The most frequently played Gilbert and Sullivan opera is The Pirates of Penzance, a light comedy. The official premiere of the show was at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York in 1879. It was an immediate hit. The very first London production was seen at the Opera Comique on the 3rd of April 1880. Amongst many modernised productions of the play since that time was Joseph Papps 1981 production on Broadway in 1981 which was a huge success.
The cast contains hopelessly good hearted pirates, beautiful maidens and a bunch of useless but adorable cops. Many silly mistakes take place in the plot.
Frederic is the central character of the plot. He is a lovely young man and a reluctant apprentice pirate due to a hard of hearing nursemaid called Ruth. Whilst celebrating his 21st birthday, drinking sherry on the shore with his pirate buddies, Frederic tells them that he will be leaving. Ruth, the ships maid, explains that as Frederic's former nursemaid when he was a small boy, she made a huge mistake. She misheard Frederic's Father when he instructed her to apprentice him to a ships pilot due to her partial hearing and accidentally apprenticed him to a pirate.
Frederic appeals to the pirate king and the rest of the crew to leave with him to pursue a more respectable existence, but he is unsuccessful. Frederic makes some suggestions to the pirates to help them avoid regularly getting beaten and achieve a little more success in their ventures. His main gem of advice is to not necessarily believe everyone who claims to be an orphan is being honest as their weakness for orphans is common knowledge.
Ruth is desperate to wed Frederic and once they leave, she convinces Frederic that she is very beautiful in comparison to other women. Frederic who has spent the majority of his life at sea cannot remember any other woman's face and believes her. As luck would have it a group of beautiful young maidens approach them and Frederic realises he has been lied to. He turns to Ruth and says "You told me you were fair as gold and now I see you're plain and old." In total despair, Ruth leaves. Frederic tries to warn the lovely maidens that there are pirates nearby and in no time, Frederic and Mabel, a daughter of the Major General Stanley, promptly.
Shortly, Ruth returns with the pirate king to inform Frederic that he has not in fact finished his apprenticeship and cannot leave They tell Frederic that he is not technically 21 yet as he was born on the 29th of February and only has a birthday each leap year. So his apprenticeship is not over. So he must stay with the pirates for 63 more years ! This is crushing news for Frederic. However he has an extremely keen sense of duty and feels he has no choice. Mabel who is smitten, promises that she will wait for him!
This classic is a great entry to light opera and has managed to successfully stand the test of time. It is just as popular with people now as it was a century ago.
The cast contains hopelessly good hearted pirates, beautiful maidens and a bunch of useless but adorable cops. Many silly mistakes take place in the plot.
Frederic is the central character of the plot. He is a lovely young man and a reluctant apprentice pirate due to a hard of hearing nursemaid called Ruth. Whilst celebrating his 21st birthday, drinking sherry on the shore with his pirate buddies, Frederic tells them that he will be leaving. Ruth, the ships maid, explains that as Frederic's former nursemaid when he was a small boy, she made a huge mistake. She misheard Frederic's Father when he instructed her to apprentice him to a ships pilot due to her partial hearing and accidentally apprenticed him to a pirate.
Frederic appeals to the pirate king and the rest of the crew to leave with him to pursue a more respectable existence, but he is unsuccessful. Frederic makes some suggestions to the pirates to help them avoid regularly getting beaten and achieve a little more success in their ventures. His main gem of advice is to not necessarily believe everyone who claims to be an orphan is being honest as their weakness for orphans is common knowledge.
Ruth is desperate to wed Frederic and once they leave, she convinces Frederic that she is very beautiful in comparison to other women. Frederic who has spent the majority of his life at sea cannot remember any other woman's face and believes her. As luck would have it a group of beautiful young maidens approach them and Frederic realises he has been lied to. He turns to Ruth and says "You told me you were fair as gold and now I see you're plain and old." In total despair, Ruth leaves. Frederic tries to warn the lovely maidens that there are pirates nearby and in no time, Frederic and Mabel, a daughter of the Major General Stanley, promptly.
Shortly, Ruth returns with the pirate king to inform Frederic that he has not in fact finished his apprenticeship and cannot leave They tell Frederic that he is not technically 21 yet as he was born on the 29th of February and only has a birthday each leap year. So his apprenticeship is not over. So he must stay with the pirates for 63 more years ! This is crushing news for Frederic. However he has an extremely keen sense of duty and feels he has no choice. Mabel who is smitten, promises that she will wait for him!
This classic is a great entry to light opera and has managed to successfully stand the test of time. It is just as popular with people now as it was a century ago.
About the Author:
Venton Vean is a newly restored Bed and Breakfast Penzance situated in the Penzance Conservation Area, overlooking Penlee Park and located just minutes' walk from the seafront and town centre. With eclectically furnished bedrooms combining period features with modern art and design, together with a passion for good food, we aim to offer you a unique, comfortable and relaxing stay. Penzance Bed and Breakfast.
