Any Gilbert & Sullivan fans on here?

[Loge]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 3:11am

Hi All,

I've just recently begun exploring the operettas of Gilbert & Sullivan. I purchased "HMS Pinafore" a couple weeks ago and that started my love affair. I then rented "Topsy Turvy", which is a fantastic movie and ran out and bought "The Mikado". After that, I just decided to go all out and picked up "The Gondoliers", "The Pirates of Penzance", "Iolanthe" and "The Yeoman of the Guard", which included "Trial By Jury".

I am just crazy nuts about this duo now, and "Yeoman" is definitely my favorite. The score is brilliant, I love the touching story, and the libretto is wonderful. The song "I have a song to sing" is rapidly becoming one of my favorite songs ever.

I am sure there have got to be other G&S fans out here. Let's chat!

Updated On: 4/23/05 at 03:11 AM

[timote316]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 9:25am

My chorus is presenting Trial By Jury tomorrow night, actually (the chorus is the jury). It's a fun piece.

[Unknown User]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 9:46am

Yes! Yes! Yes! for G & S!

They are unquestionable master of the musical genre.

Great to hear that there are actually other BWW members who recognize and appreciate the genius of these two men working collaborativley.

PATIENCE is a favorite of mine, but, hell, they are all wonderful in their own special ways.

[Elphaba3]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 9:57am

The Mikado is one of my all-time favorite musicals. I know every word. :)

[redhotinnyc2]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 10:16am

I was in a production of Patience in the 80s and helped costume The Mikado and Iolanthe. I've always had a fondness for Gilbert and Sullivan. Iolanthe was the first musical production I ever saw on stage and I immediately fell in love with the theatricality of it all - I have a very strong memory of the Queen of the Faeries summoning Iolanthe from the bottom of the swamp - where she rose up covered in seaweed and muck, only to be pardoned and allowed back into the faerie ring - it was so beautiful...

[marincrazy11]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 10:22am

I was just in The Mikado, and it was such a blast. Pirates has always been one of my favorites, and I'm just starting to explore their other stuff. I think G&S are brilliant!!!!

[Elphaba]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 10:33am

YES, YES, YES.......my introduction to musical Theater was the Mikado. I was watching Foul Play with Chevy Chase and Goldie Hawn........I immediately bought the Mikado, and now own all that are available.
I even went so far as to see a Chicago Parks production, years ago, of Mikado, entirely performed by african-american children (even the orchestra), except for the Mikado, who was a caucasian friend of mine.
It was such a precious production......the kids were young, and not very good. But they had spirit and played/sang their hearts out. What was sad is very few parents came. There were only maybe 25 people in the audience.....but we clapped for them as loud as we could.
I also used to go up to Stratford, Ontario to see G&S productions when I lived in Michigan.

My favorite is Iolanthe, followed closely by Mikado and pirates

[TheatreDiva90016]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 10:57am

LOVE G&S!

I've done, Gondoliers, Iolanthe, Mikado, Pirates, Ruddigore and most recently was in the LA production of PINAFORE! which was a totally re-wrtten score having to do with gays in the military. They ended up taking it to the Finge Festival last year in NY, but, alas, I could not go as I was starting the tour of Hairspray then.

[mntwister]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 11:01am

I love their work. My favorite has always been PIRATES OF PENZANCE, and have been desparate for Universal to release the dvd of the movie. So far, nothing. The Guthrie in Minneapolis put this on last year, it was Fantastic!

[Gooch]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 11:08am

I suspect that many broadway fans love G and S, as there are obvious similarities in tone, patter and often in humour. My favourte is Iolanthe; if you haven't gotten to know it, you are in for a treat. Ditto Ruddigore.

[MisterRussell]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 11:51am

My first exposure to musical theatre was an LP of THE MIKADO. I have appeared in PIRATES as the Sergeant of Police, TRIAL BY JURY as The Defendant, H.M.S. PINAFORE as Ralph Rackstraw and THE MIKADO as Pish-Tush and as Pooh-Bah, and workshopped a stage version of the Ronald Searle cartoon DICK DEADEYE. I will be directing a modern-dress MIKADO this fall in Washington State.

They were geniuses, and the folks here on the board who aren't familiar with them would do well to investigate their works.

[cturtle]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 12:00pm

gilbert and who??

[TheatreDiva90016]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 12:03pm

Google them Turtle

[cturtle]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 12:12pm

just kidding ... i am the very model of a g & s fan

[joeybiltmore1]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 1:53pm

A few years ago I decided I needed to know more GIlbert and Sullivan than Pirates, which I had done. I am SO glad I did and I had a blast exploring the other shows one by one.

There are MANY recordings to choose from (and I now own more than two of most of the shows) I found that the best recordings in general have been the "New D'Oyly Carte" Company ones, mostly recorded in the early 1990's. Unlike the earlier recordings, they are digital and offer some nice production photos.

My favorites (at least today) are Ruddigore (so fun and a bit creepy), The Mikado (excellent from start to finish) and Princess Ida, which offers some of the most ravishing of Sullivan's music and orchestrations.

While the plots sometimes rehash the same ideas again and again, there is no denying the Gilbert offered consistently superb lyrics. I am so glad I decided to explore these terrific, ground-breaking works - the beginning of the musicals we all love so much.

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 2:42pm

I love G&S! I had my first experience doing the chorus of "HMS Pinafore" and "Princess Ida" at a summer stock theater a few years ago, since then I've played Sir Joseph in another production of "Pinafore" as well as Ko-Ko in "The Mikado." I've seen a bunch of other G&S shows too--"Pinafore" is my favorite but I also really like "Yeomen of the Guard." It has a really beautiful score.

[beacon1]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 3:29pm

LOVE G&S

Love love love love!

My first experience was The Mikado. When the characters names were listed in the program I was hooked. Nanky-Poo, Yum-Yum,
Koko... In fact to this day, when someone says "Defer" I always think "De-ferr. De-ferr to the Lord High Exe-CU-tioner!"

Love Pirates, Pinafore, Patience and Trial by Jury...so much to enjoy! Saw Sal Viviano as Frederick on tour...its was swoon at first site!

Updated On: 4/23/05 at 03:29 PM

[QueenS]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 3:42pm

Last season, Theatre TenTen (in NYC) did a wonderful version of "Iolanthe" with only a handful of people. They cut out the big choruses and only used 3 peers, 3 fairies and the principals.

It worked really well.

[Dummy]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 3:45pm

Huzzah for G & S fans! My parents started me on Gilbert and Sullivan when I was still in the womb, I think. You must add Ruddigore and Princess Ida to your collection. You'll be hooked for life.

[paradox_error]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 3:47pm

One of my favourite pieces of theatre is Iolanthe.

Such a wonderful score, a wonderful libretto, and I think the West End needs a well-staged revival of it.

As for the others, love the lot of them, though The Gondoliers and The Mikado stand at the front of the pack for me, with Patience not far behind.

And yes, Yeoman of the Guard has a wonderful score, but the story suffers from the lack of comedy. Comedy was Gilbert's fortê, and he should have stuck to it...

[CastAlbumFan]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 5:17pm

I'm in a G&S group called Opera-Lytes, and we're doing HMS PINAFORE this weekend, and next. I've done THE MIKADO, UTOPIA LIMITED, TRIAL BY JURY, and PRINCESS IDA (I was CYRil!!!). We're doing PATIENCE in next spring.

What I'm REALLY excited about is a Christmas G&S program we're planning for next year!

[munkustrap178]

Posted: 4/23/05 at 5:35pm

Yes, I ADORE G&S!!!!

I've performed in THE MIKADO and stage managed THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE. They are also my two favorites of theirs, they're so fantastic.

[phantom_tenor]

Posted: 4/24/05 at 4:01am

Yay for G & S!!
Everything they did was gold. except maybe "utopia ltd".

Pirates is my favourite, followed by Iolanthe, the mikado and yeomen, all tied.

Seeing what promises to be an awesome production of Pinafore/trial by jury at the Sydney Opera House later this year, starring none other than Anthony Warlow as Captain Corcoran and the Judge.

For anyone looking for a great introduction to the music of gilbert and sullivan, get the D'Oyly Carte "The Best of Gilbert and Sullivan. It's a double disk set, and it's just amazing. All done as it's meant to be done, if a little too strictly adhering to tradition.

[rockfenris2005]

Posted: 4/24/05 at 5:13am

Iolanthe is incredible. It is absolutely perfect!

[paradox_error]

Posted: 4/24/05 at 8:18am

Phantom_Tenor - Are you an Aussie?