Ann Drummond-Grant

Ann Drummond-Grant (1905 – 11 September 1959) was a British singer and actress, best known for her performances in contralto roles of the Gilbert and Sullivan operas with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company.

Drummond-Grant began her career as a soprano. She joined D'Oyly Carte in 1933, but was considered by the company's management as too tall to be an ideal performer of the Savoy Operas' young soprano heroines, and left the company in 1938. During World War II she toured in a variety of theatrical shows. She married the D'Oyly Carte musical director, Isidore Godfrey, in 1940, and returned to the company in 1950 as a contralto, playing Gilbert's formidable older women, until shortly before her death at the age of 54.

Drummond-Grant was born in Edinburgh and studied singing in Scotland. She sang for five years as leading soprano in a parish church, played in small opera and musical comedy troupes, and did some concert work and broadcasting.

In 1933, Drummond-Grant joined the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company chorus. In 1936 she began to play the small parts of Celia in Iolanthe, Zorah in Ruddigore, and Fiametta in The Gondoliers. She soon moved up to the larger roles of Plaintiff in Trial by Jury and Lady Psyche in Princess Ida, and she also made occasional appearances in the leading soprano roles of Josephine in H.M.S. Pinafore, the title roles in Patience and Princess Ida, and Gianetta in The Gondoliers.

In 1937, Drummond-Grant became one of D'Oyly Carte's principal sopranos. She began the season as the Plaintiff, Josephine, Patience, Phyllis in Iolanthe (sharing the role), the title role in Princess Ida and Elsie Maynard in The Yeomen of the Guard. She was selected to play Aline when The Sorcerer was revived in 1938. She won excellent reviews for her performances. Of her Ida, The Manchester Guardian wrote, "Miss Ann Drummond-Grant sang and acted the heroine's part as finely as any of her predecessors that we can remember." The paper also praised her as Patience and Elsie. However, the company was hiring new sopranos, including Helen Roberts, and Drummond-Grant lost roles or had to share them. The Times later wrote, "Being strikingly tall and well-built, she was judged to be not quite fitted for the leading soprano parts." Seeing herself sidelined, she left the company at the end of 1938.

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