Sullivan and Gilbert

Sullivan and Gilbert is a musical by Ken Ludwig with music and lyrics by Gilbert and Sullivan. Sullivan and Gilbert features over 15 Gilbert and Sullivan songs. It examines an eventful day in the lives of the famous Victorian era composer and dramatist, and takes place behind the scenes at the Savoy Theatre in London.

Sullivan and Gilbert premiered in 1983^[1] at National Arts Centre of Canada, where it won the Ottawa Critics’ Circle award for Best Play of the Year, followed by a run at the Kennedy Center starring Fritz Weaver and Noel Harrison. It also played in Milford, New Hampshire in 1983.^[2] The cast includes eight men and four women.

This is not the only show about the Gilbert and Sulivan partnership. A 1938 Broadway show, Knights of Song, tells the story of the partnership,^[3] as do the musicals "The Savoyards", by Donald Madgwick (1971) and "Tarantara Tarantara", by Ian Taylor (1975), and the films The Story of Gilbert and Sullivan and Topsy-Turvy.

Synopsis

Near the end of their collaboration, and still smarting from their famous carpet quarrel, W. S. Gilbert and Sir Arthur Sullivan have neither seen nor spoken with each other in months. Now they must supervise a rehearsal for a revue of their comic operas, a command performance for Queen Victoria. The underprepared show is set to open in about eight hours. Sullivan has been ill and has missed most of the rehearsals; and he’s in love with pretty Violet Russell, a young soprano of whom Gilbert disapproves. To make matters worse, Sullivan has invited Alfred, the Duke of Edinburgh (and son of the Queen), to join the cast. The eager duke can't sing, dance or remember his cues. When Gilbert finds out, he's furious. With a company of temperamental actors to manage, and their producer, Richard D'Oyly Carte, breathing down their necks, there is plenty for the two men to fight about. But their admiration for each other as collaborators and friends wins the day.

Notes

References

• Official website
• NY Times description of a 1993 summer stock production of the show in Phoenix
• 1996 revival
• Description of a 2006 California production of the musical
• Review of 2009 Albuquerque production

Gilbert and Sullivan   The Triumvirate W. S. Gilbert Arthur Sullivan Richard D'Oyly Carte   The Gilbert and Sullivan 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   Other works, people and related matters Other works by W. S. Gilbert Other operas by Arthur Sullivan Other music by Arthur Sullivan Savoy opera People associated with Gilbert and Sullivan Gilbert and Sullivan performers 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 Works about Gilbert and Sullivan Adaptations of works by Gilbert and Sullivan G&S Portal