington) Limited", and he and his wife enjoyed sailing their yacht Pinafore.
Note: Jeffrey Ralph Skitch, Actor, Singer and Academic On 7th March 2013 aged 85 after a short illness. Former principal baritone of the D’Oyly-Carte Opera Company, and Principal of Elmhurst School for the Performing Arts. Dear husband of Stella and brother to Robert (deceased). Very much-loved Dad of sons Robert and Philip and their wives, Anne and Silke. Dear grandfather to Chris, William, Alex, Simon, Katarina, Andrew, Rosanna, Tara and Tessa. Funeral on Wednesday March 20th 2013, 11am at Our Lady of Mercy Church, 132 High Street Lymington Hampshire SO41 9AQ. All flowers to Funeral directors F.W House & Sons, 33-34 St Thomas Street, Lymington SO41 9NE.