The Pirates of Penzance - Wikipedia The Pirates of Penzance From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to navigation Jump to search Drawing of the Act I finale The Pirates of Penzance; or, The Slave of Duty is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. The opera's official premiere was at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York City on 31 December 1879, where the show was well received by both audiences and critics.[1] Its London debut was on 3 April 1880, at the Opera Comique, where it ran for 363 performances. The story concerns Frederic, who, having completed his 21st year, is released from his apprenticeship to a band of tender-hearted pirates. He meets the daughters of Major-General Stanley, including Mabel, and the two young people fall instantly in love. Frederic soon learns, however, that he was born on the 29th of February, and so, technically, he has a birthday only once each leap year. His indenture specifies that he remain apprenticed to the pirates until his "twenty-first birthday", meaning that he must serve for another 63 years.[2] Bound by his own sense of duty, Frederic's only solace is that Mabel agrees to wait for him faithfully. Pirates was the fifth Gilbert and Sullivan collaboration and introduced the much-parodied "Major-General's Song". The opera was performed for over a century by the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company in Britain and by many other opera companies and repertory companies worldwide. Modernized productions include Joseph Papp's 1981 Broadway production, which ran for 787 performances, winning the Tony Award for Best Revival and the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Musical, and spawning many imitations and a 1983 film adaptation. Pirates remains popular today, taking its place along with The Mikado and H.M.S. Pinafore as one of the most frequently played Gilbert and Sullivan operas. Contents 1 Background 1.1 Genesis 1.2 Original production and aftermath 2 Roles 3 Synopsis 4 Musical numbers 5 Critical reception 6 Musical analysis 6.1 Parody 6.2 Patter, counterpoint, and vocal writing 7 Versions 8 Production history 9 Historical casting 10 Joseph Papp's Pirates 11 Recordings 12 Cultural impact 12.1 Major-General's Song 12.2 Film and television 12.3 Other references 13 Adaptations 14 See also 15 Notes 16 References 17 External links Background[edit] The Pirate Publisher – An International Burlesque that has the Longest Run on Record, from Puck, 1886: Gilbert is seen as one of the British authors whose works are stolen by the pirate publisher. The Pirates of Penzance was the only Gilbert and Sullivan opera to have its official premiere in the United States. At the time, American law offered no copyright protection to foreigners. After the pair's previous opera, H.M.S. Pinafore, achieved success in London in 1878, approximately 150 American companies quickly mounted unauthorised productions that often took considerable liberties with the text and paid no royalties to the creators.[3][4][5] Gilbert and Sullivan hoped to forestall further "copyright piracy" by mounting the first production of their next opera in America, before others could copy it, and by delaying publication of the score and libretto.[6] They succeeded in keeping for themselves the direct profits of the first American production of The Pirates of Penzance by opening the production themselves on Broadway, prior to the London production, and they also operated profitable US touring companies of Pirates and Pinafore.[3] However, Gilbert, Sullivan, and their producer, Richard D'Oyly Carte, failed in their efforts, over the next decade, to control the American performance copyrights to Pirates and their other operas.[7] Fiction and plays about pirates were ubiquitous in the 19th century.[8] Walter Scott's The Pirate (1822) and James Fenimore Cooper's The Red Rover were key sources for the romanticised, dashing pirate image and the idea of repentant pirates.[9] Both Gilbert and Sullivan had parodied these ideas early in their careers. Sullivan had written a comic opera called The Contrabandista, in 1867, about a hapless British tourist who is captured by bandits and forced to become their chief. Gilbert had written several comic works that involved pirates or bandits. In Gilbert's 1876 opera Princess Toto, the title character is eager to be captured by a brigand chief. Gilbert had translated Jacques Offenbach's operetta Les brigands, in 1871.[9] As in Les brigands, The Pirates of Penzance absurdly treats stealing as a professional career path, with apprentices and tools of the trade such as the crowbar and life preserver.[10] Genesis[edit] While Pinafore was running strongly at the Opera Comique in London, Gilbert was eager to get started on his and Sullivan's next opera, and he began working on the libretto in December 1878.[11] He re-used several elements of his 1870 one-act piece, Our Island Home, which had introduced a pirate "chief", Captain Bang. Bang was mistakenly apprenticed to a pirate band as a child by his deaf nursemaid. Also, Bang, like Frederic in The Pirates of Penzance, had never seen a woman before and felt a keen sense of duty, as an apprenticed pirate, until the passage of his twenty-first birthday freed him from his articles of indenture.[12][13] Bernard Shaw believed that Gilbert drew on ideas in Les brigands for his new libretto, including the businesslike bandits and the bumbling police.[14] Gilbert and Sullivan also inserted into Act II an idea they first considered for a one-act opera parody in 1876 about burglars meeting police, while their conflict escapes the notice of the oblivious father of a large family of girls.[15] As in Pinafore, "there was a wordful self-descriptive set-piece for Stanley ["The Major-General's Song"], introducing himself much as Sir Joseph Porter had done ... a lugubrious comic number for the Sergeant of Police ... a song of confession for Ruth, the successor [to] Little Buttercup", romantic material for Frederic and Mabel, and "ensemble and chorus music in turn pretty, parodic and atmospheric."[16] Gilbert, Sullivan and Carte met by 24 April 1879 to make plans for a production of Pinafore and the new opera in America.[17] Carte travelled to New York in the summer of 1879 and made arrangements with theatre manager John T. Ford[18] to present, at the Fifth Avenue Theatre, the authorised productions. He then returned to London.[19] Meanwhile, once Pinafore became a hit in London, the author, composer and producer had the financial resources to produce future shows themselves, and they executed a plan to free themselves from their financial backers in the "Comedy Opera Company". Carte formed a new partnership with Gilbert and Sullivan to divide profits equally among themselves after the expenses of each of their shows.[20] In November 1879, Gilbert, Sullivan and Carte sailed to America with a company of strong singers, to play both Pinafore and the new opera, including J. H. Ryley as Sir Joseph, Blanche Roosevelt as Josephine, Alice Barnett as Little Buttercup, Furneaux Cook as Dick Deadeye, Hugh Talbot as Ralph Rackstraw and Jessie Bond as Cousin Hebe, some of whom had been in the Pinafore cast in London.[21] To these, he added some American singers, including Signor Brocolini as Captain Corcoran.[22] Alfred Cellier came to assist Sullivan, while his brother François remained in London to conduct Pinafore there.[23] Gilbert and Sullivan chose talented actors who were not well-known stars, and so they did not command high fees. They then tailored their operas to the particular abilities of these performers.[24] The skill with which Gilbert and Sullivan used their performers had an effect on the audience: as critic Herman Klein wrote, "we secretly marvelled at the naturalness and ease with which [the Gilbertian quips and absurdities] were said and done. For until then no living soul had seen upon the stage such weird, eccentric, yet intensely human beings .... [They] conjured into existence a hitherto unknown comic world of sheer delight."[25] Gilbert acted as stage director for his own plays and operas. He sought naturalism in acting, which was unusual at the time, just as he strove for realistic visual elements. He deprecated self-conscious interaction with the audience and insisted on a style of portrayal in which the characters were never aware of their own absurdity but were coherent internal wholes.[26] Sullivan conducted the music rehearsals.[27] Poster for the copyright performance at Paignton The composition of the music for Pirates was unusual, in that Sullivan wrote the music for the acts in reverse, intending to bring the completed Act II with him to New York, with Act I existing only in sketches. When he arrived in New York, however, he found that he had left the sketches behind, and he had to reconstruct the first act from memory.[28] Gilbert told a correspondent many years later that Sullivan was unable to recall his setting of the entrance of the women's chorus, so they substituted the chorus "Climbing over rocky mountain" from their earlier opera, Thespis.[29] Sullivan's manuscript for Pirates contains pages removed from a Thespis score, with the vocal parts of this chorus altered from their original arrangement as a four-part chorus. Some scholars (e.g. Tillett and Spencer, 2000) have suggested that Gilbert and Sullivan had planned all along to re-use "Climbing over rocky mountain," and perhaps other parts of Thespis. They argue that Sullivan's having brought the unpublished Thespis score to New York, when there were no plans to revive Thespis, might not have been accidental.[30] In any case, on 10 December 1879, Sullivan wrote a letter to his mother about the new opera, upon which he was hard at work in New York. "I think it will be a great success, for it is exquisitely funny, and the music is strikingly tuneful and catching."[21] As was to be his usual practice in his later operas, Sullivan left the overture for the last moment, sketching it out and entrusting its composition to the company's music director, in this case Alfred Cellier.[27] Pinafore opened in New York on 1 December 1879 and ran for the rest of December. After a reasonably strong first week, audiences quickly fell off, since most New Yorkers had already seen local productions of Pinafore.[31] This was unexpected and forced Gilbert and Sullivan to race to complete and rehearse their new opera, The Pirates of Penzance.[21] The work's title is a multi-layered joke. On the one hand, Penzance was a docile seaside resort in 1879, and not the place where one would expect to encounter pirates.[32] On the other hand, the title was also a jab at the theatrical "pirates" who had staged unlicensed productions of H.M.S. Pinafore in America.[33][34] To secure the British copyright,[35] a D'Oyly Carte touring company gave a perfunctory copyright performance of Pirates the afternoon before the New York premiere, at the Royal Bijou Theatre in Paignton, Devon, organised by Helen Lenoir, who would later marry Richard D'Oyly Carte. The cast, which was performing Pinafore in the evenings in Torquay, received some of the music for Pirates only two days beforehand. Having had only one rehearsal, they travelled to nearby Paignton for the matinee, where they read their parts from scripts carried onto the stage, making do with whatever costumes they had on hand.[36] Original production and aftermath[edit] George Grossmith as General Stanley, wearing Wolseley's trademark moustache Pirates opened on 31 December 1879 in New York and was an immediate hit.[21] On 2 January 1880, Sullivan wrote, in another letter to his mother from New York, "The libretto is ingenious, clever, wonderfully funny in parts, and sometimes brilliant in dialogue – beautifully written for music, as is all Gilbert does. ... The music is infinitely superior in every way to the Pinafore – 'tunier' and more developed, of a higher class altogether. I think that in time it will be very popular."[37] Shortly thereafter, Carte sent three touring companies around the United States East Coast and Midwest, playing Pirates and Pinafore.[22][38] Sullivan's prediction was correct. After a strong run in New York and several American tours, Pirates opened in London on 3 April 1880, running for 363 performances there.[39] It remains one of the most popular G&S works.[40][41] The London sets were designed by John O'Connor.[42] The critics' notices were generally excellent in both New York and London.[43][44] The character of Major-General Stanley was widely taken to be a caricature of the popular general Sir Garnet Wolseley. The biographer Michael Ainger, however, doubts that Gilbert intended a caricature of Wolseley, identifying instead General Henry Turner, uncle of Gilbert's wife, as the pattern for the "modern Major-General". Gilbert disliked Turner, who, unlike the progressive Wolseley, was of the old school of officers. Nevertheless, in the original London production, George Grossmith imitated Wolseley's mannerisms and appearance, particularly his large moustache, and the audience recognised the allusion. Wolseley himself, according to his biographer, took no offence at the caricature[45] and sometimes sang "I am the very model of a modern Major-General" for the private amusement of his family and friends.[46] Roles[edit] Major-General Stanley (comic baritone) The Pirate King (bass-baritone)[47] Samuel, his Lieutenant (baritone) Frederic, the Pirate Apprentice (tenor) Sergeant of Police (bass)[47] General Stanley's daughters: Mabel (soprano) Edith (mezzo-soprano) Kate (mezzo-soprano) Isabel (speaking role) Ruth, a Piratical Maid of all work (contralto) Chorus of Pirates, Police and General Stanley's Daughters Synopsis[edit] Marion Hood: "Yes, 'tis Mabel!" Act I On the coast of Cornwall, during Queen Victoria's reign, Frederic celebrates the completion of his twenty-first year and the end of his apprenticeship to a gentlemanly band of pirates ("Pour, oh pour the pirate sherry"). The pirates' maid of all work, Ruth, appears and reveals that, as Frederic's nursemaid long ago, she made a mistake "through being hard of hearing": Mishearing Frederic's father's instructions, she apprenticed him to a pirate, instead of to a ship's pilot ("When Frederic was a little lad"). Frederic has never seen any woman other than Ruth, and he believes her to be beautiful. The pirates know better and suggest that Frederic take Ruth with him when he returns to civilisation. Frederic announces that, although it pains him, so strong is his sense of duty that, once free from his apprenticeship, he will be forced to devote himself to the pirates' extermination. He also points out that they are not successful pirates: since they are all orphans, they allow their prey to go free if they too are orphans. Frederic notes that word of this has got about, so captured ships' companies routinely claim to be orphans. Frederic invites the pirates to give up piracy and go with him, so that he need not destroy them, but the Pirate King says that, contrasted with respectability, piracy is comparatively honest ("Oh! better far to live and die"). The pirates depart, leaving Frederic and Ruth. Frederic sees a group of beautiful young girls approaching the pirate lair, and realises that Ruth misled him about her appearance ("Oh false one! You have deceived me!"). Sending Ruth away, Frederic hides before the girls arrive. George Power, the original Frederic in London The girls burst exuberantly upon the secluded spot ("Climbing over rocky mountain"). Frederic reveals himself ("Stop, ladies, pray!"), startling them. He appeals to them to help him reform ("Oh! is there not one maiden breast?"). The girls are fascinated by him, but all reject him, except one: Mabel responds to his plea, chiding her sisters for their lack of charity ("Oh sisters deaf to pity's name for shame!"). She offers Frederic her pity ("Poor wand'ring one"), and the two quickly fall in love. The other girls discuss whether to eavesdrop or to leave the new couple alone ("What ought we to do?"), deciding to "talk about the weather," although they steal glances at the affectionate couple ("How beautifully blue the sky"). Frederic warns the young ladies that his old associates will soon return ("Stay, we must not lose our senses"), but before they can flee, the pirates arrive and capture the girls, intending to marry them ("Here's a first rate opportunity"). Mabel warns the pirates that the girls' father is a Major-General ("Hold, monsters!"), who soon arrives and introduces himself ("I am the very model of a modern Major-General"). He appeals to the pirates not to take his daughters, leaving him to face his old age alone. Having heard of the famous Pirates of Penzance, he pretends that he is an orphan to elicit their sympathy ("Oh, men of dark and dismal fate"). The soft-hearted pirates release the girls ("Hail, Poetry!"), making Major-General Stanley and his daughters honorary members of their band ("Pray observe the magnanimity"). Act II The Major-General sits in a ruined chapel on his estate, surrounded by his daughters. His conscience is tortured by the lie that he told the pirates, and the girls attempt to console him ("Oh dry the glist'ning tear"). The Sergeant of Police and his corps arrive to announce their readiness to arrest the pirates ("When the foeman bares his steel"). The girls loudly express their admiration of the police for facing likely slaughter by fierce and merciless foes. The police are unnerved by this and leave reluctantly. "Have mercy on us!" Left alone, Frederic, who is to lead the police, reflects on his opportunity to atone for a life of piracy ("Now for the pirate's lair"), at which point he encounters Ruth and the Pirate King. They have realised that Frederic's apprenticeship was worded so as to bind him to them until his twenty-first birthday – and, because that birthday happens to be on the 29th of February (in a leap year), it means that technically only five birthdays have passed ("When you had left our pirate fold"), and he will not reach his twenty-first birthday until he is in his eighties. Frederic is convinced by this logic and agrees to rejoin the pirates. He then sees it as his duty to inform the Pirate King of the Major-General's deception. The outraged outlaw declares that the pirates' "revenge will be swift and terrible" ("Away, away, my heart's on fire"). Frederic meets Mabel ("All is prepared"), and she pleads with him to stay ("Stay Frederic, stay"), but he feels bound by his duty to the pirates until his 21st birthday – in 1940. They agree to be faithful to each other until then, though to Mabel "It seems so long" ("Oh here is love and here is truth"); Frederic departs. Mabel steels herself ("No, I'll be brave") and tells the police that they must go alone to face the pirates. They muse that an outlaw might be just like any other man, and it is a shame to deprive him of "that liberty which is so dear to all" ("When a felon's not engaged in his employment"). The police hide on hearing the approach of the pirates ("A rollicking band of pirates we"), who have stolen onto the estate, intending to avenge themselves for the Major-General's lie ("With cat-like tread"). Just then, Major-General Stanley appears, sleepless with guilt, and the pirates also hide ("Hush, hush! not a word"), while the Major-General listens to the soothing breeze ("Sighing softly to the river"). The girls come looking for him ("Now what is this and what is that"). The pirates leap to the attack, and the police rush to their defence; but the police are easily defeated, and the Pirate King urges the captured Major-General to prepare for death. The Sergeant has one stratagem left: he demands that the pirates yield "in Queen Victoria's name"; the pirates, overcome with loyalty to their Queen, do so. Ruth appears and reveals that the pirates are "all noblemen who have gone wrong". The Major-General is impressed by this and all is forgiven. Frederic and Mabel are reunited, and the Major-General is happy to marry his daughters to the noble pirates after all. Musical numbers[edit] Overture (includes "With cat-like tread", "Ah, leave me not to pine", "Pray observe the magnanimity", "When you had left our pirate fold", "Climbing over rocky mountain", and "How beautifully blue the sky") Act I Drawing of Richard Temple as the Pirate King 1. "Pour, oh pour, the pirate sherry" (Samuel and Chorus of Pirates) 2. "When Fred'ric was a little lad" (Ruth) 3. "Oh, better far to live and die" (Pirate King and Chorus of Pirates) 4. "Oh! false one, you have deceiv'd me" (Frederic and Ruth) 5. "Climbing over rocky mountain" (Chorus of Girls) 6. "Stop, ladies, pray" (Edith, Kate, Frederic, and Chorus of Girls) 7. "Oh, is there not one maiden breast?" (Frederic and Chorus of Girls) 8. "Poor wand'ring one" (Mabel and Chorus of Girls) 9. "What ought we to do?" (Edith, Kate, and Chorus of Girls) 10. "How beautifully blue the sky" (Mabel, Frederic, and Chorus of Girls) 11. "Stay, we must not lose our senses" ... "Here's a first-rate opportunity to get married with impunity" (Frederic and Chorus of Girls and Pirates) 12. "Hold, monsters" (Mabel, Major-General, Samuel, and Chorus) 13. "I am the very model of a modern Major-General" (Major-General and Chorus) 14. Finale Act I (Mabel, Kate, Edith, Ruth, Frederic, Samuel, King, Major-General, and Chorus) "Oh, men of dark and dismal fate" "I’m telling a terrible story" "Hail, Poetry" "Oh, happy day, with joyous glee" "Pray observe the magnanimity" (reprise of "Here's a first-rate opportunity") Isabel Jay as Mabel Pirate King Henry Lytton denounces Major-General C. H. Workman. Act II 15. "Oh, dry the glist'ning tear" (Mabel and Chorus of Girls) 16. "Then, Frederic, let your escort lion-hearted" (Frederic and Major-General) 17. "When the foeman bares his steel" (Mabel, Edith, Sergeant, and Chorus of Policemen and Girls) 18. "Now for the pirates' lair!" (Frederic, Ruth, and King) 19. "When you had left our pirate fold" [The "paradox" trio] (Ruth, Frederic, and King) 20. "Away, away! My heart's on fire!" (Ruth, Frederic, and King) 21. "All is prepar'd; your gallant crew await you" (Mabel and Frederic) 22. "Stay, Fred'ric, stay" ... "Ah, leave me not to pine" ... "Oh, here is love, and here is truth" (Mabel and Frederic) 23. "No, I'll be brave" ... "Though in body and in mind" (Reprise of "When the foeman bares his steel") (Mabel, Sergeant, and Chorus of Police) 23a. "Sergeant, approach!" (Mabel, Sergeant of Police, and Chorus of Police) 24. "When a felon's not engaged in his employment" (Sergeant and Chorus of Police) 25. "A rollicking band of pirates we" (Sergeant and Chorus of Pirates and Police) 26. "With cat-like tread, upon our prey we steal" (Samuel and Chorus of Pirates and Police) 27. "Hush, hush, not a word!" (Frederic, King, Major-General, and Chorus of Police and Pirates) 28. Finale, Act II (Ensemble) "Sighing softly to the river" "Now what is this, and what is that?" "You/We triumph now" "Away with them, and place them at the bar!" "Poor wandering ones!" Critical reception[edit] The notices from critics were generally excellent in both New York and London in 1880.[48] In New York, the Herald and the Tribune both dedicated considerable space to their reviews. The Herald took the view that "the new work is in every respect superior to the Pinafore, the text more humorous, the music more elegant and more elaborate."[49] The Tribune called it "a brilliant and complete success", commenting, "The humor of the Pirates is richer, but more recondite. It demands a closer attention to the words [but] there are great stores of wit and drollery ... which will well repay exploration. ... The music is fresh, bright, elegant and merry, and much of it belongs to a higher order of art than the most popular of the tunes of Pinafore."[50] The New York Times also praised the work, writing, "it would be impossible for a confirmed misanthrope to refrain from merriment over it", though the paper doubted if Pirates could repeat the prodigious success of Pinafore.[43] After the London premiere, the critical consensus, led by the theatrical newspaper The Era, was that the new work marked a distinct advance on Gilbert and Sullivan's earlier works.[44] The Pall Mall Gazette said, "Of Mr. Sullivan's music we must speak in detail on some other occasion. Suffice it for the present to say that in the new style which he has marked out for himself it is the best he has written."[51] The Graphic wrote: That no composer can meet the requirements of Mr. Gilbert like Mr. Sullivan, and vice versa, is a fact universally admitted. One might fancy that verse and music were of simultaneous growth, so closely and firmly are they interwoven. Away from this consideration, the score of The Pirates of Penzance is one upon which Mr. Sullivan must have bestowed earnest consideration, for independently of its constant flow of melody, it is written throughout for voices and instruments with infinite care, and the issue is a cabinet miniature of exquisitely defined proportions. … That the Pirates is a clear advance upon its precursors, from Trial by Jury to H.M.S. Pinafore, cannot be denied; it contains more variety, marked character, careful workmanship, and is in fact a more finished artistic achievement … a brilliant success.[52] There were a few dissenting comments: The Manchester Guardian thought both author and composer had drawn on the works of their predecessors: "Mr. Gilbert ... seems to have borrowed an idea from Sheridan's The Critic; Mr. Sullivan's music is sprightly, tuneful and full of 'go', although it is certainly lacking in originality."[53] The Sporting Times noted, "It doesn't appear to have struck any of the critics yet that the central idea in The Pirates of Penzance is taken from Our Island Home, which was played by the German Reeds some ten years ago."[54] The Times thought Gilbert's wit outran his dramatic invention, and Sullivan's music for the new work was not quite as good as his score for The Sorcerer, which the Times critic called a masterpiece.[55] Musical analysis[edit] The overture to The Pirates of Penzance was composed by Sullivan and his musical assistant Alfred Cellier. It follows the pattern of most Savoy opera overtures: a lively opening (the melody of "With cat-like tread"), a slow middle section ("Ah, leave me not to pine alone"), and a concluding allegro in a compressed sonata form, in which the themes of "How beautifully blue the sky" and "A paradox, a paradox" are combined.[56] Parody[edit] The score parodies several composers, most conspicuously Verdi. "Come, friends, who plough the sea" and "You triumph now" are burlesques of Il trovatore,[57] and one of the best-known choral passages from the finale to Act I, "Hail Poetry", is, according to the Sullivan scholar, Arthur Jacobs, a burlesque of the prayer scene, "La Vergine degli Angeli", in Verdi's La forza del destino.[58] However, another musicologist, Nicholas Temperley, writes, "The choral outburst 'Hail, Poetry' in The Pirates of Penzance would need very little alteration to turn it into a Mozart string quartet."[59] Another well-known parody number from the work is the song for coloratura, "Poor wand'ring one", which is generally thought to burlesque Gounod's waltz-songs,[60] though the music critic of The Times called it "mock-Donizetti".[61] In a scene in Act II, Mabel addresses the police, who chant their response in the manner of an Anglican church service.[62] Sullivan even managed to parody two composers at once. The critic Rodney Milnes describes the Major-General's Act II song, "Sighing softly to the river", "as plainly inspired by – and indeed worthy of – Sullivan's hero Schubert",[63] and Amanda Holden speaks of the song's "Schubertian water-rippling accompaniment", but adds that it simultaneously spoofs Verdi's Il trovatore, with the soloist unaware of a concealed male chorus singing behind him.[64] Patter, counterpoint, and vocal writing[edit] Major-General's Song George Baker sings the Major-General's Song with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, conducted by Malcolm Sargent (1929) Problems playing this file? See media help. Writing about patter songs, Shaw, in his capacity as a music critic, praised "the time-honored lilt which Sir Arthur Sullivan, following the example of Mozart and Rossini, chose for the lists of accomplishments of the Major-General in The Pirates or the Colonel in Patience."[65] This opera contains two well-known examples of Sullivan's characteristic combination of two seemingly disparate melodies. Jacobs suggests that Berlioz's La damnation de Faust, a great favourite in Sullivan's formative years, may have been the model for Sullivan's trademark contrapuntal mingling of the rapid prattle of the women's chorus in Act I ("How beautifully blue the sky") in 2/4 time with the lovers' duet in waltz time. Jacobs writes that "the whole number [shifts] with Schubertian ease from B to G and back again."[40] In Act II, a double chorus combines the policemen's dogged tune, "When the foeman bares his steel" and the soaring line for the women, "Go, ye heroes, go to glory".[66] In adapting the four-part chorus "Climbing over rocky mountain" from Thespis for re-use in Pirates, Sullivan took less trouble: he wrote only a single vocal line, suitable for soprano voices.[67] Despite this, the number ends with another example of Sullivan's counterpoint, with the chorus singing the second melody of the piece ("Let us gaily tread the measure") while the orchestra plays the first ("Climbing over rocky mountain").[68] Sullivan set a particular vocal challenge for the soprano who portrays Mabel. The Sullivan scholar Gervase Hughes wrote, "Mabel ... must be a coloratura because of 'Poor wand'ring one!', yet 'Dear father, why leave your bed' demands steady beauty of tone throughout the octave F to F, and 'Ah, leave me not to pine' goes a third lower still."[69] In The Music of Arthur Sullivan (1959), Hughes quoted four extracts from Pirates, saying that if hearing each out of context one might attribute it to Schubert, Mendelssohn, Gounod or Bizet respectively, "yet on learning the truth one would kick oneself for not having recognised Sullivan's touch in all four." Hughes concluded by quoting the introductory bars of "When a felon's not engaged in his employment", adding, "There could never be any doubt as to who wrote that, and it is as English as our wonderful police themselves."[70] Versions[edit] 1880 poster Because the work was premiered in three different places (the Paignton performance and the full productions in New York and London), there are more variations in the early libretto and score of The Pirates of Penzance than in other Gilbert and Sullivan works. Songs sent from New York to the D'Oyly Carte touring company in England for the Paignton premiere were then altered or omitted during Broadway rehearsals. Gilbert and Sullivan trimmed the work for the London premiere, and Gilbert made further alterations up to and including the 1908 Savoy revival. For example, early versions depicted the Pirate King as the servant of the pirate band,[71] and the words of the opening chorus were, "Pour, O King, the pirate sherry".[72] In the original New York production the revelation by Ruth that the pirates are "all noblemen who have gone wrong" prompted the following exchange (recalling a famous passage in H.M.S. Pinafore): GENERAL, POLICE & GIRLS: What, all noblemen? KING & PIRATES: Yes, all noblemen! GENERAL, POLICE & GIRLS: What, all? KING: Well, nearly all! ALL: . . . They are nearly all noblemen who have gone wrong. Then give three cheers, both loud and strong, For the twenty noblemen who have gone wrong.... In the original London production, this exchange was shortened to the following: GIRLS: Oh spare them! They are all noblemen who have gone wrong. GENERAL: What, all noblemen? KING: Yes, all noblemen! GENERAL: What, all? KING: Well, nearly all! Gilbert deleted the exchange in the 1900 revival, and the Chappell vocal score was revised accordingly. For the 1908 revival Gilbert had the pirates yielding "in good King Edward's name".[71] Despite Helen Carte's repeated urging, Gilbert did not prepare an authorised version of the libretti of the Savoy operas.[73] In its 1989 production, the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company restored one of the original versions of the finale, which finishes with a variation of "I am the very model of a modern major-general", rather than with the customary reprise of "Poor wand'ring one",[74] but in later revivals, it reverted to the more familiar text.[63] Production history[edit] 1881 programme cover The Pirates of Penzance has been one of Gilbert and Sullivan's most popular comic operas. After its unique triple opening in 1879–80, it was revived in London at the Savoy Theatre in 1888 and in 1900, and for the Savoy's repertory season of 1908–09. In the British provinces, the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company toured it almost continuously from 1880–1884, and again in 1888. It re-entered the D'Oyly Carte touring repertory in 1893 and was never again absent until the company's closure in 1982.[75] New costumes were designed by Percy Anderson in 1919 and George Sheringham in 1929 (who also executed a new Act I set). Peter Goffin created a new touring set in 1957.[42] In America, after the New York opening on New Year's Eve, 1879, Richard D'Oyly Carte launched four companies that covered the United States on tours that lasted through the following summer.[76] Gilbert and Sullivan themselves trained each of the touring companies through January and early February 1880, and each company's first performance – whether it was in Philadelphia, Newark, or Buffalo – was conducted by the composer. In Australia, its first authorised performance was on 19 March 1881 at the Theatre Royal, Sydney, produced by J. C. Williamson.[16] There was still no international copyright law in 1880, and the first unauthorised New York production was given by the Boston Ideal Opera Company at Booth's Theatre in September of that year.[citation needed] The opera premiered in a German translation by Richard Genée and Camillo Walzel (Die Piraten) in Austria at the Theater an der Wien on 1 March 1889, and in Düsseldorf, Germany, on 1 December 1936.[16] The first non-D'Oyly Carte professional production in a country that had been subject to Gilbert's copyright (other than Williamsons' authorised productions) was in Stratford, Ontario, Canada, in September 1961. In 1979, the Torbay branch of the Gilbert and Sullivan Society presented a centenary tribute to the world premiere performance of Pirates in Paignton, with a production at the Palace Avenue Theatre (situated a few metres from the former Bijou Theatre).[77] New York has seen over forty major revivals since the premiere.[78] One of these, produced and directed by Winthrop Ames in 1926 at the Plymouth Theatre, ran for 128 performances[79] and gained good notices.[80] A brief 1952 Broadway staging starring Martyn Green, earned Lehman Engel a Tony Award as conductor.[81][82] Repertory companies that have mounted Pirates numerous times Off-Broadway and on tour in the US have included the American Savoyards (1953–67),[83] the Light Opera of Manhattan (1968–89)[84] and the New York Gilbert and Sullivan Players (1976–present).[85] As discussed below, Joseph Papp's 1980–83 Pirates ran for nearly two years each on Broadway and in the West End, boosting the opera's popularity. Professional and amateur productions of the opera continue with frequency. For example, the Chicago Lyric Opera and English National Opera each staged the work in 2004,[86] and in 2007, the New York City Opera and Opera Australia both mounted new productions.[87][88] In 2013, Scottish Opera produced a British touring production of The Pirates of Penzance co-produced by the trustees of the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company. Richard Suart played Major-General Stanley and Nicholas Sharratt played Frederic.[89][90] The following table shows the history of the D'Oyly Carte productions in Gilbert's lifetime (excluding tours): Drawing from programme of children's Pirates, 1884 Theatre Opening Date Closing Date Perfs. Details Bijou Theatre, Paignton 30 December 1879 30 December 1879 1 English copyright performance. Fifth Avenue Theatre, New York 31 December 1879 6 March 1880 100 Original run in New York. The company toured the Eastern seaboard between 8 March and 15 May. Three other touring companies were launched in January and February 1880. 17 May 1880 5 June 1880 Opera Comique 3 April 1880 2 April 1881 363 Original London run. Savoy Theatre 23 December 1884 14 February 1885 37 Children's Pirates – series of matinées with a juvenile cast.[91] Savoy Theatre 17 March 1888 6 June 1888 80 First professional revival. Savoy Theatre 30 June 1900 5 November 1900 127 Second professional revival. Savoy Theatre 1 December 1908 27 March 1909 43 Second Savoy repertory season; played with five other operas. (Closing date shown is of the entire season.) Historical casting[edit] The following tables show the casts of the principal original productions and D'Oyly Carte Opera Company touring repertory at various times through to the company's 1982 closure: Role Paignton 1879[92] New York 1879[93] Opera Comique 1880[94] Savoy Theatre 1888[95] Savoy Theatre 1900[96] Major-General Richard Mansfield J. H. Ryley George Grossmith George Grossmith Henry Lytton Pirate King Frederick Federici Sgr. Brocolini Richard Temple Richard Temple Jones Hewson Samuel G. J. Lackner Furneaux Cook George Temple Richard Cummings W. H. Leon James John Le Hay role eliminated Frederic Llewellyn Cadwaladr Hugh Talbot George Power J. G. Robertson Robert Evett Sergeant Fred Billington Fred Clifton Rutland Barrington Rutland Barrington Walter Passmore Mabel Emilie Petrelli Blanche Roosevelt Marion Hood Geraldine Ulmar Isabel Jay Edith Marian May Jessie Bond Julia Gwynne Jessie Bond Lulu Evans Kate Lena Monmouth Rosina Brandram Lilian La Rue Nellie Kavanagh Alice Coleman Isabel Kate Neville Billie Barlow Neva Bond Nellie Lawrence Agnes Fraser Ruth Fanny Harrison Alice Barnett Emily Cross Rosina Brandram Rosina Brandram Role Savoy Theatre 1908[97] D'Oyly Carte 1915 Tour[98] D'Oyly Carte 1925 Tour[99] D'Oyly Carte 1935 Tour[100] D'Oyly Carte 1945 Tour[101] Major-General Charles H. Workman Henry Lytton Henry Lytton Martyn Green Grahame Clifford Pirate King Henry Lytton Leicester Tunks Darrell Fancourt Darrell Fancourt Darrell Fancourt Samuel Leo Sheffield Frederick Hobbs Joseph Griffin Richard Walker Hilton Layland Frederic Henry Herbert Dewey Gibson Charles Goulding John Dean John Dean Sergeant Rutland Barrington Fred Billington Leo Sheffield Sydney Granville Richard Walker Mabel Dorothy Court Elsie McDermid Elsie Griffin Kathleen Frances Helen Roberts Edith Jessie Rose Nellie Briercliffe Eileen Sharp Marjorie Eyre Marjorie Eyre Kate Beatrice Boarer Betty Grylls Aileen Davies Maisie Baxter Ivy Sanders Isabel Ethel Lewis Kitty Twinn Hilary Davies Elizabeth Nickell-Lean Rosalie Dyer Ruth Louie René Bertha Lewis Bertha Lewis Dorothy Gill Ella Halman Role D'Oyly Carte 1950 Tour[102] D'Oyly Carte 1958 Tour[103] D'Oyly Carte 1968 Tour[104] D'Oyly Carte 1975 Tour[105] D'Oyly Carte 1981 Tour[106] Major-General Martyn Green Peter Pratt John Reed James Conroy-Ward Alistair Donkin Pirate King Darrell Fancourt Donald Adams Donald Adams John Ayldon John Ayldon Samuel Donald Harris George Cook Alan Styler Jon Ellison Michael Buchan Frederic Leonard Osborn Thomas Round Philip Potter Colin Wright Meston Reid Sergeant Richard Watson Kenneth Sandford George Cook Michael Rayner Clive Harre Mabel Muriel Harding Jean Hindmarsh Valerie Masterson Julia Goss Vivian Tierney Edith Joan Gillingham Joyce Wright Peggy Ann Jones Patricia Leonard Jill Pert Kate Joyce Wright Marian Martin Pauline Wales Caroline Baker Helene Witcombe Isabel Enid Walsh Jane Fyffe Susan Maisey Rosalind Griffiths Alexandra Hann Ruth Ella Halman Ann Drummond-Grant Christene Palmer Lyndsie Holland Patricia Leonard Joseph Papp's Pirates[edit] Smith, Ronstadt and Kline at the Delacorte Theatre In 1980, Joseph Papp and the Public Theater of New York City produced a new version of Pirates, directed by Wilford Leach and choreographed by Graciela Daniele, at the Delacorte Theatre in Central Park, as a Shakespeare in the Park summer event. Musical direction and arrangements were by William Elliott. The show played for 10 previews and 35 performances. It then transferred to Broadway, opening on 8 January 1981 for a run of 20 previews and 787 regular performances at the Uris and Minskoff Theatres, the longest run for any Gilbert and Sullivan production in history.[107] This take on Pirates earned enthusiastic reviews[108] and seven Tony Award nominations, winning three, including the award for Best Revival and for Leach as director. It was also nominated for eight Drama Desk Awards, winning five, including Outstanding Musical and director.[109] Compared with traditional productions of the opera, Papp's Pirates featured a more swashbuckling Pirate King and Frederic, and a broader, more musical comedy style of singing and humour. It did not significantly change the libretto, but it used a new orchestration and arrangements that changed some keys, added repeats, lengthened dance music and made other minor changes in the score. The "Matter Patter" trio from Ruddigore and "Sorry her lot" from H.M.S. Pinafore, two other Gilbert and Sullivan operas, were interpolated into the show.[16] The production also restored Gilbert and Sullivan's original New York ending, with a reprise of the Major-General's song in the Act II finale. Linda Ronstadt starred as Mabel, Rex Smith as Frederic, Kevin Kline as the Pirate King, Patricia Routledge as Ruth (replaced by Estelle Parsons for the Broadway transfer), George Rose as the Major-General, and Tony Azito as the Sergeant of Police. Kline won a Tony Award for his performance. Smith won a Theatre World Award, and Kline and Azito won Drama Desk Awards. Notable replacements during the Broadway run included Karla DeVito, Maureen McGovern and Pam Dawber as Mabel; Robby Benson, Patrick Cassidy and Peter Noone as Frederic; Treat Williams, Gary Sandy, James Belushi and Wally Kurth as the Pirate King; David Garrison as the Sergeant; George S. Irving as the Major-General; and Kaye Ballard as Ruth. The Los Angeles cast of the production featured Barry Bostwick as the Pirate King, Jo Anne Worley as Ruth, Clive Revill as the Major-General, Dawber as Mabel, Paxton Whitehead as the Sergeant, Caroline Peyton as Edith and Andy Gibb as Frederic.[109] Opera Australia's 2007 touring production of Pirates, with Anthony Warlow as the Pirate King The production opened at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, London, on 26 May 1982, to generally warm reviews, for a run of 601 performances, earning an Olivier Award nomination as Outstanding Musical and another for Curry. Notable among the cast were George Cole and Ronald Fraser as the Major-General; Pamela Stephenson as Mabel; Michael Praed and Peter Noone as Frederic; Tim Curry, Timothy Bentinck, Oliver Tobias and Paul Nicholas as the Pirate King; Chris Langham as the Sergeant of Police; Annie Ross as Ruth; Bonnie Langford as Kate; and Louise Gold as Isabel.[110] The Australian production opened in Melbourne in January 1984, opening the new Victorian Arts Centre, directed by John Feraro. It starred Jon English as the Pirate King, Simon Gallaher as Frederic, June Bronhill as Ruth, David Atkins as the Sergeant of Police and Marina Prior as Mabel. The six-week limited season was followed by an Australian national tour from 1984 to 1986 and another tour with same cast in the mid-1990s.[107] In 1985, Papp's Pirates opened the new Queensland Performing Arts Centre in Brisbane, setting attendance records that were not surpassed until many years later by The Phantom of the Opera.[citation needed] Gallaher's Essgee Entertainment version of Pirates was inspired by the Papp version.[107] The Papp version also inspired foreign-language productions in Germany and elsewhere in Europe.[16] The Papp production was turned into a film in 1983, with the original Broadway principal cast reprising their roles, except that Angela Lansbury replaced Estelle Parsons as Ruth. The minor roles used British actors miming to their Broadway counterparts. The film has been shown occasionally on television. Another film based loosely on the opera and inspired by the success of the Papp version, The Pirate Movie, was released during the Broadway run.[111] "[Papp's version] has been regularly revived on both sides of the Atlantic – a British revival in 2000 transferred from the West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds, to the Open Air Theatre in Regents' Park – and has also become well established in the repertoire of amateur student societies. No other production has had as much lasting impact or influence. ... It also helped to promote G&S in places where it has been little performed and bring it to the attention of a much wider and younger audience".[107] The Papp production design has been widely imitated in later productions of Pirates, even where traditional orchestration and the standard score are used.[107][112] Some modern productions are also influenced by the Disney film franchise Pirates of the Caribbean, combining aspects of the Papp production with the Disney design concepts. Not all of these revivals have generated the same enthusiasm as Papp's 1980s productions. A 1999 UK touring production received this critique: "No doubt when Papp first staged this show in New York and London it had some quality of cheek or chutzpah or pizzazz or irony or something that accounted for its success. But all that's left now ... is a crass Broadway-style musical arrangement ground out by a seven-piece band, and the worst kind of smutty send-up of a historic piece of art."[113] Recordings[edit] The Pirates of Penzance has been recorded many times, and the critical consensus is that it has fared well on record.[114] The first complete recording of the score was in 1921, under the direction of Rupert D'Oyly Carte, but with established recording singers rather than D'Oyly Carte Opera Company performers.[115] In 1929, The Gramophone said of a new set with a mainly D'Oyly Carte cast, "This new recording represents the high-water mark so far as Gilbert and Sullivan opera is concerned. In each of the previous Savoy albums there have been occasional lapses which prevented one from awarding them unqualified praise; but with the Pirates it is happily otherwise; from first to last, and in every bar, a simply delightful production."[116] Of later recordings by the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, the 1968 recording (with complete dialogue) is highly regarded: The online Gilbert and Sullivan Discography says, "This recording is one of the best D'Oyly Carte sets of all time, and certainly the best Pirates",[117] and the Penguin Guide to Opera on Compact Disc also recommends it.[118] So too does the Penguin Guide to Recorded Classical Music, alongside the 1993 Mackerras recording.[119] The opera critic Alan Blyth recommended the D'Oyly Carte recording of 1990: "a performance full of the kind of life that can only come from the experience of stage performances".[120] The online Discography site also mentions the 1981 Papp recording as "excellent", despite its inauthentic 1980 re-orchestrations that "changed some of the timbres so as to appeal to a rock-oriented public".[121] Of the available commercial videos, the Discography site considers the Brent Walker better than the Papp version.[122] More recent professional productions have been recorded on video by the International Gilbert and Sullivan Festival.[123] Selected recordings 1929 D'Oyly Carte – Conductor: Malcolm Sargent[124] 1957 D'Oyly Carte – New Symphony Orchestra of London; Conductor: Isidore Godfrey[125] 1961 Sargent/Glyndebourne – Pro Arte Orchestra, Glyndebourne Festival Chorus; Conductor: Sir Malcolm Sargent[126] 1968 D'Oyly Carte (with dialogue) – Royal Philharmonic Orchestra; Conductor: Isidore Godfrey[127] 1981; 1983 Papp's Pirates (with dialogue) – Director: Wilford Leach; Musical Director: William Elliott; Choreographer: Graciela Daniele[128] 1982 Brent Walker Productions (with dialogue) – Ambrosian Opera Chorus, London Symphony Orchestra; Conductor: Alexander Faris; Stage Director: Michael Geliot[129] 1990 New D'Oyly Carte – Conductor: John Pryce-Jones[130] 1993 Mackerras/Telarc – Orchestra and Chorus of the Welsh National Opera; Conductor: Sir Charles Mackerras[131] 1994 Essgee Entertainment (video adaptation) – Director and Choreographer: Craig Schaefer; Orchestrator and Conductor: Kevin Hocking; Additional Lyrics: Melvyn Morrow[132] Cultural impact[edit] Main article: Cultural influence of Gilbert and Sullivan Major-General's Song[edit] Main article: Major-General's Song The Major-General carries an encyclopedia in this "Bab" drawing. Pirates is one of the most frequently referenced works of Gilbert and Sullivan. The Major-General's Song, in particular, is frequently parodied, pastiched and used in advertising.[133] Parody versions have been used in political commentary as well as entertainment media.[134] Its challenging patter has proved interesting to comedians; notable examples include Tom Lehrer's song "The Elements" and David Hyde Pierce's monologue, as host of Saturday Night Live.[135] In 2010, comedian Ron Butler released a YouTube pastiche of the song in character as President Obama which, as of May 2012, had garnered more than 1,750,000 total views.[136][137] Pastiche examples include the Animaniacs version, "I am the very model of a cartoon individual", in the episode "H.M.S. Yakko";[138] the Doctor Who audio "I am the very model of a Gallifreyan buccaneer" in Doctor Who and the Pirates;[139] the Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip version in the episode "The Cold Open" (2006), where the cast performs "We'll be the very model of a modern network TV show";[140] and the Mass Effect 2 video game version, where the character Mordin Solus sings: "I am the very model of a scientist Salarian".[141] The song is often used in film and on television, unchanged in many instances, as a character's audition piece, or seen in a "school play" scene. Examples include a VeggieTales episode entitled "The Wonderful World of Auto-Tainment!"; the Frasier episode "Fathers and Sons"; The Simpsons episode "Deep Space Homer"; and the Mad About You episode "Moody Blues", where Paul directs a charity production of Penzance starring his father, Burt, as the Major-General. In The Muppet Show (season 3, episode 4) guest host, comedian Gilda Radner, sings the song with a 7-foot-tall (2.1 m) talking carrot (Parodying the pilot/pirate confusion in Pirates, Radner had requested a 6-foot-tall (1.8 m) talking parrot, but was misheard).[142] In an episode of Home Improvement, Al Borland begins to sing the song when tricked into thinking he is in a soundproof booth. In the Babylon 5 episode "Atonement", Marcus Cole uses the song to drive Dr Stephen Franklin crazy on a long journey to Mars. Examples of the use of the song in advertising include Martyn Green's pastiche of the song listing all of the varieties of Campbell's Soup[143] and a 2011 Geico commercial in which a couple that wants to save money, but still listen to musicals, finds a roommate, dressed as the Major-General, who awkwardly begins the song while dancing on a coffee table.[144] Gimbels department store had a campaign sung to the tune of the Major-General's Song that began, "We are the very model of a modern big department store."[145] George Washington, in the number "Right Hand Man" from the 2015 musical Hamilton by Lin-Manuel Miranda, refers to himself with irony as "The model of a modern major general", which he rhymes with "men are all" and "pedestal". Miranda commented: "I always felt like ‘mineral’ wasn't the best possible rhyme."[146] Film and television[edit] Other film references to Pirates include Kate & Leopold, where there are multiple references, including a scene where Leopold sings "I Am The Very Model of A Modern Major-General" while accompanying himself on the piano; and in Pretty Woman, Edward Lewis (Richard Gere) covers a social gaffe by prostitute Vivian Ward (Julia Roberts), who comments that the opera La traviata was so good that she almost "peed [her] pants", by saying that she had said that she liked it better than The Pirates of Penzance". In Walt Disney's cartoon Mickey, Donald, Goofy: The Three Musketeers (2004), there is a performance of Pirates that becomes the setting for the climactic battle between the Musketeers and Captain Pete. Pirates songs sung in the cartoon are "With cat-like tread", "Poor wand'ring one", "Climbing over rocky mountain" and the Major-General's song. "Poor wand'ring one" was used in the movie An American Tail.[147] The soundtrack of the 1992 film The Hand That Rocks the Cradle includes "Poor Wand'ring One" and "Oh Dry the Glistening Tear".[148] Television references, in addition to those mentioned above, included the series The West Wing, where Pirates and other Gilbert and Sullivan operas are mentioned in several episodes, especially by Deputy Communications Director, Sam Seaborn, who was recording secretary of his school's Gilbert and Sullivan society. In Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, a poster from Pirates hangs on Matt Albie's office wall. Both TV series were created by Aaron Sorkin. In the pilot episode of the 2008 CBS series Flashpoint, a police officer and his partner sing the policeman's song. In an Assy McGee episode entitled "Pegfinger", Detective Sanchez's wife is a member of a community theatre that performs the opera. In a 1986 episode of the animated television adaptation of The Wind in the Willows entitled A Producer's Lot, several characters put on a production of Pirates.[149] In a 2005 Family Guy episode "Peter's Got Woods", Brian Griffin sings "Sighing Softly", with Peter Griffin's assistance. In a 2012 episode, "Killer Queen", Peter gives a garbled rendition of the Major-General's Song.[150] In the 2009 Criminal Minds episode "The Slave of Duty", Hotch quotes "Oh dry the glist'ning tear".[151] In the 1992 episode "The Understudy" of Clarissa Explains it All, the title character is chosen to understudy Mabel in a school production of Pirates and is unprepared when she must go on; a scene from The Mikado is also heard.[152] Other references[edit] Wallpaper showing characters from Pirates and other Savoy operas Other notable instances of references to Pirates include a New York Times article on 29 February 1940, memorialising that Frederic was finally out of his indentures.[153] Six years previously, the arms granted to the municipal borough of Penzance in 1934 contain a pirate dressed in Gilbert's original costuming, and Penzance had a rugby team called the Penzance Pirates, which is now called the Cornish Pirates. In 1980, Isaac Asimov wrote a short story called "The Year of the Action", concerning whether the action of Pirates took place on 1 March 1873, or 1 March 1877 (depending on whether Gilbert took into account the fact that 1900 was not a leap year).[154] The plot of Laurie R. King's 2011 novel Pirate King centers on a 1924 silent movie adaption of The Pirates of Penzance.[155] The music from the chorus of "With cat-like tread", which begins "Come, friends, who plough the sea," was used in the popular American song, "Hail, Hail, the Gang's All Here." "With cat-like tread" is also part of the soundtrack, along with other Gilbert and Sullivan songs, in the 1981 film, Chariots of Fire, and it was pastiched in the "HMS Yakko" episode of Animaniacs in a song about surfing a whale.[156] Adaptations[edit] Stage Di Yam Gazlonim, a Yiddish adaptation of Pirates by Al Grand[140] that continues to be performed in North America. The 2006 production at the National Yiddish Theater Folksbiene was nominated for the 2007 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival. The Montreal Express wrote in 2009, "Grand's adaptation is a delightfully whimsical treatment".[157] The Parson's Pirates by Opera della Luna premiered in 1995. Pirates! Or, Gilbert and Sullivan Plunder'd (2006), is a musical comedy set on a Caribbean island, involving a voodoo curse that makes the pirates "landsick". It was first presented 1 November 2006 at Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam, Connecticut, then in 2007 at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, New Jersey, in 2009 at the Huntington Theatre Company in Boston, Massachusetts, and at The Muny in St Louis, Missouri in 2012. Other Gilbert and Sullivan numbers, such as the Nightmare song from Iolanthe are interpolated.[158][159] Pirates of Penzance – The Ballet! premiered in 1991 Essgee Entertainment produced an adapted version in 1994 in Australia and New Zealand.[160] Their producer, Simon Gallaher (Frederic in the Australian Papp production), produced another adaptation of Pirates that toured Australia from 2001 to 2003[citation needed] All-male versions of the opera include a long-running adaption by Sasha Regan at the Union Theatre in 2009, which transferred to Wilton's Music Hall in London in 2010[161] and toured in Australia in 2012.[162][163] Film and TV The Pirate Movie, a 1982 musical romantic comedy film loosely based on the opera. The Pirates of Penzance, a 1983 film adaptation of Papp's Broadway production. Die Piraten, a German-language version, was premiered on German television in 1968 and starred Arleen Auger as Mabel, Gerd Nienstedt as the Pirate King and Martha Mödl as Ruth, with Franz Marszalek conducting. Mabel falls in love with the Pirate King, among other plot changes. A 2-CD set of the broadcast was issued by Gala Records in 2000.[164] Several other television adaptations of the opera have been made, beginning in 1939.[165] See also[edit] Our Island Home, one of the sources of the libretto for Pirates Notes[edit] ^ Perry, Helga. Information from the Savoyoperas.org website, Savoy Operas, 27 November 2000, accessed 25 July 2009 ^ This figure assumes that Gilbert was ignoring the fact that there was no leap year in 1900. Otherwise, the action of the play would take place in 1873 instead of 1877, and the figure would be 67 years. See Bradley (1996), p. 244 ^ a b Prestige, Colin. "D'Oyly Carte and the Pirates: The Original New York Productions of Gilbert and Sullivan", pp. 113–48 at p. 118, Papers Presented at the International Conference of G&S held at the University of Kansas, May 1970, edited by James Helyar. Lawrence, Kansas: University of Kansas Libraries, 1971. ^ Allen (1979), p. 2 ^ Goodman, Andrew. Gilbert and Sullivan at Law, pp. 204–05, Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press (1982), ISBN 0838631797 ^ International copyright pirating Archived 28 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine, Edward Samuels, accessed 25 July 2009 ^ Rosen, Zvi S. "The Twilight of the Opera Pirates: A Prehistory of the Right of Public Performance for Musical Compositions", Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal, Vol. 24, 2007, pp. 1157–1218, 5 March 2007, accessed 24 October 2012 ^ Adams, Cecil, "Why are pirates depicted with a parrot on their shoulder? What's the origin of the skull and crossbones pirate flag?" The Straight Dope, 12 October 2007. ^ a b Williams, p. 130 ^ Williams, pp. 131–32 ^ Ainger, p. 166 ^ Faning, Eaton and Shapcott Wensley. Extra Supplement: Our Island Home in Musical Times, Vol. 55, No. 859 (1 September 1914), pp. 1–12 ^ Gänzl, p. 29 ^ Shaw (Vol. 1), p. 784. ^ "A Talk With Mr. Sullivan"[permanent dead link], The New York Times, 1 August 1879, p. 3, accessed 22 May 2012 ^ a b c d e Gänzl, Kurt. "The Pirates of Penzance, or The Slave of Duty: Comic opera in 2 acts by Gilbert & Sullivan", Operetta Research Center, 5 October 2016 ^ Ainger, p. 168 ^ Ford had been one of the few managers who had paid Gilbert and Sullivan any kind of fee for performing Pinafore in America, and his reward for a small gesture was great (Stedman, p. 169). ^ Ainger, p. 169 ^ Sullivan gave notice to the directors of the Comedy Opera Company in early July 1879 that he, Gilbert and Carte would not be renewing their contract to produce Pinafore with them and that he would withdraw his music from the Comedy Opera Company on 31 July. This followed a closure of the Opera Comique for repairs that Gilbert, Sullivan and Carte used to give them an argument that the original run of the production had "closed". See Stedman, pp. 170–72; Ainger, pp. 165–67 and 194–95; and Jacobs, p. 126. Sullivan wrote to a former producer, John Hollingshead of the Gaiety Theatre, saying: "You once settled a precedent for me which may just at present be of great importance to me. I asked you for the band parts of the Merry Wives of Windsor ... and [you] said, 'They are yours, as our run is over....' Now will you please let me have them, and the parts of Thespis also at once. I am detaining the parts of Pinafore, so that the directors shall not take them away from the Comique tomorrow, and I base my claim on the precedent you set." See Rees, p. 89. The Comedy Opera Company directors engaged another theatre to play a rival production of Pinafore, but they had no scenery. On 31 July, they sent a group of thugs to the Opera Comique to seize the scenery and props during the evening performance of Pinafore. See Ainger, p. 170 and Jacobs, pp. 124–25. Stagehands and cast members managed to ward off their backstage attackers and protect the scenery. The police arrived to restore order, and the show continued. See Stedman, pp. 170–71 and Gillan, Don. "The Fracas at the Opera Comique", The Theatre, 1 September 1879, reprinted at the Stage Beauty website, accessed 6 May 2009. See also "The Fracas at the Opera Comique", The Era, 10 August 1879, p. 5 and "The Fracas at the Opera Comique", The Leeds Mercury, 13 August 1879, p. 8. The matter was eventually settled in court, where a judge ruled in Carte's favour about two years later. See Ainger, p. 175 ^ a b c d Jacobs, p. 129 ^ a b Ainger, pp. 182–83 ^ Jacobs, p. 127 ^ Jacobs, p. 111; Ainger, pp. 133–34 ^ Jacobs, p. 113 ^ Cox-Ife, William. W. S. Gilbert: Stage Director. Dobson, 1978 ISBN 0-234-77206-9. See also Gilbert, W. S., "A Stage Play" Archived 30 September 2009 at the Wayback Machine, and Bond, Jessie, Reminiscences, Introduction Archived 21 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine. ^ a b Ainger, p. 157 ^ Ainger, p. 177 ^ Ainger, p. 179 ^ March, Jerry. "Part of Thespis Score Discovered", The Savoyard, Vol. XX, No. 1 (March 1981), p. 25; and Stedman, p. 95, n. 52 ^ Stedman, p. 174 ^ From medieval times and in later centuries, however, Penzance was subject to frequent raiding by Turkish pirates, according to Canon Diggens Archive 1910. ^ Dexter, Gary. "Title Deed: How the Book Got its Name". The Telegraph, 7 July 2010 ^ Williams, p. 125 ^ Performances had to be given in Britain before publication in order to secure copyright. See Stephens, John Russell. The Profession of the Playwright: British Theatre 1800–1900, Cambridge University Press (1992), pp. 104–15 ^ Ainger, pp. 180–81 ^ Jacobs, p. 133 ^ Stedman, p. 175 ^ Bradley (1982), pp. 86–87 ^ a b Jacobs, Arthur. "Sullivan, Sir Arthur." Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online, accessed 30 June 2010 (subscription required) ^ Smith, Tim. "A consistent Pirates of Penzance",[permanent dead link] The Baltimore Sun, 16 July 2009 ^ a b Rollins and Witts, Appendix, p. VII ^ a b "Amusements; Fifth-Avenue Theatre". The New York Times, 1 January 1880, p. 5 ^ a b "Opera Comique", The Era, 11 April 1880 p. 5 ^ See Ainger, pp. 181–82, and Kochanski, Halik. Sir Garnet Wolseley: Victorian hero, p. 73, London, Hambledon Press, 1999. ISBN 1-85285-188-0 ^ Bradley (1982), p. 118 ^ a b In the first night version of the libretto, the Sergeant of Police was named Edward, and the Pirate King was named Richard and was titled "A Pirate Chief". See Allen (1975), p. 112 ^ The London theatrical newspaper The Era even gave the ad hoc performance in Paignton a good review: see "Gilbert and Sullivan's New Opera", The Era, 4 January 1880, p. 5 ^ "The Pirates of Penzance", The Daily News, 15 January 1880, p. 6 ^ "The Pirates of Penzance". New York Tribune, 1 January 1880, accessed 27 August 2010 ^ "The Pirates of Penzance", The Pall Mall Gazette, 6 April 1880, p. 12 ^ "Music", The Graphic, 10 April 1880, p. 371 ^ "From Our London Correspondent", The Manchester Guardian, 5 April 1880, p. 4 ^ The Sporting Times, 10 April 1880, p. 1 ^ The Times, 5 April 1880, p. 4 ^ Hughes, p. 134 ^ Hulme, David Russell. "The Pirates of Penzance". The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, Grove Music Online, Oxford Music Online, accessed 30 June 2010 (subscription required) ^ Jacobs, p. 135 ^ Temperley, Nicholas. "Mozart's Influence on English Music". Music & Letters, vol. 42, issue 4, October 1961, pp. 307–18, Oxford University Press, accessed 1 July 2010 (subscription required) ^ Hughes, p. 151 ^ "Guthrie's Irreverent Pirates", The Times, 16 February 1962, p. 15 ^ Maddocks, Fiona. "These pirates have real swagger". Evening Standard, 20 February 2008, accessed 2 July 2010 ^ a b "Putting the Jolly in Roger", The Times, 26 April 2001 ^ Holden, p. 402 ^ Shaw (Vol. 2) p. 492 ^ Hughes, p. 80 ^ Hughes, p. 88 ^ Rees, pp. 62–63 suggested that in the original Thespis version, for male as well as female voices, the men would have sung the first theme while the women sang the second. ^ Hughes, pp. 92–93 ^ Hughes, pp. 50–51 ^ a b Bradley (1982) pp. 90–159 ^ Anderson W. R., Changes in the "Pirates". Gramophone, June 1950, p. 14 ^ Bradley (1982), p. 7 ^ See Bradley (1982), pp. 158–59 ^ Rollins and Witts, pp. 11, 18, 22, 35 et passim ^ Bradley (1982), p. 86 ^ "The Pirates of Penzance" Archived 4 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine, The Gilbert and Sullivan Society (Torbay Branch), accessed 23 January 2014 ^ Hischak, Thomas "Pirates of Penzance, The", The Oxford Companion to the American Musical. Oxford University Press 2009. Oxford Reference Online, accessed 2 July 2010 (subscription required) ^ The Pirates of Penzanzance, Internet Broadway Database, accessed 25 October 2013 ^ Hurley, G. M. "Gilbert and Sullivan – and Winthrop Ames", The New Yorker, 6 June 1931, p. 70 ^ "The Pirates of Penzance", Internet Broadway Database, accessed 25 October 2013 ^ Stone, David. "Martyn Green", Archived 5 September 2006 at the Wayback Machine Who Was Who in the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, 2003, accessed 25 October 2013 ^ Moore, Frank Ledlie (compiler). Handbook of Gilbert and Sullivan: Introduction by Dorothy Raedler, Producer-Director, The American Savoyards, Schocken Books: New York (1975) ^ Kenrick, John, "A Brief History of LOOM", Musicals101.com, 2002, accessed 26 October 2013 ^ See NYGASP Theatre Programs, "Prime Time G&S: 20th Anniversary Celebration", 24 April 1994, Symphony Space, New York City; and Laxson, Erica. "The Pirates of Penzance at Wolf Trap", DCMetroTheaterArts.com, 30 June 2012 ^ Hall, George. "Leave the laughs to us, you swabs!" The Independent, 12 December 2004, accessed 30 June 2010 ^ Gates, Anita. "The Happy Return of the Pirate King and His Loyal Swashbucklers". The New York Times, 26 November 2006, accessed 30 June 2010 ^ Collette, Adrian. "Chief Executive's Report" Archived 22 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine, Opera Australia Annual Report 2007, p. 11, accessed 22 October 2013 ^ "Scottish Opera Sails into Town on Pirates Adventure" Archived 22 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine, Scottish Opera, April 2013 ^ Nickalls, Susan. "The Pirates of Penzance, Theatre Royal, Glasgow, review", The Daily Telegraph 17 May 2013 ^ The first performance was by invitation only. The official opening was on 26 December 1884. The Times announcement, 20 December 1884, p. 8 ^ Rollins and Witts, p. 30 ^ Rollins and Witts, p. 32 ^ Rollins and Witts, p. 7 ^ Rollins and Witts, p. 11 ^ Rollins and Witts, p. 18 ^ Rollins and Witts, p. 22 ^ Rollins and Witts, p. 132 ^ Rollins and Witts, p. 148 ^ Rollins and Witts, p. 160 ^ Rollins and Witts, p. 170 ^ Rollins and Witts, p. 175 ^ Rollins and Witts, p. 183 ^ Rollins and Witts, 2nd Supplement, p. 15 ^ Rollins and Witts, 3rd Supplement, p. 28 ^ Rollins and Witts, 4th Supplement, p. 42 ^ a b c d e Bradley (2005), pp. 76–77 ^ Rich, Frank. "Stage: Pirates of Penzance on Broadway". The New York Times, 9 January 1981, accessed 2 July 2010 ^ a b "Awards: The Pirates of Penzance", Internet Broadway Database, accessed 24 October 2013 ^ Theatre Record, 19 May 1982 to 2 June 1982, p. 278 ^ Shepherd, Marc. "The G&S Operas on Film". A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography, 3 September 2008, accessed 2 July 2010 ^ A Papp-style production played at the Savoy Theatre in 2004. See "The Pirates of Penzance – 2004", ThisIsTheatre.com, accessed 17 November 2020. This production, directed by Steven Dexter and presented by Raymond Gubbay, used a new musical arrangement, because Papp's designs and musical arrangements created for the Papp production are protected by copyright; an unlicensed 1982 production mounted in Dublin in advance of Papp's own London production was enjoined from transferring to London by a successful lawsuit. See Bennetts, Leslie. "Pirating of The Pirates of Penzance", The New York Times, 18 August 1982, accessed 11 October 2011 ^ McMillan, Joyce. "Sinking a Victorian classic – The Pirates of Penzance", The Scotsman, 31 October 2001, p. 11, accessed 11 October 2014 ^ Lamb, Andrew. "The Pirates of Penzance", Gramophone, November 1993, p. 162 ^ Rollins and Witts, p. x ^ The Gramophone, September 1929, p. 25 ^ Shepherd, Marc. "The 1968 D'Oyly Carte Pirates". A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography, 7 September 2008, accessed 30 July 2016 ^ March (1993), pp. 437–38 ^ March (2007), p. 1338 ^ Blyth, p. 109 ^ Shepherd, Marc. "Papp's Pirates (1980)". A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography, 7 July 2010, accessed 20 August 2009 ^ Shepherd, Marc. List and assessments of recordings of the opera. A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography, 9 July 2009, accessed 30 July 2016 ^ "Professional Shows from the Festival" Archived 26 June 2012 at the Wayback Machine, Musical Collectibles catalogue website, accessed 15 October 2012 ^ Shepherd, Marc. "The 1929 D'Oyly Carte Pirates", A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography, 29 March 2009, accessed 20 August 2009 ^ Shepherd, Marc. "The 1957 D'Oyly Carte Pirates", A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography, 29 March 2009, accessed 30 July 2016 ^ Shepherd, Marc. "The Sargent/EMI Pirates (1961)", A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography, 12 July 2009, accessed 30 July 2016 ^ Shepherd, Marc. "The 1968 D'Oyly Carte Pirates", A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography, 7 September 2008, accessed 30 July 2016 ^ Shepherd, Marc. "Papp's Pirates (1980)", A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography, 7 July 2010, accessed 30 July 2016 ^ Shepherd, Marc. "The Brent Walker Pirates (1982)", A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography, 11 November 2009, accessed 30 July 2016 ^ Shepherd, Marc. "The New D'Oyly Carte Pirates (1990)", A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography, 2 December 2001, accessed 30 July 2016 ^ Shepherd, Marc. "The Mackerras/Telarc Pirates (1993)", A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography, 8 September 2008, accessed 30 July 2016 ^ Shepherd, Marc. "The Essgee Pirates (1994)", A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography, 9 July 2009, accessed 30 July 2016 ^ Zetland, Earl. "Modern Major General Parodies", accessed 7 May 2012 ^ Hinkle, A. Barton. "Hinkle: The Attorney General’s Song", Richmond Times-Dispatch, 10 May 2010 ^ "David Hyde Pierce's Monologue" Archived 20 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine, SNL Transcripts, accessed 15 February 2010 ^ Butler, Ron. "Obama! A Modern U.S. President (musical spoof)", YouTube, 11 October 2010 ^ Zacher, Scotty. "Gilbert and Sullivan spoof: A Modern US President. (Fun!!)", Chicago Theatre Beat, 18 October 2010, accessed 7 May 2012 ^ "Animaniacs – Cartoon Individual", YouTube, accessed 15 February 2010 ^ "Doctor Who Gallifreyan Buccaneer", YouTube, accessed 15 February 2010. Other songs, from Pirates, Pinafore and Ruddigore, are also parodied in the recording ^ a b Schillinger, Liesl: "Dress British, Sing Yiddish" The New York Times, 22 October 2006 ^ "Mass Effect 2 Mordin Singing", YouTube, 23 January 2010 ^ The Muppet Show, TV.com, accessed 25 July 2009 ^ Stone, David. "Martyn Green", Archived 5 September 2006 at the Wayback Machine Who Was Who in the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, 2003, accessed 2 December 2011 ^ "Roommate – Easier Way to Save – GEICO Commercial," Geico, accessed 2 December 2011 ^ One of these ads ran in The New York Times on 27 October 1953 as a full-page advertisement. ^ Mead, Rebecca. "All About the Hamiltons", The New Yorker, 9 February 2015 Issue, 2 December 2015 ^ "Soundtrack for An American Tail (1986)". Internet Movie Database, accessed 22 April 2010 ^ The Hand That Rocks the Cradle soundtrack". Internet Movie Database, accessed 21 June 2010 ^ "A Producer's Lot". TV.com, accessed 14 March 2011 ^ Pierson, Robin. "Episode 16 – 'Killer Queen'", The TV Critic, 21 March 2012, accessed 29 August 2013 ^ "The Slave of Duty", Criminal Minds, Season 5, Episode 10, 2009 (TV.com, accessed June 24, 2015). Hotch notes, at her funeral, that he met his slain ex-wife at tryouts for a high school production of The Pirates of Penzance. He quotes from Iolanthe and then quotes the opening lines of "Oh dry the glist'ning tear", up to "... to see their father weep". ^ "The Understudy". Episode Summary, TV.com, accessed 26 July 2011 ^ "Frederic Goes Free", The New York Times, 29 February 1940, p. 18 ^ "The Year of the Action" in Banquets of the Black Widowers (1984) ^ "Pirate King", Goodreads.com, accessed 13 July 2013 ^ "G&S Pop culture references", Manchester Universities Gilbert and Sullivan Society, accessed 30 November 2011 ^ "The Pirates of Penzance... in Yiddish?", Montreal Express, 25 May 2009 ^ Saltzman, Simon: CurtainUp New Jersey Review 2007 CurtainUp, accessed 13 June 2009 ^ Nesti, Robert: "Pirates! (Or, Gilbert and Sullivan Plunder’d)" EDGE, 8 June 2009 ^ Essgee Entertainment's Pirates, Simon Gallaher, accessed 25 July 2009 ^ Church, Michael. "The Pirates of Penzance, Wilton’s Music Hall, London". The Independent, 14 April 2010 ^ Spicer, David. "Sasha Regan's The Pirates of Penzance", Stage Whispers, 2012 ^ "Sasha Regan Pirates of Penzance (UK)" Archived 8 April 2013 at the Wayback Machine, Arts Projects Australia, 2012 ^ Shepherd, Marc. "Die Piraten (1968)", Gilbert and Sullivan Discography, 13 April 2009, accessed 13 October 2015 ^ List of television and film adaptations References[edit] Ainger, Michael (2002). Gilbert and Sullivan – A Dual Biography. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-514769-3. Allen, Reginald (1979). Gilbert and Sullivan in America, The Story of the First D'Oyly Carte Opera Company American Tour. New York: The Pierpont Morgan Library. Allen, Reginald (1975). The First Night Gilbert and Sullivan (2nd ed.). Chappell & Co. Ltd. ISBN 0-903443-10-4. Bond, Jessie (1930). The Life and Reminiscences of Jessie Bond, the Old Savoyard (as told to Ethel MacGeorge). London: John Lane, The Bodley Head. Archived from the original on 6 September 2015. Retrieved 22 October 2013. (Chapters 5 and 6) Blyth, Alan (1994). Opera on CD. London: Kyle Cathie. ISBN 1-85626-103-4. Bordman, Gerald (1981). American Operetta: From H. M. S. Pinafore to Sweeney Todd. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-502869-4. Bradley, Ian (1982). The Annotated Gilbert and Sullivan. Harmondsworth, England: Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-070848-0. Bradley, Ian (2005). Oh Joy! Oh Rapture!: The Enduring Phenomenon of Gilbert and Sullivan. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-516700-7. Gänzl, Kurt (1986). The British Musical Theatre—Volume I, 1865–1914. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Holden, Amanda (1997). The Penguin Opera Guide. London: Penguin Books. ISBN 014051385X. Hughes, Gervase (1959). The Music of Sir Arthur Sullivan. London: Macmillan & Co Ltd. Jacobs, Arthur (1986). Arthur Sullivan: A Victorian Musician. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-282033-8. Lamb, Andrew (Spring 1986). "From Pinafore to Porter: United States–United Kingdom Interactions in Musical Theater, 1879–1929". American Music. University of Illinois Press. 4 (1): 34–49. doi:10.2307/3052183. JSTOR 3052183. March, Ivan, ed. (1993). The Penguin Guide to Opera on Compact Discs. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-046957-5. March, Ivan, ed. (2007). The Penguin Guide to Recorded Classical Music. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books. ISBN 978-0-14-103336-5. Rees, Terence (1964). Thespis – A Gilbert & Sullivan Enigma. London: Dillon's University Bookshop. Rollins, Cyril; R. John Witts (1962). The D'Oyly Carte Opera Company in Gilbert and Sullivan Operas: A Record of Productions, 1875–1961. London: Michael Joseph. Also, five supplements, privately printed Tillett, Selwyn & Roderick Spencer (2002). "Forty Years of Thespis Scholarship" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 June 2007. Retrieved 25 May 2006. Cite journal requires |journal= (help) Shaw, Bernard (1981). Laurence, Dan H. (ed.). Shaw's Music: The Complete Musical Criticism of Bernard Shaw. 1. London: Max Reinhardt. ISBN 0-370-31270-8. Shaw, Bernard (1981). Laurence, Dan H. (ed.). Shaw's Music: The Complete Musical Criticism of Bernard Shaw. 2. London: Max Reinhardt. ISBN 0-370-31271-6. Williams, Carolyn (2010). Gilbert and Sullivan: Gender, Genre, Parody. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0-231-14804-7. External links[edit] Wikimedia Commons has media related to The Pirates of Penzance. Wikiquote has quotations related to: The Pirates of Penzance Wikisource has original text related to this article: The Pirates of Penzance General The Pirates of Penzance at The Gilbert & Sullivan Archive Sullivan's autograph manuscript, 1879 1880 London theatre programme Review of the opening night by Clement Scott Papp's version of The Pirates of Penzance at the Music Theatre International website D'Oyly Carte Prompt Books at The Victoria and Albert Museum Televised scenes from Pirates, D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, 1955 The Pirates Of Penzance public domain audiobook at LibriVox Lists of productions The Pirates of Penzance[permanent dead link]. Production list at Floormic.com The Pirates of Penzance at The Internet Broadway Database The Pirates of Penzance at IMDb v t e Gilbert and Sullivan W. S. Gilbert Arthur Sullivan Richard D'Oyly Carte Operas Thespis Trial by Jury The Sorcerer H.M.S. Pinafore The Pirates of Penzance Patience Iolanthe Princess Ida The Mikado Ruddigore The Yeomen of the Guard The Gondoliers Utopia, Limited The Grand Duke Related Savoy opera D'Oyly Carte Opera Company Helen Carte Rupert D'Oyly Carte Bridget D'Oyly Carte Cultural influence of Gilbert and Sullivan International Gilbert and Sullivan Festival W. S. Gilbert bibliography dramatic works List of compositions by Arthur Sullivan Grim's Dyke People associated with Gilbert and Sullivan Works about Gilbert and Sullivan Adaptations of works by Gilbert and Sullivan Category WikiProject v t e W. S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan's The Pirates of Penzance Films The Pirate Movie (1982 film) The Pirates of Penzance (1983 film) Pirates of Penzance – The Ballet! (1991 ballet) Music "Major-General's Song" v t e Piracy Periods Ancient Mediterranean Golden Age Republic of Pirates Libertatia 21st century Types of pirate Albanian piracy Baltic Slavic pirates Barbary pirates (corsairs) Brethren of the Coast Buccaneers Cilician pirates Cossack pirates Fillibusters Moro pirates Narentines Privateers (confederate privateer) River pirate Sea Beggars Sea Dogs Sindhi corsairs Timber pirate Ushkuyniks Uskoks Vikings Wokou Areas Anglo-Turkish piracy Barataria Bay Barbary Coast British Virgin Islands Caribbean Falcon Lake Gulf of Guinea Indonesia Lagos Lake Nicaragua Lundy Persian Gulf Port Royal Saint-Malo Salé Somali Coast South China Coast Spanish Main Strait of Malacca Sulu Sea Tortuga Major figures Pirates Mansel Alcantra Louis-Michel Aury Joseph Baker Hayreddin Barbarossa Joseph Barss Samuel Bellamy Charlotte de Berry Black Caesar Blackbeard Eli Boggs Stede Bonnet Anne Bonny Hippolyte Bouchard Abshir Boyah Roche Braziliano Henri Caesar Cai Qian Cheung Po Tsai Ching Shih Chui A-poo Roberto Cofresí William Dampier Diabolito Peter Easton Edward England Henry Every Alexandre Exquemelin Fūma Kotarō Vincenzo Gambi Gan Ning Charles Gibbs Pedro Gilbert Nathaniel Gordon Laurens de Graaf Michel de Grammont Calico Jack Rahmah ibn Jabir Al Jalhami Jørgen Jørgensen Shirahama Kenki William Kidd Jean Lafitte Lai Choi San François le Clerc Liang Daoming Limahong Samuel Hall Lord John Hawkins Bully Hayes Piet Pieterszoon Hein Moses Cohen Henriques Albert W. Hicks Nicholas van Hoorn Benjamin Hornigold Pierre Lafitte Olivier Levasseur Edward Low Hendrick Lucifer John Newland Maffitt Samuel Mason Henry Morgan Shap-ng-tsai François l'Olonnais Samuel Pallache Lawrence Prince Redbeard Bartholomew Roberts Dan Seavey Benito de Soto Klaus Störtebeker Henry Strangways Wang Zhi Dominique You Zheng Jing Zheng Qi Zheng Yi Zheng Zhilong Pirate hunters Pedro Menéndez de Avilés Luis Fajardo Angelo Emo Richard Avery Hornsby Jose Campuzano-Polanco Robert Maynard Chaloner Ogle Pompey Woodes Rogers David Porter James Brooke Miguel Enríquez Pirate ships Adventure Galley Fancy Flying Dutchman Ganj-i-Sawai Queen Anne's Revenge Quedagh Merchant Saladin Whydah Gally Marquis of Havana Ambrose Light York Pirate battles and incidents Jiajing wokou raids Turkish Abductions Chepo Expedition Battle of Mandab Strait Battle of Pianosa Blockade of Charleston Battle of Cape Fear River Battle of Ocracoke Inlet Capture of the sloop William Sack of Campeche Attack on Veracruz Raid on Cartagena Battle of Cape Lopez Capture of the schooner Fancy Persian Gulf Campaign Battle of New Orleans Anti-piracy in the Aegean Anti-piracy in the West Indies Capture of the schooner Bravo Action of 9 November 1822 Capture of the sloop Anne Battle of Doro Passage Falklands Expedition Great Lakes Patrol Pirate attacks in Borneo Balanguingui Expedition Battle of Tysami Battle of Tonkin River Battle of Nam Quan Battle of Ty-ho Bay Battle of the Leotung Antelope incident North Star affair Battle off Mukah Salvador Pirates Battle of Boca Teacapan Capture of the Ambrose Light Irene incident 1985 Lahad Datu ambush Operation Enduring Freedom – HOA Action of 18 March 2006 Action of 3 June 2007 Action of 28 October 2007 Dai Hong Dan incident Operation Atalanta Carré d'As IV incident Action of 11 November 2008 Action of 9 April 2009 Maersk Alabama hijacking Operation Ocean Shield Action of 23 March 2010 Action of 30 March 2010 Action of 1 April 2010 Action of 5 April 2010 MV Moscow University hijacking Operation Dawn of Gulf of Aden Operation Dawn 8: Gulf of Aden Beluga Nomination incident Battle off Minicoy Island Quest incident MT Zafirah hijacking MT Orkim Harmony hijacking Slave trade African slave trade Atlantic slave trade Barbary slave trade Blockade of Africa East African slave trade Trans-Saharan slave trade African Slave Trade Patrol Capture of the Providentia Capture of the Presidente Capture of the El Almirante Capture of the Marinerito Capture of the Veloz Passagera Capture of the brig Brillante Amistad Incident Capture of the Emanuela Fictional pirates Tom Ayrton Barbe Rouge Hector Barbossa Captain Blood Captain Crook Captain Flint José Gaspar Captain Hook Don Karnage Monkey D. Luffy Captain Nemo Captain Pugwash Red Rackham Captain Sabertooth Sandokan Long John Silver Jack Sparrow Captain Stingaree Roronoa Zoro Edward Kenway Nami Miscellaneous Truce of Ratisbon Piracy Act 1698 Piracy Act 1717 Piracy Act 1837 Paris Declaration Respecting Maritime Law Child pirate Golden Age of Piracy Jolly Roger skull and crossbones Walking the plank Treasure map Buried treasure Pirate booty No purchase, no pay Marooning Pirate code Pirate utopia Victual Brothers Pirate Round Libertatia Sack of Baltimore A General History of the Pyrates Mutiny Pegleg Eyepatch Letter of marque Davy Jones' Locker Air pirate Space pirate Meta Lists Pirates Privateers Timeline of piracy Pirate films Women in piracy Fictional pirates In popular culture List of ships attacked by Somali pirates Categories Piracy Pirates By nationality Barbary pirates Female pirates Piracy by year Fictional pirates Literature Treasure Island Facing the Flag On Stranger Tides Jim Hawkins and the Curse of Treasure Island Castaways of the Flying Dutchman The Angel's Command Voyage of Slaves Long John Silver Pirate Latitudes Silver: Return to Treasure Island Category Portal Awards for The Pirates of Penzance v t e Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Musical The Wiz (1975) A Chorus Line (1976) Annie (1977) Ain't Misbehavin' (1978) Sweeney Todd (1979) Evita (1980) The Pirates of Penzance (1981) Nine (1982) Little Shop of Horrors (1983) Sunday in the Park with George (1984) (no award) (1985) The Mystery of Edwin Drood (1986) Les Miserables (1987) Into the Woods (1988) Jerome Robbins' Broadway (1989) City of Angels (1990) The Secret Garden (1991) Crazy for You (1992) Kiss of the Spider Woman (1993) Passion (1994) Show Boat (1995) Rent (1996) The Life (1997) Ragtime (1998) Parade (1999) Contact (2000) The Producers (2001) Thoroughly Modern Millie (2002) Hairspray (2003) Wicked (2004) Spamalot (2005) The Drowsy Chaperone (2006) Spring Awakening (2007) Passing Strange (2008) Billy Elliot the Musical (2009) Memphis (2010) The Book of Mormon (2011) Once (2012) Matilda the Musical (2013) A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder (2014) Hamilton (2015) Shuffle Along (2016) Come from Away (2017) SpongeBob SquarePants (2018) The Prom (2019) A Strange Loop (2020) v t e Tony Award for Best Revival Porgy and Bess (1977) Dracula (1978) No Award (1979) Morning's at Seven (1980) The Pirates of Penzance (1981) Othello (1982) On Your Toes (1983) Death of a Salesman (1984) Joe Egg (1985) Sweet Charity (1986) All My Sons (1987) Anything Goes (1988) Our Town (1989) Gypsy (1990) Fiddler on the Roof (1991) Guys and Dolls (1992) Anna Christie (1993) Authority control BNF: cb14019521f (data) GND: 300159129 LCCN: n80040729 MBW work: cd6f30e2-34b0-40e2-9e40-989351bd9b11 VIAF: 184280912 WorldCat Identities (via VIAF): 184280912 Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Pirates_of_Penzance&oldid=998856490" Categories: 1879 operas Drama Desk Award-winning musicals English comic operas English-language operas Operas Operas by Gilbert and Sullivan Operas set in England Penzance Piracy in fiction Cornwall in fiction Operas adapted into films Tony Award-winning musicals Nautical fiction Hidden categories: Webarchive template wayback links All articles with dead external links Articles with dead external links from May 2020 Articles with permanently dead external links Pages containing links to subscription-only content Articles with dead external links from June 2018 Use British English from September 2013 Use dmy dates from September 2013 Articles with hAudio microformats All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from October 2013 Articles with unsourced statements from January 2008 CS1 errors: missing periodical Commons category link from Wikidata Articles with LibriVox links Articles with dead external links from April 2020 Wikipedia articles with BNF identifiers Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers Wikipedia articles with LCCN identifiers Wikipedia articles with MusicBrainz work identifiers Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers Wikipedia articles with WorldCat-VIAF identifiers Navigation menu Personal tools Not logged in Talk Contributions Create account Log in Namespaces Article Talk Variants Views Read Edit View history More Search Navigation Main page Contents Current events Random article About Wikipedia Contact us Donate Contribute Help Learn to edit Community portal Recent changes Upload file Tools What links here Related changes Upload file Special pages Permanent link Page information Cite this page Wikidata item Print/export Download as PDF Printable version In other projects Wikimedia Commons Wikiquote Wikisource Languages Català Deutsch Español فارسی Français Italiano Nederlands 日本語 Polski Português Русский Simple English Svenska Edit links This page was last edited on 7 January 2021, at 09:43 (UTC). 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