THE D'OYLY CARTE OPERA COMPANY

Robert Eshelby

Robert Eshelby (1979-80)

[Born Kent Dec 1946]

After beginning his musical training as a schoolboy trumpeter in Somerset, Robert Eshelby moved with his family to Queensland, Australia, where he sang in a church choir. He later toured with the Queensland Opera Company and appeared as Frederic in The Pirates of Penzance and the Duke of Dunstable in Patience in Australia before joining the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company chorus in January 1979. He remained with the Company as a chorister until August 1980.

After leaving D'Oyly Carte, Eshelby began a career in elder care, serving for more than three decades as propriator of a residential care home in Dorset. He continued to perform in local opera companies, however. Eshelby and his wife, soprano Ruth Hastings, appeared regularly together in leading roles for Dorset Chamber Opera (1991-2010). He also served as principal tenor in G&S with the Bournemouth (1986-91) and Christchurch (1990-2010) Gilbert and Sullivan Societies.

In 2022, Eshelby published a book of reminiscences and poems, entitled "In Sentimental Mood: D'Oyly Carte and Me."

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