As soon as The Mikado had its opening night, Gilbert started work on the next production – Ruddygore. Due to other work commitments, Sullivan delayed setting the opera to music until the latter part of 1886. Rehearsals finally commenced in December that year. The tenth Savoy Opera, Ruddygore was first performed by the D’Oyly Opera Company, at the Savoy Theatre, … Read More
The Pirates of Penzance
The Pirates of Penzance has been well loved for over a century. Performed by various opera companies, including the D’Oyly Carte Opera Company. As the fifth collaboration by Gilbert and Sullivan, it has been performed on Broadway, imitated by various companies, and modernised into film. A true comic opera of two acts. Officially premiering at the Fifth Avenue Theatre, New … Read More
A Gilbert & Sullivan Christmas
During their careers, both Gilbert and Sullivan contributed to Christmas entertainment in a variety of ways. Gilbert not only contributed through his written works, but his family also enjoyed spreading the Christmas spirit through their parties and pantomimes. Sullivan did not have a family, but he kept himself busy with his compositions, including four Christmas carols and opera collaborations with … Read More
Thespis – the first collaboration of Gilbert & Sullivan
Thespis was a Christmas entertainment operatic extravaganza, produced by John Hollingshead. He bought together W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan for their first collaboration. John Hollingshead has been the lessee of the Gaiety Theatre since 1868, successfully producing several musical burlesques and operettas. It was also the largest of five London theatres known to show the works of Gilbert & Sullivan, … Read More
W.S. Gilbert, writer of Victorian burlesque?
W.S. Gilbert’s first solo success came in 1866. It came about after his friend and mentor, Tom Robertson, was asked to write a pantomime but declined, due to the timescale – two weeks. He recommended Gilbert. The pantomime ‘Dulcamara, or the little duck and the great quack’ was the end result. The pantomime was a Victorian burlesque, based on Gaetano … Read More
W.S. Gilbert and ‘An Old Score’
Following the success of his recent opera burlesques, W.S. Gilbert wrote his first full-length prose – ‘An Old Score’. Described as a 3-act comedy-drama, it was based in part, on his previous 1967 short story, ‘Diamonds’ and on episodes in the lives of Irish engineer and railway contractor William Dargan, and banker John Sadlier. ‘An Old Score’ opened at the … Read More
D’Oyly: the man who initiated the Gilbert & Sullivan collaboration
Richard D’Oyly Carte, English composer, talent agent, impresario and hotelier, was born in the West End of London on 3rd May 1844. He was instrumental in bringing together W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan, as well funding and creating two of London’s theatres, an opera company and the incredibly successful Savoy chain of hotels. Carte was born into a family that appreciated … Read More
The cultural influences of Gilbert & Sullivan
Gilbert & Sullivan were well-known for their comedy operas, with the likes of ‘Pirates of Penzance’ and ‘Iolanthe’. They appealed to the audiences of their time, due in part, to the successful partnership of Gilbert’s lyrical genius & the musical composition of Sullivan. However, their operas were more than great shows – they also influenced our culture, from politics through to advertising. Gilbert & … Read More
Gilbert & Sullivan’s Trial by Jury
In 1868 W.S. Gilbert wrote a one-pace illustrated comic piece for ‘Fun’ Magazine. Entitled Trial by Jury, it drew on his experiences as a barrister and satirised the legal system, spoofing a trial over a ‘breach of promise’ arrangement of marriage. When Gilbert was approached by Carl Rosa, composer and opera manager, in the autumn of 1873 to create a … Read More
Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Mikado
The Mikado (or The Town of Titipu) was Gilbert & Sullivan’s ninth collaboration. Set in Japan, the story is based around the chief executioner, who has a tender heart that is in direct opposition to that needed for his official duties. The Mikado has an impressive operatic history – but this Savoy Opera nearly didn’t happen at all. Earning its … Read More
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