Ruddigore

A satirical take on the Victorian Melodrama genre, Ruddigore’s zany plot has it all--ghosts, witches, curses, disguises, and even a wicked villain who tries to make off with the fair maiden. All of the Baronets of the locale of Ruddigore are under a terrible curse enacted by a witch long ago--each of the successive Baronets must commit some kind of a crime every single day, or else they will die in terrible agony.

Robin Oakapple has been living as a farmer for years, working up the courage to ask the beautiful village maiden Rose Maybud for her hand, but he is hiding a secret--he is actually Sir Ruthven, the Baronet of Ruddigore, and has been hiding in disguise while his younger brother Despard assumed the title--and the curse. Betrayed by his foster-brother Richard, Robin is discovered and must take on the responsibility of committing a crime every day in order to appease the curse--and the ghosts of all his ancestors past, who are none too happy with his attempt to shirk his title. Robin must somehow find a way to lead the honest life he loves--but how? Ruddigore is an ensemble tour de force with a wealth of fun character roles.