Talk:A Sensation Novel

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[edit] Anachronism?

I'm a little puzzled by the end of the synopsis. According to the article the play was published in 1871. Yet Gripper is said to declare himself to be Sherlock Holmes, a fictional character whose first published story appeared in 1887. How can this be ? -- Derek Ross | Talk 05:17, 27 July 2006 (UTC)

I assume that the synopsis was written by reference to the most recent published version of A Sensation Novel in Jane W. Stedman's Gilbert Before Sullivan (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1967). In that version, Gripper does indeed turn out to be Sherlock Holmes in disguise.

The libretto of A Sensation Novel was published in 1871, in the late 1890s, and again in 1912. Stedman follows the 1912 text. Her reasons for that decision aren't given. In a brief note on textual variations, she does not mention any difference in the ending, though clearly there must have been.

Had I been the editor of Gilbert Before Sullivan, I would have chosen a text known to have had Gilbert's involvement, and I certainly wouldn't have chosen a text published after the author's death. But that's what Stedman did. Marc Shepherd 09:22, 27 July 2006 (UTC)

I wrote the synopsis with regard to the libretto that's on the Gilbert and Sullivan archive page, which is probably Stedman's. (It's not specified there.) The note is a good addition - I thought when I wrote it that that seemed a little off, but I couldn't put my finger on it. There we go. ^_^ SeaworthyViolin 01:01, 28 July 2006 (UTC)

Thanks for clearing that up. -- Derek Ross | Talk 00:13, 29 July 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Vocal ranges

Since the score is lost, does it make sense to assign vocal ranges to the characters? In any new score, a particular character could be written as a lyric baritone or tenor, for instance. --Ssilvers 15:21, 27 July 2006 (UTC)

I've gone ahead and removed them. While I think one could readily ascertain the vocal ranges that Reed originally used, it's just speculation since there's no score. Marc Shepherd 15:29, 27 July 2006 (UTC)