Top Results for Sullivan

“The Pirates of Penzance is a satirical operetta by W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan first presented in 1879. It’s notable for its clever use of mistaken identities and witty lyrics within the framework of swashbuckling pirates. The work explores themes of legal absurdity and romantic disillusionme...

H.M.S. Pinafore, a comic operetta by W. S. Gilbert and Sir Arthur Sullivan, premiered in 1878. The work’s remarkable success—achieving a lengthy 571 performances in London—established Gilbert and Sullivan as leading figures in British operatic tradition. It utilizes satire to explore themes of socia...

The Yeomen of the Guard is a 1888 operetta by W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan. It’s notable for its darker tone compared to many of their earlier works, exploring themes of betrayal and murder within the confines of the Tower of London. The story centers on a soldier's attempts to clear his wrongly...

Iolanthe, composed by W.S. Gilbert and Sir Arthur Sullivan, premiered in 1882 as a significant operetta within the Savoy tradition. It’s notable for being the first theatre production to utilize full electric lighting onstage, revolutionizing theatrical presentation at the time. The work employs sat...

Gilbert and Sullivan’s *The Gondoliers* premiered in Venice in 1889. This operetta blends English verse with Venetian settings and characters, offering a satirical look at bureaucracy and romantic folly. The work's enduring popularity stems from its clever musical score by Sullivan and witty librett...

Gilbert’s Patience, premiered in 1881, offers a satirical look at the Aesthetic movement’s pursuit of beauty divorced from practicality. The operetta utilized innovative electric lighting at London's Savoy Theatre, marking a significant moment in theatrical history. Sullivan’s music and Gilbert’s wi...

Gilbert and Sullivan’s *The Sorcerer* is a satirical operetta from 1877. It features witty dialogue and fantastical elements centered around a man attempting to transform himself into a prince through magic. The work's success spurred the creation of *H.M.S. Pinafore*. It is primarily for audiences...

The Getty Tomb is a mausoleum located in Graceland Cemetery on the north side of Chicago, designed by architect Louis Sullivan and completed in 1890. It was commissioned by local businessman Henry Harrison Getty to memorialize his wife, Carrie Eliza Getty. The structure is a notable example of Sulli...

The Wainwright Tomb is a mausoleum designed by architect Louis Sullivan, located in Bellefontaine Cemetery in St. Louis, Missouri. Constructed in 1892 for the wife of wealthy brewer Ellis Wainwright, Charlotte Dickson Wainwright, the structure is a significant example of Sullivan's architectural des...

Ruddigore is a comic opera by W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan that premiered at the Savoy Theatre in London in 1887. The work parodies Victorian melodramas, particularly those featuring supernatural elements and family curses. Originally titled 'Ruddygore,' the name was changed after some considere...

Princess Ida is a Gilbert and Sullivan comic opera that premiered at the Savoy Theatre in London in 1884. Based on Alfred, Lord Tennyson's poem 'The Princess,' it is unique in the Gilbert and Sullivan canon for being structured in three acts rather than the typical two. The opera tells the story of...

"Cox and Box" is a one-act comic opera with music by Arthur Sullivan and a libretto by F. C. Burnand, premiered in 1866. Adapted from an 1847 farce by J. Maddison Morton, the plot revolves around a landlord who fraudulently rents the same room to two men—one working day shifts and the other night sh...

"The Rose of Persia; or, The Story-Teller and the Slave" is a two-act comic opera with music by Arthur Sullivan and a libretto by Basil Hood. It premiered at London's Savoy Theatre in 1899 and became a notable success there following several less successful Savoy productions after "Utopia Limited."...

The Beauty Stone is an English opera by Arthur Sullivan, billed at its 1898 premiere as a romantic musical drama in three acts. Arthur Wing Pinero and J. Comyns Carr wrote the libretto, which tells of Laine, a crippled girl who receives a magical stone that gives its wearer physical beauty, while th...

The Zoo is an English one-act comic opera from 1875, with music by Arthur Sullivan and a libretto by B. C. Stephenson. It is an early operetta-style stage work built around comedy and farce rather than a full-length dramatic structure. The piece is also notable for the unusual history of its score,...

The Golden Legend is a dramatic cantata by English composer Arthur Sullivan, first performed at the Leeds Festival in 1886. Its text, prepared by Joseph Bennett, adapts Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s narrative poem The Golden Legend, which combines a medieval Christian story with themes of illness, co...

Utopia Limited is a comic opera by W. S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan that premiered at the Savoy Theatre in London in 1893. Its story follows a fictional South Sea island whose rulers attempt to remodel the country on British political and commercial lines, including limited liability. The work uses...

Haddon Hall is an English light opera with music by Arthur Sullivan and a libretto by Sydney Grundy. It premiered in 1892 and was written after Sullivan's best-known collaborations with W. S. Gilbert. The plot centers on Dorothy Vernon and her elopement, placing the work in a historical-romantic set...

The Prodigal Son is a biblical oratorio by English composer Arthur Sullivan. Composed in 1869 for the Worcester Festival, it uses the parable recorded in the Gospel of Luke as its central subject. The work presents the son's departure, hardship, and return through choral and solo writing, following...

The Martyr of Antioch is a dramatic oratorio by Arthur Sullivan, composed for the Leeds Festival in 1880. Its text adapts Henry Hart Milman's poem about Saint Margaret of Antioch, an early Christian martyr whose story supplies the work's religious and tragic subject. The composition combines a bibli...

The Grand Duke is a comic operetta with music by Arthur Sullivan and a libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It premiered at the Savoy Theatre in London in 1896 and was the final new stage work created by the pair together. The story uses political satire, mistaken identity, theatrical performance, and dispute...

The Light of the World is a sacred oratorio by the English composer Arthur Sullivan. Written for the Birmingham Festival in 1873, it presents episodes from the earthly life of Jesus Christ through solo, choral, and orchestral music. The work belongs to the Victorian English oratorio tradition and sh...

The Contrabandista is a two-act comic opera first produced in 1867, with music by Arthur Sullivan and a libretto by F. C. Burnand. Set around smugglers and mistaken identities, it belongs to the early stage of Sullivan's theatrical career and is often identified as his first produced full-length ope...