Editing The Pirates of Penzance

{{Short description|1879 comic opera by Gilbert & Sullivan}}
{{for|the 1983 film adaptation|The Pirates of Penzance (film){{!}}''The Pirates of Penzance'' (film)}}
{{Italic title}}
{{Use British English|date=September 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2022}}
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[[File:Drawing of Act I Finale.jpg|thumb|300px|right|Drawing of the Act I finale]]
'''''The Pirates of Penzance; or, The Slave of Duty''''' is a [[comic opera]] in two acts, with music by [[Arthur Sullivan]] and [[libretto]] by [[W. S. Gilbert|W.&nbsp;S.&nbsp;Gilbert]]. Its official premiere was at the [[Fifth Avenue Theatre]] in New York City on 31 December 1879, where it was well received by both audiences and critics.<ref>Perry, Helga. [http://www.savoyoperas.org.uk/pirates/pp2.html Information from the Savoyoperas.org website] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120207032729/http://www.savoyoperas.org.uk/pirates/pp2.html |date=7 February 2012 }}, Savoy Operas, 27 November 2000, accessed 25 July 2009</ref> Its London debut was on 3 April 1880, at the [[Opera Comique]], where it ran for 363 performances.

The story concerns Frederic, who, having completed his 21st year, is released from his apprenticeship to a band of tender-hearted pirates. He meets the daughters of the incompetent Major-General Stanley, including Mabel, and the two young people fall instantly in love. Frederic soon learns, however, that he was born on 29 February, and so, technically, he has a birthday only once each [[leap year]]. His [[indenture]] specifies that he remain apprenticed to the pirates until his "twenty-first birthday", meaning that he must serve for another 63 years.{{efn|This figure assumes that Gilbert was ignoring the fact that there was no leap year in 1900. Otherwise, the action of the play would take place in 1873 instead of 1877, and the figure would be 67 years. See Bradley (1996), p. 244}} Bound by his own sense of duty to honour his bond with the pirates, Frederic's only solace is that Mabel agrees to wait for him faithfully. The pirates' maid-of-all-work, Ruth, eventually reveals a fact that saves the day.

''Pirates'' was the fifth [[Gilbert and Sullivan]] collaboration and introduced the much-parodied "[[Major-General's Song]]". The opera was performed for over a century by the [[D'Oyly Carte Opera Company]] in Britain until the copyrights expired and by many other opera companies and repertory companies worldwide. Modernized productions include [[Joseph Papp]]'s 1981 [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] production, which ran for 787 performances, winning the [[Tony Award for Best Revival]] and the [[Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Musical]], and spawning many imitations and a [[The Pirates of Penzance (film)|1983 film adaptation]]. ''Pirates'' remains popular today, taking its place along with ''[[The Mikado]]'' and ''[[H.M.S. Pinafore]]'' as one of the most frequently played Gilbert and Sullivan operas.

==Background==
[[File:Joseph Ferdinand Keppler - The Pirate Publisher - Puck Magazine - Restoration by Adam Cuerden.jpg|'' The Pirate Publisher – An International Burlesque that has the Longest Run on Record'', from ''[[Puck (magazine)|Puck]]'', 1886: Gilbert is seen as one of the British authors whose works are stolen by the pirate publisher.|thumb|300px]]
''The Pirates of Penzance'' was the only [[Gilbert and Sullivan]] opera to have its official premiere in the United States. At the time, American law offered no [[copyright]] protection to foreigners. After the pair's previous opera, ''[[H.M.S. Pinafore]]'', achieved success in London in 1878, approximately 150 American companies quickly mounted unauthorised productions that often took considerable liberties with the text and paid no royalties to the creators.<ref name=Prestige>Prestige, Colin. "D'Oyly Carte and the Pirates: The Original New York Productions of Gilbert and Sullivan", pp. 113–148 at p. 118, [https://archive.today/20120715191328/http://kuscholarworks.ku.edu/dspace/handle/1808/5875 Papers Presented at the International Conference of G&S] held at the [[University of Kansas]], May 1970, edited by James Helyar. Lawrence, Kansas: University of Kansas Libraries, 1971</ref><ref>Allen (1979), p. 2</ref><ref>Goodman, Andrew. ''Gilbert and Sullivan at Law'', pp. 204–205, Fairleigh Dickinson University Press (1982), {{ISBN|0838631797}}</ref> Gilbert and Sullivan hoped to forestall further "copyright piracy" by mounting the first production of their next opera in America, before others could copy it, and by delaying publication of the score and libretto.<ref>[http://www.edwardsamuels.com/illustratedstory/isc10.htm International copyright pirating] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081028222322/http://www.edwardsamuels.com/illustratedstory/isc10.htm |date=28 October 2008 }}, Edward Samuels, accessed 25 July 2009</ref> They succeeded in keeping for themselves the direct profits of the first American production of ''The Pirates of Penzance'' by opening the production themselves on Broadway, prior to the London production, and they also operated profitable US touring companies of ''Pirates'' and ''Pinafore''.<ref name=Prestige/> However, Gilbert, Sullivan, and their producer, [[Richard D'Oyly Carte]], failed in their efforts, over the next decade, to control the American performance copyrights to ''Pirates'' and their other operas.<ref>Rosen, Zvi S. [https://ssrn.com/abstract=963540 "The Twilight of the Opera Pirates: A Prehistory of the Right of Public Performance for Musical Compositions"], ''Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal'', Vol. 24, 2007, pp. 1157–1218, 5 March 2007, accessed 24 October 2012</ref>

Fiction and plays about pirates were ubiquitous in the 19th century.<ref>Adams, Cecil, "[http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2729/why-are-pirates-depicted-with-a-parrot-on-their-shoulder Why are pirates depicted with a parrot on their shoulder? What's the origin of the skull and crossbones pirate flag?]" ''The Straight Dope'', 12 October 2007</ref> [[Walter Scott]]'s ''[[The Pirate (novel)|The Pirate]]'' (1822) and [[James Fenimore Cooper]]'s ''[[The Red Rover]]'' were key sources for the romanticised, dashing pirate image and the idea of repentant pirates.<ref name=Williams130>Williams, p. 130</ref> Both Gilbert and Sullivan had parodied these ideas early in their careers. Sullivan had written a comic opera, ''[[The Contrabandista]]'', in 1867, about a hapless British tourist who is captured by bandits and forced to become their chief. Gilbert had written several comic works that involved pirates or bandits. In Gilbert's 1876 opera ''[[Princess Toto]]'', the title character is eager to be captured by a brigand chief. Gilbert had translated [[Jacques Offenbach]]'s operetta ''[[Les brigands]]'', in 1871.<ref name=Williams130/> As in ''Les brigands'', ''The Pirates of Penzance'' absurdly treats stealing as a professional career path, with apprentices and tools of the trade such as the crowbar and [[Club (weapon)#Types|life preserver]].<ref>Williams, pp. 131–132</ref>

===Genesis===
While ''Pinafore'' was running strongly at the [[Opera Comique]] in London, Gilbert was eager to get started on his and Sullivan's next opera, and he began working on the libretto in December 1878.<ref>Ainger, p. 166</ref> He re-used several elements of his 1870 one-act piece, ''[[Our Island Home]]'', which had introduced a pirate "chief", Captain Bang. Bang was mistakenly apprenticed to a pirate band as a child by his deaf nursemaid. Also, Bang, like Frederic in ''The Pirates of Penzance'', had never seen a woman before and felt a keen sense of duty, as an apprenticed pirate, until the passage of his 21st birthday freed him from his articles of indenture.<ref>[[Eaton Faning|Faning, Eaton]] and [[Shapcott Wensley]]. Extra Supplement: ''Our Island Home'' in ''Musical Times'', Vol. 55, No. 859 (1 September 1914), pp.&nbsp;1–12</ref><ref>Gänzl, p. 29</ref> [[George Bernard Shaw|Bernard Shaw]] believed that Gilbert drew on ideas in ''[[Les brigands]]'' for his new libretto, including the businesslike bandits and the bumbling police.<ref>Shaw (Vol. 1), p. 784</ref> Gilbert and Sullivan also inserted into Act II an idea they first considered for a one-act opera parody in 1876 about burglars meeting police, while their conflict escapes the notice of the oblivious father of a large family of girls.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20210224222829/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1879/08/01/80694429.pdf "A Talk With Mr. Sullivan"], ''The New York Times'', 1 August 1879, p. 3, accessed 22 May 2012</ref> As in ''Pinafore'', "there was a wordful self-descriptive set-piece for Stanley ["[[The Major-General's Song]]"], introducing himself much as Sir Joseph Porter had done ... a lugubrious comic number for the Sergeant of Police ... a song of confession for Ruth, the successor [to] Little Buttercup", romantic material for Frederic and Mabel, and "ensemble and chorus music in turn pretty, parodic and atmospheric."<ref name=ORC>Gänzl, Kurt. [http://operetta-research-center.org/pirates-penzance-slave-duty-comic-opera-2-acts-w-s-gilbert-music-arthur-sullivan "''The Pirates of Penzance, or The Slave of Duty'': Comic opera in 2 acts by Gilbert & Sullivan]", Operetta Research Center, 5 October 2016</ref>

Gilbert, Sullivan and Carte met by 24 April 1879 to make plans for a production of ''Pinafore'' and the new opera in America.<ref>Ainger, p. 168</ref> Carte travelled to New York in the summer of 1879 and made arrangements with theatre manager [[John T. Ford]]{{efn|Ford had been one of the few managers who had paid Gilbert and Sullivan any kind of fee for performing ''Pinafore'' in America, and his reward for a small gesture was great.<ref>Stedman, p. 169</ref>}} to present, at the [[Fifth Avenue Theatre]], the authorised productions. He then returned to London.<ref name=Ainger169>Ainger, p. 169</ref> Meanwhile, once ''Pinafore'' became a hit in London, the author, composer and producer had the financial resources to produce future shows themselves, and they executed a plan to free themselves from their financial backers in the "Comedy Opera Company". Carte formed a new partnership with Gilbert and Sullivan to divide profits equally among themselves after the expenses of each of their shows.{{efn|Sullivan gave notice to the directors of the Comedy Opera Company in early July 1879 that he, Gilbert and Carte would not be renewing their contract to produce ''Pinafore'' with them and that he would withdraw his music from the Comedy Opera Company on 31 July. This followed a closure of the Opera Comique for repairs that Gilbert, Sullivan and Carte used to give them an argument that the original run of the production had "closed".<ref>Stedman, pp. 170–172; Ainger, pp. 165–167 and 194–195; and Jacobs, p. 126</ref>}} Sullivan wrote to a former producer, [[John Hollingshead]] of the [[Gaiety Theatre, London|Gaiety Theatre]], saying: "You once settled a precedent for me which may just at present be of great importance to me. I asked you for the band parts of the ''Merry Wives of Windsor'' ... and [you] said, 'They are yours, as our run is over....' Now will you please let me have them, and the parts of ''[[Thespis (opera)|Thespis]]'' also at once. I am detaining the parts of ''Pinafore'', so that the directors shall not take them away from the [[Opera Comique|Comique]] tomorrow, and I base my claim on the precedent ''you'' set." See Rees, p.&nbsp;89. The Comedy Opera Company directors engaged another theatre to play a rival production of ''Pinafore'', but they had no scenery. On 31 July, they sent a group of thugs to the Opera Comique to seize the scenery and props during the evening performance of ''Pinafore''. See Ainger, p.&nbsp;170 and Jacobs, pp.&nbsp;124–125. Stagehands and cast members managed to ward off their backstage attackers and protect the scenery. The police arrived to restore order, and the show continued. See Stedman, pp.&nbsp;170–171 and Gillan, Don. [http://www.stagebeauty.net/th-opcom.html "The Fracas at the Opera Comique"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110723085638/http://www.stagebeauty.net/th-opcom.html |date=23 July 2011 }}, ''The Theatre'', 1 September 1879, reprinted at the Stage Beauty website, accessed 6 May 2009. See also "The Fracas at the Opera Comique", ''The Era'', 10 August 1879, p.&nbsp;5 and "The Fracas at the Opera Comique", ''The Leeds Mercury'', 13 August 1879, p.&nbsp;8. The matter was eventually settled in court, where a judge ruled in Carte's favour about two years later. See Ainger, p.&nbsp;175</ref>

In November 1879, Gilbert, Sullivan and Carte sailed to America with a company of singing actors, to play both ''Pinafore'' and the new opera, including [[J. H. Ryley]] as Sir Joseph, [[Blanche Roosevelt]] as Josephine, [[Alice Barnett]] as Little Buttercup, [[Furneaux Cook]] as Dick Deadeye, [[Hugh Talbot]] as Ralph Rackstraw and [[Jessie Bond]] as Cousin Hebe, some of whom had been in the ''Pinafore'' cast in London.<ref name=Jacobs129>Jacobs, p. 129</ref> To these, he added some American singers, including [[Signor Brocolini]] as Captain Corcoran.<ref name=Ainger182>Ainger, pp. 182–183</ref> [[Alfred Cellier]] came to assist Sullivan, while his brother [[François Cellier]] remained in London to conduct ''Pinafore'' there.<ref>Jacobs, p. 127</ref> Gilbert and Sullivan cast talented actors who were not well-known stars and did not command high fees. They then tailored their operas to the particular abilities of these performers.<ref>Jacobs, p. 111; Ainger, pp. 133–134</ref> The skill with which Gilbert and Sullivan used their performers had an effect on the audience: as critic [[Herman Klein]] wrote, "we secretly marvelled at the naturalness and ease with which [the Gilbertian quips and absurdities] were said and done. For until then no living soul had seen upon the stage such weird, eccentric, yet intensely human beings&nbsp;.... [They] conjured into existence a hitherto unknown comic world of sheer delight."<ref>Jacobs, p. 113</ref> Gilbert acted as stage director for his own plays and operas. He sought [[Naturalism (theatre)|naturalism]] in acting, which was unusual at the time, just as he strove for realistic visual elements. He deprecated self-conscious interaction with the audience and insisted on a style of portrayal in which the characters were never aware of their own absurdity but were coherent internal wholes.<ref>Cox-Ife, William. ''W. S. Gilbert: Stage Director''. Dobson, 1978 {{ISBN|0-234-77206-9}}. See also Gilbert, W. S., [http://diamond.boisestate.edu/gas/html/stage_play.html "A Stage Play"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090930222738/http://diamond.boisestate.edu/gas/html/stage_play.html |date=30 September 2009 }}, and Bond, Jessie, [https://www.gsarchive.net/books/bond/intro.html ''Reminiscences'', Introduction] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120421204843/https://www.gsarchive.net/books/bond/intro.html |date=21 April 2012 }}</ref> Sullivan conducted the music rehearsals.<ref name=Ainger157>Ainger, p. 157</ref>

[[File:PiratesPenzance1879.gif|thumb|left|upright|Poster for the [[copyright performance]] at Paignton]]
Sullivan had sketched out the music for ''Pirates'' in England. When he arrived in New York, however, he found that he had left the sketches for Act I behind, and he had to reconstruct the first act from memory, or compose new numbers.<ref>Ainger, p. 177</ref><ref>Jacobs, p. 130</ref> Gilbert told a correspondent many years later that Sullivan was unable to recall his setting of the entrance of the women's chorus, so they substituted the chorus "Climbing over rocky mountain" from their earlier opera, ''[[Thespis (opera)|Thespis]]''.<ref>Ainger, p. 179</ref> Sullivan's manuscript for ''Pirates'' contains pages removed from a ''Thespis'' score, with the vocal parts of this chorus altered from their original arrangement as a four-part chorus. Some scholars (e.g. Tillett and Spencer, 2000) have suggested that Gilbert and Sullivan had planned all along to re-use "Climbing over rocky mountain," and perhaps other parts of ''Thespis''. They argue that Sullivan's having brought the unpublished ''Thespis'' score to New York, when there were no plans to revive ''Thespis'', might not have been accidental.<ref>March, Jerry. "Part of ''Thespis'' Score Discovered", ''The Savoyard'', Vol. XX, No. 1 (March 1981), p. 25; and Stedman, p. 95, n. 52</ref> In any case, on 10 December 1879, Sullivan wrote a letter to his mother about the new opera, upon which he was hard at work in New York. "I think it will be a great success, for it is exquisitely funny, and the music is strikingly tuneful and catching."<ref name=Jacobs129/> As was his usual practice in his operas, Sullivan left the [[overture]] for the last moment, often sketching it out and entrusting completion of "the details" to an assistant, in this case the company's music director, Alfred Cellier.<ref>Ainger, p. 180</ref>

''Pinafore'' opened in New York on 1 December 1879 and ran for the rest of December. After a reasonably strong first week, audiences quickly fell off, since most New Yorkers had already seen local productions of ''Pinafore''.<ref>Stedman, p. 174</ref><ref name=Jacobs129/> In the meantime, Gilbert and Sullivan raced to complete and rehearse ''The Pirates of Penzance''.<ref>Jacobs, pp. 130–132</ref> The work's title is a multi-layered joke. On the one hand, [[Penzance]] was a docile seaside resort in 1879, and not the place where one would expect to encounter pirates.{{efn|From medieval times and in later centuries, however, Penzance was subject to frequent raiding by Turkish pirates<ref>''Canon Diggens Archive'' (1910)</ref>}} On the other hand, the title was also a jab at the theatrical "pirates" who had staged unlicensed productions of ''H.M.S. Pinafore'' in America.<ref>Dexter, Gary. [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/7877394/Title-Deed-How-the-Book-Got-its-Name.html "Title Deed: How the Book Got its Name"]. ''The Telegraph'', 7 July 2010</ref><ref>Williams, p. 125</ref> To secure the British [[copyright]],{{efn|Performances had to be given in Britain before publication in order to secure copyright.<ref>Stephens, John Russell. ''The Profession of the Playwright: British Theatre 1800–1900'', Cambridge University Press (1992), pp. 104–115</ref>}} a D'Oyly Carte touring company gave a perfunctory [[copyright performance]] of ''Pirates'' the afternoon before the New York premiere, at the Royal Bijou Theatre in [[Paignton]], Devon, organised by [[Helen Lenoir]], who would later marry Richard D'Oyly Carte. The cast, which was performing ''Pinafore'' in the evenings in [[Torquay]], received some of the music for ''Pirates'' only two days beforehand. Having had only one rehearsal, they travelled to nearby Paignton for the matinee, where they read their parts from scripts carried onto the stage, making do with whatever costumes they had on hand.<ref>Ainger, pp. 180–81</ref>

===Original production and aftermath===
[[File:Grossmith as Gen Stanley.jpg|right|thumb|upright|[[George Grossmith]] as General Stanley, wearing [[Garnet Wolseley, 1st Viscount Wolseley|Wolseley]]'s trademark moustache]]
''Pirates'' premiered on 31 December 1879 in New York and was an immediate hit.<ref name=Jacobs129/> On 2 January 1880, Sullivan wrote, in another letter to his mother from New York, "The libretto is ingenious, clever, wonderfully funny in parts, and sometimes brilliant in dialogue – beautifully written for music, as is all Gilbert does. ... The music is infinitely superior in every way to the ''Pinafore'' – 'tunier' and more developed, of a higher class altogether. I think that in time it will be very popular."<ref>Jacobs, p. 133</ref> Shortly thereafter, Carte sent three touring companies around the United States East Coast and Midwest, playing ''Pirates'' and ''Pinafore''.<ref name=Ainger182/><ref name=Stedman175>Stedman, p. 175</ref> Sullivan's prediction was correct. After a strong run in New York and several American tours, ''Pirates'' opened in London on 3 April 1880, running for 363 performances there.<ref>Bradley (1982), pp. 86–87</ref> It remains one of the most popular G&S works.<ref name=grove/><ref name=Smith>Smith, Tim. [http://www.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/arts/bal-ae.li.opera16jul16,0,4347538.story "A consistent ''Pirates of Penzance''"],{{Dead link|date=June 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=no }} ''The Baltimore Sun'', 16 July 2009</ref> The London sets were designed by [[John O'Connor (painter)|John O'Connor]].<ref name=rwApp>Rollins and Witts, Appendix, p. VII</ref>

The critics' notices were generally excellent in both New York and London.<ref name=NYTrev>[https://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9B06E4DA1131EE3ABC4953DFB766838B699FDE&scp=6&sq=%22Pirates+of+Penzance%22&st=p "Amusements; Fifth-Avenue Theatre"]. ''The New York Times'', 1 January 1880, p. 5</ref><ref name=Comiquerev>"Opera Comique", ''The Era'', 11 April 1880 p. 5</ref> The character of Major-General Stanley was widely taken to be a caricature of the popular general [[Garnet Wolseley, 1st Viscount Wolseley|Sir Garnet Wolseley]]. The biographer Michael Ainger, however, doubts that Gilbert intended a caricature of Wolseley, identifying instead General Henry Turner, uncle of Gilbert's wife, as the pattern for the "modern Major-General". Gilbert disliked Turner, who, unlike the progressive Wolseley, was of the old school of officers. Nevertheless, in the original London production, [[George Grossmith]] imitated Wolseley's mannerisms and appearance, particularly his large moustache, and the audience recognised the allusion. Wolseley himself, according to his biographer, took no offence at the caricature<ref>See Ainger, pp. 181–182, and Kochanski, Halik. [https://books.google.com/books?id=rppyEHJfWhwC&pg=PA73 ''Sir Garnet Wolseley: Victorian hero''], p. 73, London, Hambledon Press, 1999. {{ISBN|1-85285-188-0}}</ref> and sometimes sang "I am the very model of a modern Major-General" for the private amusement of his family and friends.<ref>Bradley (1982), p. 118</ref>

==Roles==
* Major-General Stanley (comic [[baritone]])
* The Pirate King ([[bass-baritone]])<ref name=RichardEdwardNote>In the first night version of the libretto, the Sergeant of Police was named Edward, and the Pirate King was named Richard and was titled "A Pirate Chief". See Allen (1975), p. 112</ref>
* Samuel, ''his Lieutenant'' (baritone)
* Frederic, ''the Pirate Apprentice'' ([[tenor]])
* Sergeant of Police ([[Bass (voice type)|bass]])<ref name=RichardEdwardNote/>
:;General Stanley's daughters:
:* Mabel ([[soprano]])
:* Edith ([[mezzo-soprano]])
:* Kate (mezzo-soprano)
:* Isabel (speaking role)
* Ruth, ''a Piratical Maid of all work'' ([[contralto]])
* Chorus of Pirates, Police and General Stanley's Daughters

==Synopsis==
[[File:Marion Hood as Mabel.jpg|thumb|left|upright|[[Marion Hood]]: "Yes, 'tis Mabel!"]]

=== Act I ===
On the coast of [[Cornwall]], during [[Queen Victoria]]'s reign, Frederic celebrates the completion of his twenty-first year and the end of his apprenticeship to a gentlemanly band of pirates ("Pour, oh pour the pirate sherry"). The pirates' maid of all work, Ruth, appears and reveals that, as Frederic's nursemaid long ago, she made a mistake "through being hard of hearing": Mishearing Frederic's father's instructions, she apprenticed him to a pirate, instead of to a ship's ''[[Maritime pilot|pilot]]'' ("When Frederic was a little lad").

Frederic has never seen any woman other than Ruth, and he believes her to be beautiful. The pirates know better and suggest that Frederic take Ruth with him when he returns to civilisation. Frederic announces that, although it pains him, so strong is his sense of duty that, once free from his apprenticeship, he will be forced to devote himself to the pirates' extermination. He also points out that they are not successful pirates: since they are all orphans, they allow their prey to go free if they too are orphans. Frederic notes that word of this has got about, so captured ships' companies routinely claim to be orphans. Frederic invites the pirates to give up piracy and go with him, so that he need not destroy them, but the Pirate King says that, contrasted with respectability, piracy is comparatively honest ("Oh! better far to live and die"). The pirates depart, leaving Frederic and Ruth. Frederic sees a group of beautiful young girls approaching the pirate lair, and realises that Ruth misled him about her appearance ("Oh false one! You have deceived me!"). Sending Ruth away, Frederic hides before the girls arrive.

[[File:Power as Frederic.jpg|thumb|[[Sir George Power, 7th Baronet|George Power]], the original Frederic in London|right|upright]]
The girls burst exuberantly upon the secluded spot ("Climbing over rocky mountain"). Frederic reveals himself ("Stop, ladies, pray!"), startling them. He appeals to them to help him reform ("Oh! is there not one maiden breast?"). The girls are fascinated by him, but all reject him, except one: Mabel responds to his plea, chiding her sisters for their lack of charity ("Oh sisters deaf to pity's name for shame!"). She offers Frederic her pity ("Poor wand'ring one"), and the two quickly fall in love. The other girls discuss whether to eavesdrop or to leave the new couple alone ("What ought we to do?"), deciding to "talk about the weather," although they steal glances at the affectionate couple ("How beautifully blue the sky").

Frederic warns the young ladies that his old associates will soon return ("Stay, we must not lose our senses"), but before they can flee, the pirates arrive and capture the girls, intending to marry them ("Here's a first rate opportunity"). Mabel warns the pirates that the girls' father is a Major-General ("Hold, monsters!"), who soon arrives and introduces himself ("[[Major-General's Song|I am the very model of a modern Major-General]]"). He appeals to the pirates not to take his daughters, leaving him to face his old age alone. Having heard of the famous Pirates of Penzance, he pretends that he is an orphan to elicit their sympathy ("Oh, men of dark and dismal fate"). The soft-hearted pirates release the girls ("Hail, Poetry!"), making Major-General Stanley and his daughters honorary members of their band ("Pray observe the magnanimity").

=== Act II ===
The Major-General sits in a ruined chapel on his estate, surrounded by his daughters. His conscience is tortured by the lie that he told the pirates, and the girls attempt to console him ("Oh dry the glist'ning tear"). The Sergeant of Police and his corps arrive to announce their readiness to arrest the pirates ("When the foeman bares his steel"). The girls loudly express their admiration of the police for facing likely slaughter by fierce and merciless foes. The police are unnerved by this and leave reluctantly.

[[File:1919paradox.jpg|left|thumb|250px|"Have mercy on us!"]]
Left alone, Frederic, who is to lead the police, reflects on his opportunity to atone for a life of piracy ("Now for the pirates' lair"), at which point he encounters Ruth and the Pirate King. They have realised that Frederic's apprenticeship was worded so as to bind him to them until his twenty-first ''birthday'' – and, because that birthday happens to be on 29 February (in a [[leap year]]), it means that [[Quibble (plot device)|technically]] only five birthdays have passed ("When you had left our pirate fold"), and he will not reach his twenty-first birthday until he is in his eighties. Frederic is convinced by this logic and agrees to rejoin the pirates. He then sees it as his duty to inform the Pirate King of the Major-General's deception. The outraged outlaw declares that the pirates' "revenge will be swift and terrible" ("Away, away, my heart's on fire").

Frederic meets Mabel ("All is prepared"), and she pleads with him to stay ("Stay Frederic, stay"), but he feels bound by his duty to the pirates until his 21st birthday – in 1940. They agree to be faithful to each other until then, though to Mabel "It seems so long" ("Oh, here is love, and here is truth"); Frederic departs. Mabel steels herself ("No, I'll be brave") and tells the police that they must go alone to face the pirates. The police muse that an outlaw might be just like any other man, and it is a shame to deprive him of "that liberty which is so dear to all" ("When a felon's not engaged in his employment"). The police hide on hearing the approach of the pirates ("A rollicking band of pirates we"), who have stolen onto the estate, intending to take revenge for the Major-General's lie ("With cat-like tread").

Just then, Major-General Stanley appears, sleepless with guilt, and the pirates also hide ("Hush, hush! not a word"), while the Major-General listens to the soothing breeze ("Sighing softly to the river"). The girls come looking for him. The pirates leap out to seize them, and the Pirate King urges the captured Major-General to prepare for death. The police rush to their defence but are easily defeated. The Sergeant has one stratagem left: he demands that the pirates yield "in [[Queen Victoria]]'s name"; the pirates, overcome with loyalty to their Queen, do so. Ruth appears and reveals that the pirates are "all noblemen who have gone wrong". The Major-General is impressed by this and all is forgiven. Frederic and Mabel are reunited, and the Major-General is happy to marry his daughters to the noble ex-pirates after all ("Poor Wand'ring Ones" (reprise)).

==Musical numbers==
{{Listen
| type         = music
| filename     = The Pirates of Penzance (HMV, cond. Byng) - 03 - Oh, better far to live and die - Oh, false one, you have deceived me.mp3
| title        = ''Oh, better far to live and die'' ... ''Oh, false one, you have deceived me''
| filename2    = The Pirates of Penzance (HMV, cond. Byng) - 06 - Oh, sisters, deaf to pity's name - Poor wand'ring one.mp3
| title2       = ''Oh, sisters, deaf to pity's name'' ... ''Poor wand'ring one''
| filename3    = The Pirates of Penzance (HMV, cond. Byng) - 13 - When the foeman bares his steel.mp3
| title3       = ''When the foeman bares his steel''
| header       = Excerpts from the 1920 [[His Master's Voice (British record label)|His Master's Voice]] recording of the opera, conducted by [[George W. Byng]]
}}

[[File:Pirate King1.jpg|thumb|upright|Drawing of [[Richard Temple (bass-baritone)|Richard Temple]] as the Pirate King]]
[[File:Jay as Mabel.jpg|right|thumb|upright|[[Isabel Jay]] as Mabel]]
[[File:The Pirate King Denounces the Major General.jpg|right|thumb|400px|Pirate King [[Henry Lytton]] denounces Major-General [[Charles H. Workman|C.&nbsp;H.&nbsp;Workman]].]]

* Overture (includes "With cat-like tread", "Ah, leave me not to pine", "Pray observe the magnanimity", "When you had left our pirate fold", "Climbing over rocky mountain", and "How beautifully blue the sky")

'''Act I'''
* 1. "Pour, oh pour, the pirate sherry" (Samuel and Chorus of Pirates)
* 2. "When Fred'ric was a little lad" (Ruth)
* 3. "Oh, better far to live and die" (Pirate King and Chorus of Pirates)
* 4. "Oh! false one, you have deceiv'd me" (Frederic and Ruth)
* 5. "Climbing over rocky mountain" (Chorus of Girls)
* 6. "Stop, ladies, pray" (Edith, Kate, Frederic, and Chorus of Girls)
* 7. "Oh, is there not one maiden breast?" (Frederic and Chorus of Girls)
* 8. "Poor wand'ring one" (Mabel and Chorus of Girls)
* 9. "What ought we to do?" (Edith, Kate, and Chorus of Girls)
* 10. "How beautifully blue the sky" (Mabel, Frederic, and Chorus of Girls)
* 11. "Stay, we must not lose our senses" ... "Here's a first-rate opportunity to get married with impunity" (Frederic and Chorus of Girls and Pirates)
* 12. "Hold, monsters" (Mabel, Major-General, Samuel, and Chorus)
* 13. "[[Major-General's Song|I am the very model of a modern Major-General]]" (Major-General and Chorus)
* 14. Finale Act I (Mabel, Kate, Edith, Ruth, Frederic, Samuel, King, Major-General, and Chorus)
** "Oh, men of dark and dismal fate"
** "I'm telling a terrible story"
** "Hail, Poetry"
** "Oh, happy day, with joyous glee"
** "Pray observe the magnanimity" (reprise of "Here's a first-rate opportunity")

'''Act II'''
* 15. "Oh, dry the glist'ning tear" (Mabel and Chorus of Girls)
* 16. "Then, Frederic, let your escort lion-hearted" (Frederic and Major-General)
* 17. "When the foeman bares his steel" (Mabel, Edith, Sergeant, and Chorus of Policemen and Girls)
* 18. "Now for the pirates' lair!" (Frederic, Ruth, and King)
* 19. "When you had left our pirate fold" [The "paradox" trio] (Ruth, Frederic, and King)
* 20. "Away, away! My heart's on fire!" (Ruth, Frederic, and King)
* 21. "All is prepar'd; your gallant crew await you" (Mabel and Frederic)
* 22. "Stay, Fred'ric, stay" ... "Ah, leave me not to pine" ... "Oh, here is love, and here is truth" (Mabel and Frederic)
* 23. "No, I'll be brave" ... "Though in body and in mind" (Reprise of "When the foeman bares his steel") (Mabel, Sergeant, and Chorus of Police)
* 23a. "Sergeant, approach!" (Mabel, Sergeant of Police, and Chorus of Police)
* 24. "When a felon's not engaged in his employment" (Sergeant and Chorus of Police)
* 25. "A rollicking band of pirates we" (Sergeant and Chorus of Pirates and Police)
* 26. "With cat-like tread, upon our prey we steal" (Samuel and Chorus of Pirates and Police)
* 27. "Hush, hush, not a word!" (Frederic, King, Major-General, and Chorus of Police and Pirates)
* 28. Finale, Act II (Ensemble)
** "Sighing softly to the river"
** "Now what is this, and what is that?"
** "You/We triumph now"
** "Away with them, and place them at the bar!"
** "Poor wandering ones!"

==Critical reception==
The notices from critics were generally excellent in both New York and London in 1880.<ref>The London theatrical newspaper ''[[The Era (newspaper)|The Era]]'' even gave the ''ad hoc'' performance in Paignton a good review: see "Gilbert and Sullivan's New Opera", ''The Era'', 4 January 1880, p. 5</ref> In New York, the ''[[New York Herald|Herald]]'' and the ''[[New-York Tribune|Tribune]]'' both dedicated considerable space to their reviews. The ''Herald'' took the view that "the new work is in every respect superior to the ''Pinafore'', the text more humorous, the music more elegant and more elaborate."<ref>"The Pirates of Penzance", ''The Daily News'', 15 January 1880, p. 6</ref> The ''Tribune'' called it "a brilliant and complete success", commenting, "The humor of the ''Pirates'' is richer, but more recondite. It demands a closer attention to the words [but] there are great stores of wit and drollery ... which will well repay exploration. ... The music is fresh, bright, elegant and merry, and much of it belongs to a higher order of art than the most popular of the tunes of ''Pinafore''."<ref>[http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030214/1880-01-01/ed-1/seq-5/ "The Pirates of Penzance"]. ''New York Tribune'', 1 January 1880, accessed 27 August 2010</ref> ''[[The New York Times]]'' also praised the work, writing, "it would be impossible for a confirmed misanthrope to refrain from merriment over it", though the paper doubted if ''Pirates'' could repeat the prodigious success of ''Pinafore''.<ref name=NYTrev/>

After the London premiere, the critical consensus, led by the theatrical newspaper ''[[The Era (newspaper)|The Era]]'', was that the new work marked a distinct advance on Gilbert and Sullivan's earlier works.<ref name=Comiquerev/> ''[[The Pall Mall Gazette]]'' said, "Of Mr. Sullivan's music we must speak in detail on some other occasion. Suffice it for the present to say that in the new style which he has marked out for himself it is the best he has written."<ref name=pmg>"The Pirates of Penzance", ''The Pall Mall Gazette'', 6 April 1880, p. 12</ref> ''[[The Graphic]]'' wrote:

{{blockquote|That no composer can meet the requirements of Mr. Gilbert like Mr. Sullivan, and ''vice versa'', is a fact universally admitted. One might fancy that verse and music were of simultaneous growth, so closely and firmly are they interwoven. Away from this consideration, the score of ''The Pirates of Penzance'' is one upon which Mr. Sullivan must have bestowed earnest consideration, for independently of its constant flow of melody, it is written throughout for voices and instruments with infinite care, and the issue is a cabinet miniature of exquisitely defined proportions. ... That ''the Pirates'' is a clear advance upon its precursors, from ''[[Trial by Jury]]'' to ''H.M.S. Pinafore'', cannot be denied; it contains more variety, marked character, careful workmanship, and is in fact a more finished artistic achievement … a brilliant success.<ref>"Music", ''The Graphic'', 10 April 1880, p. 371</ref>|}}

There were a few dissenting comments: ''[[The Manchester Guardian]]'' thought both author and composer had drawn on the works of their predecessors: "Mr. Gilbert ... seems to have borrowed an idea from [[Richard Brinsley Sheridan|Sheridan]]'s ''[[The Critic (play)|The Critic]]''; Mr. Sullivan's music is sprightly, tuneful and full of 'go', although it is certainly lacking in originality."<ref>"From Our London Correspondent", ''The Manchester Guardian'', 5 April 1880, p. 4</ref> ''[[The Sporting Times]]'' noted, "It doesn't appear to have struck any of the critics yet that the central idea in ''The Pirates of Penzance'' is taken from ''Our Island Home'', which was played by the [[German Reed Entertainments|German Reeds]] some ten years ago."<ref>''The Sporting Times'', 10 April 1880, p. 1</ref> ''[[The Times]]'' thought Gilbert's wit outran his dramatic invention, and Sullivan's music for the new work was not quite as good as his score for ''[[The Sorcerer]]'', which the ''Times'' critic called a masterpiece.<ref>''The Times'', 5 April 1880, p. 4</ref>

==Musical analysis==
The overture to ''The Pirates of Penzance'' was composed by Sullivan and his musical assistant [[Alfred Cellier]]. It follows the pattern of most [[Savoy opera]] overtures: a lively opening (the melody of "With cat-like tread"), a slow middle section ("Ah, leave me not to pine alone"), and a concluding [[Tempo#Italian tempo markings|allegro]] in a compressed [[sonata form]], in which the themes of "How beautifully blue the sky" and "A paradox, a paradox" are combined.<ref>Hughes, p. 134</ref>

===Parody===
The score parodies several composers, most conspicuously [[Giuseppe Verdi|Verdi]]. "Come, friends, who plough the sea" and "You triumph now" are burlesques of ''[[Il trovatore]]'',<ref name=hulme>Hulme, David Russell. [http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/subscriber/article/grove/music/O005334 "The Pirates of Penzance"]. ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'', Grove Music Online, Oxford Music Online, accessed 30 June 2010 {{subscription required}}</ref> and one of the best-known choral passages from the finale to Act&nbsp;I, "Hail Poetry", is, according to the Sullivan scholar, [[Arthur Jacobs]], a burlesque of the prayer scene, "La Vergine degli Angeli", in Verdi's ''[[La forza del destino]]''.<ref>Jacobs, p. 135</ref> However, another musicologist, Nicholas Temperley, writes, "The choral outburst 'Hail, Poetry' in ''The Pirates of Penzance'' would need very little alteration to turn it into a [[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart|Mozart]] string quartet."<ref>Temperley, Nicholas. [https://www.jstor.org/stable/732768 "Mozart's Influence on English Music"]. ''Music & Letters'', vol. 42, issue 4, October 1961, pp. 307–318, Oxford University Press, accessed 1 July 2010 {{subscription required}}</ref> Another well-known parody number from the work is the song for [[coloratura]], "Poor wand'ring one", which is generally thought to burlesque [[Charles Gounod|Gounod]]'s waltz-songs,<ref>Hughes, p. 151</ref> though the music critic of ''The Times'' called it "mock-[[Gaetano Donizetti|Donizetti]]".<ref>"Guthrie's Irreverent Pirates", ''The Times'', 16 February 1962, p. 15</ref> <!-- I'VE SEEN IT COMPARED WITH "SEMPRE LIBERA". IS THERE ANY MENTION OF THAT? --> In a scene in Act&nbsp;II, Mabel addresses the police, who chant their response in the manner of an [[Anglican]] church service.<ref>Maddocks, Fiona. [https://archive.today/20120912003426/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/music/review-23440103-these-pirates-have-real-swagger.do "These pirates have real swagger"]. ''[[Evening Standard]]'', 20 February 2008, accessed 2 July 2010</ref>

Sullivan even managed to parody two composers at once. The critic [[Rodney Milnes]] describes the Major-General's Act&nbsp;II song, "Sighing softly to the river", "as plainly inspired by – and indeed worthy of – Sullivan's hero [[Franz Schubert|Schubert]]",<ref name=rodders>"Putting the Jolly in Roger", ''The Times'', 26 April 2001</ref> and [[Amanda Holden (writer)|Amanda Holden]] speaks of the song's "Schubertian water-rippling accompaniment", but adds that it simultaneously spoofs Verdi's ''Il trovatore'', with the soloist unaware of a concealed male chorus singing behind him.<ref>Holden, p. 402</ref>

===Patter, counterpoint, and vocal writing===
{{listen
| type         = music
| filename     = Sullivan - The Pirates of Penzance - I am the very model of a modern Major-General (Baker, 1921).mp3
| title        = Major-General's Song
| description  = [[George Baker (baritone)|George Baker]] sings the "I am the very model of a modern Major-General", conducted by [[George W. Byng]] (1920)
}}

Writing about [[patter song]]s, Shaw, in his capacity as a music critic, praised "the time-honored lilt which Sir Arthur Sullivan, following the example of Mozart and [[Gioachino Rossini|Rossini]], chose for the lists of accomplishments of the Major-General in ''The Pirates'' or the Colonel in ''[[Patience (opera)|Patience]]''."<!--SPELLING IS AS GBS WROTE IT. GBS WAS A FERVENT ADVOCATE OF SPELLING REFORM AND HIS OWN WRITING REFLECTED THAT. --><ref>Shaw (Vol. 2) p. 492</ref>

This opera contains two well-known examples of Sullivan's characteristic combination of two seemingly disparate melodies. Jacobs suggests that [[Hector Berlioz|Berlioz]]'s ''[[La damnation de Faust]]'', a great favourite in Sullivan's formative years, may have been the model for Sullivan's trademark contrapuntal mingling of the rapid prattle of the women's chorus in Act I ("How beautifully blue the sky") in 2/4 time with the lovers' duet in waltz time. Jacobs writes that "the whole number [shifts] with Schubertian ease from B to G and back again."<ref name=grove>Jacobs, Arthur. [http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/subscriber/article/grove/music/27100 "Sullivan, Sir Arthur."] Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online, accessed 30 June 2010 {{subscription required}}</ref> In Act II, a double chorus combines the policemen's dogged tune, "When the foeman bares his steel" and the soaring line for the women, "Go, ye heroes, go to glory".<ref>Hughes, p. 80</ref> In adapting the four-part chorus "Climbing over rocky mountain" from ''Thespis'' for re-use in ''Pirates'', Sullivan took less trouble: he wrote only a single vocal line, suitable for soprano voices.<ref>Hughes, p. 88</ref> Despite this, the number ends with another example of Sullivan's counterpoint, with the chorus singing the second melody of the piece ("Let us gaily tread the measure") while the orchestra plays the first ("Climbing over rocky mountain").<ref>Rees, pp. 62–63 suggested that in the original ''Thespis'' version, for male as well as female voices, the men would have sung the first theme while the women sang the second.</ref>

Sullivan set a particular vocal challenge for the soprano who portrays Mabel. The Sullivan scholar [[Gervase Hughes]] wrote, "Mabel ... ''must'' be a coloratura because of 'Poor wand'ring one!', yet 'Dear father, why leave your bed' demands steady beauty of tone throughout the octave F to F, and 'Ah, leave me not to pine' goes a third lower still."<ref>Hughes, pp. 92–93</ref> In ''The Music of Arthur Sullivan'' (1959), Hughes quoted four extracts from ''Pirates'', saying that if hearing each out of context one might attribute it to Schubert, [[Felix Mendelssohn|Mendelssohn]], Gounod or [[Georges Bizet|Bizet]] respectively, "yet on learning the truth one would kick oneself for not having recognised Sullivan's touch in all four." Hughes concluded by quoting the introductory bars of "When a felon's not engaged in his employment", adding, "There could never be any doubt as to who wrote ''that'', and it is as English as our wonderful police themselves."<ref>Hughes, pp. 50–51</ref>

==Versions==
[[File:pirates of penzance restoration.jpg|thumb|200px|right|1880 poster]]
Because the work was premiered in three different places (the Paignton performance and the full productions in New York and London), there are more variations in the early libretto and score of ''The Pirates of Penzance'' than in other Gilbert and Sullivan works. Songs sent from New York to the D'Oyly Carte touring company in England for the Paignton premiere were then altered or omitted during Broadway rehearsals. Gilbert and Sullivan trimmed the work for the London premiere, and Gilbert made further alterations up to and including the 1908 Savoy revival. For example, early versions depicted the Pirate King as the servant of the pirate band,<ref name=brad>Bradley (1982) pp. 90–159</ref> and the words of the opening chorus were, "Pour, O King, the pirate sherry".<ref>Anderson W. R., Changes in the "Pirates". ''Gramophone'', June 1950, p. 14</ref> In the original New York production the revelation by Ruth that the pirates are "all noblemen who have gone wrong" prompted the following exchange (recalling a famous passage in ''[[H.M.S. Pinafore]]''):
{|
|-
|GENERAL, POLICE & GIRLS:||What, all noblemen?
|-
|KING & PIRATES:||Yes, ''all'' noblemen!
|-
|GENERAL, POLICE & GIRLS:||What, all?
|-
|KING:||Well, nearly all!
|}
{|
|-
|valign=top|ALL:
| . . . They are nearly all noblemen who have gone wrong.
:Then give three cheers, both loud and strong,
:For the twenty noblemen who have gone wrong....
|}

In the original London production, this exchange was shortened to the following:
{|
|-
|GIRLS:||Oh spare them! They are all noblemen who have gone wrong.
|-
|GENERAL:||What, all noblemen?
|-
|KING:||Yes, ''all'' noblemen!
|-
|GENERAL:||What, all?
|-
|KING:||Well, nearly all!
|}

Gilbert deleted the exchange in the 1900 revival, and the [[Chappell & Co.|Chappell]] vocal score was revised accordingly. For the 1908 revival Gilbert had the pirates yielding "in good King Edward's name".<ref name=brad/> Despite [[Helen Carte]]'s repeated urging, Gilbert did not prepare an authorised version of the libretti of the [[Savoy opera]]s.<ref>Bradley (1982), p. 7</ref>

In its 1989 production, the [[D'Oyly Carte Opera Company]] restored one of the original versions of the finale, which finishes with a variation of "I am the very model of a modern major-general", rather than with the customary reprise of "Poor wand'ring one",<ref>See Bradley (1982), pp. 158–159</ref> but in later revivals, it reverted to the more familiar text.<ref name=rodders/>

==Subsequent production history==
[[File:SulksPir.jpg|right|thumb|200px|1881 programme cover]]
''The Pirates of Penzance'' has been one of Gilbert and Sullivan's most popular comic operas. After its unique triple opening in 1879–80, it was revived in London at the [[Savoy Theatre]] in 1888 and in 1900, and for the Savoy's repertory season of 1908–09. In the British provinces, the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company toured it almost continuously from 1880 to 1884, and again in 1888. It re-entered the D'Oyly Carte touring repertory in 1893 and was never again absent until the company's closure in 1982.<ref>Rollins and Witts, pp. 11, 18, 22, 35 ''et passim''</ref> New costumes were designed by [[Percy Anderson (designer)|Percy Anderson]] in 1919 and [[George Sheringham]] in 1929 (who also executed a new Act I set). [[Peter Goffin]] created a new touring set in 1957.<ref name=rwApp/>

In America, after the New York opening on New Year's Eve, 1879, [[Richard D'Oyly Carte]] launched four companies that covered the United States on tours that lasted through the following summer.<ref>Bradley (1982), p. 86</ref> Gilbert and Sullivan themselves trained each of the touring companies through January and early February 1880, and each company's first performance – whether it was in Philadelphia, Newark, or Buffalo – was conducted by the composer. In Australia, its first authorised performance was on 19 March 1881 at the Theatre Royal, Sydney, produced by [[J. C. Williamson]].<ref name=ORC/> There was still no international copyright law in 1880, and the first ''unauthorised'' New York production was given by the [[Boston Ideal Opera Company]] at Booth's Theatre in September of that year.{{citation needed|date=October 2013}} The opera premiered in a German translation by [[Richard Genée]] and [[Camillo Walzel]] (''Die Piraten'') in Austria at the [[Theater an der Wien]] on 1 March 1889, and in [[Düsseldorf]], Germany, on 1 December 1936.<ref name=ORC/> The first non-D'Oyly Carte professional production in a country that had been subject to Gilbert's copyright (other than Williamsons' authorised productions) was in [[Stratford, Ontario]], Canada, in September 1961, as the copyright expired. In 1979, the [[Torbay]] branch of the Gilbert and Sullivan Society presented a centenary tribute to the world premiere performance of ''Pirates'' in Paignton, with a production at the Palace Avenue Theatre (situated a few metres from the former Bijou Theatre).<ref>[http://www.gilbertandsullivantorbay.co.uk/pirates79.htm "''The Pirates of Penzance''"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304042333/http://www.gilbertandsullivantorbay.co.uk/pirates79.htm |date=4 March 2016 }}, The Gilbert and Sullivan Society (Torbay Branch), accessed 23 January 2014</ref>

New York has seen over forty major revivals since the premiere.<ref>Hischak, Thomas [http://www.oxfordreference.com/views/ENTRY.html?subview=Main&entry=t282.e1439 "Pirates of Penzance, The"], The Oxford Companion to the American Musical. Oxford University Press 2009. Oxford Reference Online, accessed 2 July 2010 {{subscription required}}</ref> One of these, produced and directed by [[Winthrop Ames]] in 1926 at the [[Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre|Plymouth Theatre]], ran for 128 performances<ref>[http://www.ibdb.com/production.php?id=10169 ''The Pirates of Penzanzance''], Internet Broadway Database, accessed 25 October 2013</ref> and gained good notices.<ref>Hurley, G. M. "Gilbert and Sullivan – and Winthrop Ames", ''The New Yorker'', 6 June 1931, p. 70</ref> A brief 1952 Broadway staging starring [[Martyn Green]], earned [[Lehman Engel]] a Tony Award as conductor.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120923134945/http://ibdb.com/production.php?id=2349 "''The Pirates of Penzance''"], Internet Broadway Database, accessed 25 October 2013</ref><ref>Stone, David. [https://www.gsarchive.net/whowaswho/G/GreenMartyn.htm "Martyn Green"], {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060905101325/https://www.gsarchive.net/whowaswho/G/GreenMartyn.htm |date=5 September 2006 }} ''Who Was Who in the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company'', 2003, accessed 25 October 2013</ref> Repertory companies that have mounted ''Pirates'' numerous times [[Off-Broadway]] and on tour in the US have included the [[American Savoyards]] (1953–67),<ref>Moore, Frank Ledlie (compiler). ''Handbook of Gilbert and Sullivan'': Introduction by Dorothy Raedler, Producer-Director, The American Savoyards, Schocken Books: New York (1975)</ref> the [[Light Opera of Manhattan]] (1968–89)<ref>[[John Kenrick (theatre writer)|Kenrick, John]], [http://www.musicals101.com/loomhistory.htm "A Brief History of LOOM"], Musicals101.com, 2002, accessed 26 October 2013</ref> and the [[New York Gilbert and Sullivan Players]] (1976–present).<ref>See NYGASP Theatre Programs, "Prime Time G&S: 20th Anniversary Celebration", 24 April 1994, Symphony Space, New York City; and Laxson, Erica. [http://www.dcmetrotheaterarts.com/2012/06/30/the-pirates-of-penzance-at-wolf-trap-by-erica-laxson/ "''The Pirates of Penzance'' at Wolf Trap"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029202627/http://www.dcmetrotheaterarts.com/2012/06/30/the-pirates-of-penzance-at-wolf-trap-by-erica-laxson/ |date=29 October 2013 }}, DCMetroTheaterArts.com, 30 June 2012</ref> Professional and amateur productions of ''Pirates'' continue with frequency, including at the [[International Gilbert and Sullivan Festival]]. The [[Chicago Lyric Opera]] and [[English National Opera]] each also staged the work in 2004.<ref>Hall, George. [https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/preformthe-pirates-of-penzanceeno-coliseum-londonbr-one-touch-of-venusopera-north-grand-theatre-leedspreform-684899.html "Leave the laughs to us, you swabs!"]{{dead link|date=August 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} ''The Independent'', 12 December 2004, accessed 30 June 2010</ref> In 2007 [[New York City Opera]] mounted a new production.<ref>Gates, Anita. [http://theater.nytimes.com/2006/11/26/nyregion/nyregionspecial2/26cttheater.html "The Happy Return of the Pirate King and His Loyal Swashbucklers"]. ''The New York Times'', 26 November 2006, accessed 30 June 2010</ref> In 2013, [[Scottish Opera]] produced a British touring production co-produced by the trustees of the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company. [[Richard Suart]] played Major-General Stanley and [[Nicholas Sharratt]] played Frederic.<ref>[http://www.scottishopera.org.uk/sites/default/files/pdf/FINAL%20Scottish%20Opera%20Sails%20Into%20Town%20On%20Pirate%20Adventure.pdf "Scottish Opera Sails into Town on ''Pirates'' Adventure"] {{Webarchive| url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131022073413/http://www.scottishopera.org.uk/sites/default/files/pdf/FINAL%20Scottish%20Opera%20Sails%20Into%20Town%20On%20Pirate%20Adventure.pdf |date=22 October 2013 }}, Scottish Opera, April 2013</ref><ref>Nickalls, Susan. [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/opera/10064928/The-Pirates-of-Penzance-Theatre-Royal-Glasgow-review.html "''The Pirates of Penzance'', Theatre Royal, Glasgow, review"], ''The Daily Telegraph'' 17 May 2013</ref>

The following table shows the history of the D'Oyly Carte productions in Gilbert's lifetime (excluding tours):
[[File:MajGeneraldrawing.jpg|right|thumb|upright|Drawing from programme of children's ''Pirates'', 1884]]
{|class="wikitable"
|-
!Theatre!!Opening date!!Closing date!!Perfs.!!Details
|-
|Bijou Theatre, Paignton||nowrap|30 December 1879||nowrap|30 December 1879||align=center|1||English [[copyright performance]].
|-
|rowspan=2|[[Fifth Avenue Theatre]], New York||31 December 1879||6 March 1880||rowspan=2 align=center|100||rowspan=2|Original run in New York. The company toured the Eastern seaboard between 8 March and 15 May. Three other touring companies were launched in January and February 1880.
|-
|17 May 1880||5 June 1880
|-
|[[Opera Comique]]||3 April 1880||2 April 1881||align=center|363||Original London run.
|-
|[[Savoy Theatre]]||23 December 1884||14 February 1885||align=center|37||Children's ''Pirates'' – series of matinées with a juvenile cast.<ref>The first performance was by invitation only. The official opening was on 26 December 1884. ''The Times'' announcement, 20 December 1884, p. 8</ref>
|-
|Savoy Theatre||17 March 1888||6 June 1888||align=center|80||First professional revival.
|-
|Savoy Theatre||30 June 1900||5 November 1900||align=center|127||Second professional revival.
|-
|nowrap|Savoy Theatre||1 December 1908||27 March 1909||align=center|43||Second Savoy repertory season; played with five other operas. (Closing date shown is of the entire season.)
|}

===Papp's ''Pirates''===
[[File:Pirates-of-penzance-DVDcover.jpg|thumb|upright|right|[[Rex Smith|Smith]], [[Linda Ronstadt|Ronstadt]] and [[Kevin Kline|Kline]] at the [[Delacorte Theatre]]]]
In 1980, [[Joseph Papp]] and the [[Public Theater]] of New York City produced a new version of ''Pirates'', directed by [[Wilford Leach]] and choreographed by [[Graciela Daniele]], at the [[Delacorte Theatre]] in [[Central Park]], as a [[Shakespeare in the Park]] summer event. Musical direction and arrangements were by William Elliott. The show played for 10 previews and 35 performances. It then transferred to Broadway, opening on 8 January 1981 for a run of 20 previews and 787 regular performances at the [[George Gershwin Theatre|Uris]] and [[Minskoff Theatre|Minskoff]] Theatres, the longest run of any Gilbert and Sullivan production in history.<ref name=Bradley76>Bradley (2005), pp. 76–77</ref> This take on ''Pirates'' earned enthusiastic reviews<ref>[[Frank Rich|Rich, Frank]]. [https://www.nytimes.com/1981/01/09/theater/stage-pirates-of-penzance-on-broadway.html?scp=1&sq=papp%20%22Pirates%20of%20penzance%22&st=cse "Stage: ''Pirates of Penzance'' on Broadway"], ''The New York Times'', 9 January 1981, accessed 2 July 2010</ref> and seven [[Tony Award]] nominations, winning three, including the award for [[Tony Award for Best Revival|Best Revival]] and for Leach as director. It was also nominated for eight [[Drama Desk Award]]s, winning five, including [[Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Musical|Outstanding Musical]] and director.<ref name=IBDB>[http://ibdb.com/production.php?id=4088 "Awards: ''The Pirates of Penzance''"], Internet Broadway Database, accessed 24 October 2013</ref>

Compared with traditional productions of the opera, Papp's ''Pirates'' featured a more swashbuckling Pirate King and Frederic, and a broader, more [[musical comedy]] style of singing and humour. It did not significantly change the libretto, but it used a new orchestration and arrangements that changed keys, added repeats, lengthened dance music and made other minor changes in the score. The "Matter Patter" trio from ''[[Ruddigore]]'' and "Sorry her lot" from ''[[H.M.S. Pinafore]]'', two other Gilbert and Sullivan operas, were interpolated into the show.<ref name=ORC/> The production also restored Gilbert and Sullivan's original New York ending, with a reprise of the Major-General's song in the Act II finale. [[Linda Ronstadt]] starred as Mabel, [[Rex Smith]] as Frederic, [[Kevin Kline]] as the Pirate King, [[Patricia Routledge]] as Ruth (replaced by [[Estelle Parsons]] for the Broadway transfer), [[George Rose (actor)|George Rose]] as the Major-General, and [[Tony Azito]] as the Sergeant of Police. Kline won a Tony Award for his performance. Smith won a [[Theatre World Award]], and Kline and Azito won Drama Desk Awards. Notable replacements during the Broadway run included [[Karla DeVito]], [[Maureen McGovern]] and [[Pam Dawber]] as Mabel; [[Robby Benson]], [[Patrick Cassidy (actor)|Patrick Cassidy]] and [[Peter Noone]] as Frederic; [[Treat Williams]], [[Gary Sandy]], [[James Belushi]] and [[Wally Kurth]] as the Pirate King; [[David Garrison]] as the Sergeant; [[George S. Irving]] as the Major-General; and [[Kaye Ballard]] and [[Marcia Bagwell]] as Ruth. The Los Angeles cast of the production featured [[Barry Bostwick]] as the Pirate King, [[Jo Anne Worley]] as Ruth, [[Clive Revill]] as the Major-General, Dawber as Mabel, [[Paxton Whitehead]] as the Sergeant, [[Caroline Peyton]] as Edith and [[Andy Gibb]] as Frederic.<ref name=IBDB/>

The production opened at the [[Theatre Royal, Drury Lane]], London, on 26 May 1982, to generally warm reviews, for a run of 601 performances, earning an [[Olivier Award]] nomination as Outstanding Musical and another for [[Tim Curry]] as the Pirate King. Among the cast were [[George Cole (actor)|George Cole]] and [[Ronald Fraser (actor)|Ronald Fraser]] as the Major-General; [[Pamela Stephenson]] as Mabel; [[Michael Praed]] and Peter Noone as Frederic; Curry, [[Timothy Bentinck]], [[Oliver Tobias]] and [[Paul Nicholas]] as the Pirate King; [[Chris Langham]] as the Sergeant; [[Annie Ross]] as Ruth; [[Bonnie Langford]] as Kate; and [[Louise Gold]] as Isabel.<ref>''[[Theatre Record]]'', 19 May 1982 to 2 June 1982, p. 278</ref> The Australian production opened in Melbourne in January 1984, opening the new [[Victorian Arts Centre]], directed by John Feraro. It starred [[Jon English]] as the Pirate King, [[Simon Gallaher]] as Frederic, [[June Bronhill]] as Ruth, [[David Atkins]] as the Sergeant and [[Marina Prior]] as Mabel. The six-week limited season was followed by an Australian national tour from 1984 to 1986 and another tour with same cast in the mid-1990s.<ref name=Bradley76/> In 1985, Papp's ''Pirates'' opened the new [[Queensland Performing Arts Centre]] in Brisbane.{{Citation needed|date=January 2008}} Gallaher's [[Essgee Entertainment]] version of ''Pirates'' was inspired by the Papp version.<ref name=Bradley76/> The Papp version also inspired foreign-language productions in Germany and elsewhere in Europe.<ref name=ORC/> The Papp production was turned into [[The Pirates of Penzance (film)|a film in 1983]], with the original Broadway principal cast reprising their roles, except that [[Angela Lansbury]] replaced Estelle Parsons as Ruth. The minor roles used British actors miming to their Broadway counterparts. The film has been shown occasionally on television. Another film based loosely on the opera and inspired by the success of the Papp version, ''[[The Pirate Movie]]'', was released during the Broadway run.<ref>Shepherd, Marc. [http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/narrfilm.htm "The G&S Operas on Film"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100606062612/http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/narrfilm.htm |date=6 June 2010 }}. ''A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography'', 3 September 2008, accessed 2 July 2010</ref> 

[[File:Opera Australia's Pirates of Penzance.jpg|thumb|left|[[Opera Australia]]'s 2007 touring production of ''Pirates'', with [[Anthony Warlow]] as the Pirate King]]
The Papp production design has been widely imitated in later productions of ''Pirates'', even where traditional orchestration and the standard score are used.<ref name=Bradley76/> [[Ian Bradley]] wrote:
{{blockquote|[Papp's version] has been regularly revived on both sides of the Atlantic – a British revival in 2000 transferred from the [[West Yorkshire Playhouse]], [[Leeds]], to the [[Regent's Park Open Air Theatre|Open Air Theatre in Regents' Park]] – and has also become well established in the repertoire of amateur student societies. No other production has had as much lasting impact or influence. ... It also helped to promote G&S in places where it has been little performed and bring it to the attention of a much wider and younger audience.<ref name=Bradley76/>}} An unlicensed 1982 production mounted in Dublin in advance of Papp's own London production was enjoined from transferring to London by a successful lawsuit.<ref>Bennetts, Leslie. [https://www.nytimes.com/1982/08/18/movies/pirating-of-the-pirates-of-penzance.html "Pirating of ''The Pirates of Penzance''"], ''The New York Times'', 18 August 1982, accessed 11 October 2011</ref> One at the Savoy Theatre in 2004, directed by Steven Dexter and presented by Raymond Gubbay, used a new musical arrangement, to avoid Papp's copyright.<ref>[http://www.thisistheatre.com/londonshows/piratesofpenzance.html "''The Pirates of Penzance'' – 2004"], ThisIsTheatre.com, accessed 17 November 2020.</ref><ref>Seckerson, Edward. [https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/the-pirates-of-penzance-savoy-theatre-london-73195.html "''The Pirates of Penzance'', Savoy Theatre, London"], ''[[The Independent]]'', 12 January 2004</ref> Some modern productions combine design elements borrowed from the Disney film franchise ''[[Pirates of the Caribbean]]'' with aspects of the Papp production. From 2006 to 2007 an [[Opera Australia]] production toured Australia starring [[Anthony Warlow]] as the Pirate King.<ref>[https://www.abouttheartists.com/productions/178237-the-pirates-of-penzance-at-various-venues-2006-2007 "Opera Australia presents: ''The Pirates of Penzance''"], ''About the Artists''. Retrieved 29 December 2023</ref><ref>Collette, Adrian. [http://www.opera-australia.org.au/res/pdfs/Opera_Australia_Annual_Report_2007.pdf "Chief Executive's Report"] {{Webarchive| url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131022035631/http://www.opera-australia.org.au/res/pdfs/Opera_Australia_Annual_Report_2007.pdf |date=22 October 2013 }}, Opera Australia Annual Report 2007, p. 11, accessed 22 October 2013</ref> Not all of the Papp-inspired revivals have generated the same enthusiasm as Papp's 1980s productions: a 1999 UK touring production received this critique: "No doubt when Papp first staged this show in New York and London it had some quality of cheek or [[chutzpah]] or pizzazz or irony or something that accounted for its success. But all that's left now ... is a crass Broadway-style musical arrangement ... and the worst kind of smutty send-up of a historic piece of art."<ref>McMillan, Joyce. [http://www.scotsman.com/news/the-pirates-of-penzance-1-582472 "Sinking a Victorian classic – ''The Pirates of Penzance''"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141017175730/http://www.scotsman.com/news/the-pirates-of-penzance-1-582472 |date=17 October 2014 }}, ''[[The Scotsman]]'', 31 October 2001, p. 11, accessed 11 October 2014</ref>

===2025 musical version===
A [[Roundabout Theatre Company]] production titled ''Pirates! The Penzance Musical'' began previews on Broadway at the [[Todd Haimes Theatre]] on 4 April 2025 and opened on 24 April; it is expected to run through 27 July 2025.<ref>Evans, Greg. [https://deadline.com/2025/03/pirates-the-penzance-musical-broadway-closing-date-1236354810 "Broadway’s ''Pirates! The Penzance Musical'' Gets Four-Week Extension Prior to Opening"], ''Deadline'', 31 March 2025</ref> The adaptation stars [[David Hyde Pierce]] as Gilbert/Major General Stanley; [[Ramin Karimloo]] as the Pirate King, [[Jinkx Monsoon]] as Ruth, [[Nicholas Barasch]] as Frederic, Samantha Williams as Mabel and Preston Truman Boyd as Sullivan/Sergeant of Police. [[Scott Ellis]] directs, with choreography by [[Warren Carlyle]]. Designs are by [[David Rockwell]] (sets), Linda Cho (costumes), [[Donald Holder]] (lighting) and Mikaal Sulaiman (sound).<ref name=Hall>Hall, Margaret. [https://playbill.com/article/jinkx-monsoon-more-complete-cast-of-broadways-upcoming-the-pirates-of-penzance "Jinkx Monsoon, More Complete Cast of Broadway's Upcoming ''The Pirates of Penzance''"], ''Playbill'', 13 November 2024</ref> A concert of this concept was staged in October 2022 by, and for the benefit of, Roundabout, at the same theatre, starring Pierce and Karimloo, with [[Colton Ryan]] as Frederic.<ref>Gans, Andrew. [https://playbill.com/article/ramin-karimloo-lilli-cooper-david-hyde-pierce-more-will-star-in-roundabouts-the-pirates-of-penzance-concert-on-broadway "Ramin Karimloo, Lilli Cooper, David Hyde Pierce, More Will Star in Roundabout's ''The Pirates of Penzance'' Concert on Broadway"], ''Playbill'', 6 September 2022; and [https://www.townandcountrymag.com/the-scene/parties/g41712513/roundabout-theatre-company-pirates-of-penzance-benefit "Inside a Broadway Benefit Reading of ''The Pirates of Penzance''"], ''[[Town & Country (magazine)|Town & Country]]'', 18 October 2022</ref>

[[Rupert Holmes]] adapted the libretto with a [[New Orleans]] setting. New musical theatre orchestrations, with styles including [[Music of New Orleans#Jazz|French Quarter]] jazz, [[blues]], [[Dixieland]], [[boogie-woogie]], [[soft-shoe]], [[Calypso music|calypso]], [[ragtime]] and [[rumba]], are by Joseph Joubert and [[Daryl Waters]].<ref name=Hall/><ref>[[Jesse Green (theatre critic)|Green, Jesse]]. [https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/24/theater/pirates-penzance-musical-review.html "Review: Gilbert and Sullivan's ''Pirates'', Now in Jazzy New Orleans", ''The New York Times'', 24 April 2025</ref> Major cuts in the score include the overture, "Oh! false one, you have deceiv'd me", "How beautifully blue the sky", "What ought we to do?", "Now for the pirates' lair!", "No, I'll be brave" and "Sighing softly to the river". Additions include passages from "Good Morrow, Good Mother" (from ''[[Iolanthe]]'', mashed up with "Pour Oh Pour") and "The Sail the Ocean Blues" in act 1 (adapted from ''H.M.S. Pinafore''), a jazz Entr'acte, "The Nightmare Song" (adapted from ''Iolanthe''), "Alone and Yet Alive" (adapted from ''[[The Mikado]]'') and "We're All from Someplace Else" (adapted from ''Pinafore'') in act 2. Many lyrics are rewritten, and some of the women's music from act 1 is rearranged to create the new number "We're Sashayin' Through the Old French Quarter"; extra dance music is added, and the act 2 finale is largely rewritten. The roles of Samuel, Edith, Kate and Isabel are eliminated, though some dialogue lines are assigned to ensemble members. Samuel's music is divided between Frederic and the Pirate King, while some of Edith's music is assigned to Mabel. A brief prologue is added in which Gilbert and Sullivan introduce the show and explain that, during their tour of America they have so loved New Orleans that they have re-set the show in that city to appeal to the audience at the [[Theatre de la Renaissance|Theatre of the Renaissance]], and the show then supposedly unfolds at that venue. The story hews closely to the original plot, but the denouement is changed from the revelation that the pirates are aristocrats to a realization that America is a diverse nation of immigrants.

Most reviews of the production were positive.<ref>Cristi, A. A. [https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Review-Roundup-PIRATES-THE-PENZANCE-MUSICAL-Opens-On-Broadway-Starring-Ramin-Karimloo-Jinkx-Monsoon-and-More-20250424 "Review Roundup: ''Pirates! The Penzance Musical'' Opens on Broadway Starring Ramin Karimloo, Jinkx Monsoon and More"], BroadwayWorld, 24 April 2025</ref> The critic for ''Variety'' wrote that "it is easy enough to put aside almost all quibbles [with the] adaptation ... because the production is so joyous and well-executed".<ref>Lewis, Christian. [https://variety.com/2025/legit/reviews/pirates-the-penzance-musical-review-broadway-1236377063 "''Pirates! The Penzance Musical'' Review: David Hyde Pierce and Jinkx Monsoon Lead a Rollicking, Riotous Reimagination of Gilbert and Sullivan on Broadway"], ''Variety'', 24 April 2025</ref> A review in ''[[amNewYork]]'' observed that most "Broadway musicals [this spring] have been more fizzle than fireworks, and ''Pirates!'' is the rollicking exception. It’s fresh, fearless, and full of flair."<ref>Windman, Matt. [https://www.amny.com/entertainment/broadway/review-pirates-the-penzance-musical "Review – ''Pirates! The Penzance Musical'': Arrrrr you not entertained?"], ''amNY'', 25 April 2025</ref> ''Pirates!'' has been has been nominated for the 2025 [[Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical]]<ref>{{cite web|title=2025 Tony Award Nominations: Buena Vista Social Club, Death Becomes Her, Maybe Happy Ending Lead the Pack|first=Logan|last=Culwell-Block|date=May 1, 2025|website=Playbill|url=https://playbill.com/article/tony-nominations-2025|access-date=May 2, 2025}}</ref> and three 2025 [[Drama League Award]]s, including Outstanding Revival of a Musical.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Culwell-Block |first=Logan |date=16 May 2025 |title=Nicole Scherzinger Wins Distinguished Performance at 2025 Drama League Awards; Read the Full Winners List |url=https://playbill.com/article/nicole-scherzinger-wins-distinguished-performance-at-2025-drama-league-awards-read-the-full-winners-list |access-date=16 May 2025 |website=Playbill}}</ref> It was featured on ''[[CBS Sunday Morning]]''.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obJ9pUpHaCA "David Hyde Pierce in "Pirates! The Penzance Musical", CBS Sunday Morning, via YouTube, 20 April 2025</ref>

==Historical casting==
The following tables show the casts of the principal original productions and D'Oyly Carte Opera Company touring repertory at various times through to the company's 1982 closure, the ''Papp's Pirates'' Broadway and West End casts and the 2025 Broadway cast.

{|class="wikitable" style="width: 65em; font-size: 90%; line-height: 1.2"
|-
!Role!!Paignton<br />1879<ref>Rollins and Witts, p. 30</ref>!!New York<br />1879<ref>Rollins and Witts, p. 32</ref>!!Opera Comique<br />1880<ref>Rollins and Witts, p. 7</ref>!!Savoy Theatre<br />1888<ref>Rollins and Witts, p. 11</ref>!!Savoy Theatre<br />1900<ref>Rollins and Witts, p. 18</ref>!!Savoy Theatre<br />1908<ref>Rollins and Witts, p. 22</ref>
|-
|''Major-General''||[[Richard Mansfield]]||[[J. H. Ryley]]||[[George Grossmith]]||[[George Grossmith]]||[[Henry Lytton]]||[[Charles H. Workman]]
|-
|''Pirate King''||[[Frederick Federici]]||[[Signor Brocolini|Sgr. Brocolini]]||[[Richard Temple (bass-baritone)|Richard Temple]]||[[Richard Temple (bass-baritone)|Richard Temple]]||[[Jones Hewson]]||[[Henry Lytton]]
|-
|''Samuel''||G. J. Lackner||[[Furneaux Cook]]||George Temple||Richard Cummings||W. H. Leon||[[Leo Sheffield]]
|-
|''James''||[[John Le Hay]]||colspan=4 align=center|''role eliminated''
|-
|''Frederic''||[[Llewellyn Cadwaladr]]||[[Hugh Talbot]]||[[Sir George Power, 7th Baronet|George Power]]||[[J. G. Robertson]]||[[Robert Evett]]||Henry Herbert
|-
|''Sergeant''||[[Fred Billington]]||[[Fred Clifton]]||[[Rutland Barrington]]||[[Rutland Barrington]]||[[Walter Passmore]]||[[Rutland Barrington]]
|-
|''Mabel''||Emilie Petrelli||[[Blanche Roosevelt]]||[[Marion Hood]]||[[Geraldine Ulmar]]||[[Isabel Jay]]||Dorothy Court
|-
|''Edith''||Marian May||[[Jessie Bond]]||[[Julia Gwynne]]||[[Jessie Bond]]||Lulu Evans||[[Jessie Rose]]
|-
|''Kate''||Lena Monmouth||[[Rosina Brandram]]||Lilian La Rue<ref>[[Kurt Gänzl|Gänzl, Kurt]]. [http://kurtofgerolstein.blogspot.com/2016/09/miss-la-rue-who-are-you-gilbert-and.html "Miss La Rue! Who Are You?"], Kurt of Gerolstein, 2 September 2016</ref>||Nellie Kavanagh||Alice Coleman||Beatrice Boarer
|-
|''Isabel''||Kate Neville||Billie Barlow||Neva Bond||Nellie Lawrence||[[Agnes Fraser]]||Ethel Lewis
|-
|''Ruth''||Fanny Harrison||[[Alice Barnett]]||Emily Cross||[[Rosina Brandram]]||[[Rosina Brandram]]||[[Louie René]]
|}

{|class="wikitable" style="width: 65em; font-size: 90%; line-height: 1.2"
|-
!Role!!D'Oyly Carte<br />1915 Tour<ref>Rollins and Witts, p. 132</ref>!!D'Oyly Carte<br />1925 Tour<ref>Rollins and Witts, p. 148</ref>!!D'Oyly Carte<br />1935 Tour<ref>Rollins and Witts, p. 160</ref>!!D'Oyly Carte<br />1945 Tour<ref>Rollins and Witts, p. 170</ref>!!D'Oyly Carte<br />1950 Tour<ref>Rollins and Witts, p. 175</ref>!!D'Oyly Carte<br />1958 Tour<ref>Rollins and Witts, p. 183</ref>
|-
|''Major-General''||[[Henry Lytton]]||[[Henry Lytton]]||[[Martyn Green]]||[[Grahame Clifford]]||[[Martyn Green]]||[[Peter Pratt]]
|-
|''Pirate King''||[[Leicester Tunks]]||[[Darrell Fancourt]]||[[Darrell Fancourt]]||[[Darrell Fancourt]]||[[Darrell Fancourt]]||[[Donald Adams]]
|-
|''Samuel''||[[Frederick Hobbs (singer)|Frederick Hobbs]]||Joseph Griffin||[[Richard Walker (baritone)|Richard Walker]]||Hilton Layland||Donald Harris||[[George Cook (opera singer)|George Cook]]
|-
|''Frederic''||Dewey Gibson||[[Charles Goulding]]||[[John Dean (tenor)|John Dean]]||[[John Dean (tenor)|John Dean]]||[[Leonard Osborn]]||[[Thomas Round]]
|-
|''Sergeant''||[[Fred Billington]]||[[Leo Sheffield]]||[[Sydney Granville]]||[[Richard Walker (baritone)|Richard Walker]]||[[Richard Watson (singer)|Richard Watson]]||[[Kenneth Sandford]]
|-
|''Mabel''||Elsie McDermid||[[Elsie Griffin]]||Kathleen Frances||[[Helen Roberts]]||Muriel Harding||[[Jean Hindmarsh]]
|-
|''Edith''||[[Nellie Briercliffe]]||[[Eileen Sharp]]||[[Marjorie Eyre]]||[[Marjorie Eyre]]||Joan Gillingham||[[Joyce Wright]]
|-
|''Kate''||Betty Grylls||Aileen Davies||Maisie Baxter||Ivy Sanders||[[Joyce Wright]]||Marian Martin
|-
|''Isabel''||Kitty Twinn||Hilary Davies||[[Elizabeth Nickell-Lean]]||Rosalie Dyer||Enid Walsh||Jane Fyffe
|-
|''Ruth''||[[Bertha Lewis]]||[[Bertha Lewis]]||[[Dorothy Gill]]||[[Ella Halman]]||[[Ella Halman]]||[[Ann Drummond-Grant]]
|}

{|class="wikitable" style="width: 65em; font-size: 90%; line-height: 1.2"
|-
!Role!!D'Oyly Carte<br />1968 Tour<ref>Rollins and Witts, 2nd Supplement, p. 15</ref>!!D'Oyly Carte<br />1975 Tour<ref>Rollins and Witts, 3rd Supplement, p. 28</ref>!!Broadway<br />1981<ref>Shepherd, [https://oakapplepress.net/gasdisc/pirpapp.htm Gilbert and Sullivan Discography]</ref>!!D'Oyly Carte<br />1981 Tour<ref>Rollins and Witts, 4th Supplement, p. 42</ref>!!West End<br />1982<ref>Ovrtur, [https://ovrtur.com/production/2893191 ''The Pirates of Penzance'': London Production (1982)]</ref>!!Broadway<br />2025<ref>IBDb, [https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-production/pirates-the-penzance-musical-539492#OpeningNightCast ''Pirates! The Penzance Musical'']</ref>
|-
|''Major-General''||[[John Reed (actor)|John Reed]]||[[James Conroy-Ward]]||[[George Rose (actor)|George Rose]]||Alistair Donkin||[[George Cole (actor)|George Cole]]||[[David Hyde Pierce]]
|-
|''Pirate King''||[[Donald Adams]]||[[John Ayldon]]||[[Kevin Kline]]||[[John Ayldon]]||[[Tim Curry]]||[[Ramin Karimloo]]
|-
|''Samuel''||[[Alan Styler]]||Jon Ellison||Stephan Hanan||Michael Buchan||[[Sylvester McCoy]]|| ''role eliminated''
|-
|''Frederic''||[[Philip Potter]]||Colin Wright||[[Rex Smith]]||[[Meston Reid]]||[[Michael Praed]]||[[Nicholas Barasch]]
|-
|''Sergeant''||[[George Cook (opera singer)|George Cook]]||[[Michael Rayner]]||[[Tony Azito]]||Clive Harre||[[Chris Langham]]||Preston Truman Boyd
|-
|''Mabel''||[[Valerie Masterson]]||[[Julia Goss]]||[[Linda Ronstadt]]||[[Vivian Tierney]]||[[Pamela Stephenson]]||Samantha Williams
|-
|''Edith''||[[Peggy Ann Jones]]||[[Patricia Leonard]]||Alexandra Korey||Jill Pert||Janet Shaw||''role eliminated''
|-
|''Kate''||[[Pauline Wales]]||Caroline Baker||Marcie Shaw||Helene Witcombe||[[Bonnie Langford]]||''role eliminated''
|-
|''Isabel''||Susan Maisey||Rosalind Griffiths||Wendy Wolfe||Alexandra Hann||[[Louise Gold]]||''role eliminated''
|-
|''Ruth''||Christene Palmer||[[Lyndsie Holland]]||[[Estelle Parsons]]||[[Patricia Leonard]]||[[Annie Ross]]||[[Jinkx Monsoon]]
|}

==Recordings==
''The Pirates of Penzance'' has been recorded many times, and the critical consensus is that it has fared well on record.<ref>[[Andrew Lamb (writer)|Lamb, Andrew]]. "The Pirates of Penzance", ''Gramophone'', November 1993, p. 162</ref> The first complete recording of the score was in 1921, under the direction of [[Rupert D'Oyly Carte]], but with established recording singers rather than D'Oyly Carte Opera Company performers.<ref>Rollins and Witts, p. x</ref> In 1929, ''[[Gramophone (magazine)|The Gramophone]]'' said of a new set with a mainly D'Oyly Carte cast, "This new recording represents the high-water mark so far as Gilbert and Sullivan opera is concerned. In each of the previous Savoy albums there have been occasional lapses which prevented one from awarding them unqualified praise; but with the ''Pirates'' it is happily otherwise; from first to last, and in every bar, a simply delightful production."<ref>''The Gramophone'', September 1929, p. 25</ref> Of later recordings by the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, the 1968 recording (with complete dialogue) is highly regarded: The online ''Gilbert and Sullivan Discography'' says, "This recording is one of the best D'Oyly Carte sets of all time, and certainly the best ''Pirates''",<ref name=disco>Shepherd, Marc. [http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pir1968.htm "The 1968 D'Oyly Carte ''Pirates''"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303233625/http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pir1968.htm |date=3 March 2016 }}. ''A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography'', 7 September 2008, accessed 30 July 2016</ref> and the ''Penguin Guide to Opera on Compact Disc'' also recommends it.<ref>March (1993), pp. 437–438</ref> So too does the ''Penguin Guide to Recorded Classical Music'', alongside the 1993 [[Charles Mackerras|Mackerras]] recording.<ref>March (2007), p. 1338</ref> The opera critic [[Alan Blyth]] recommended the D'Oyly Carte recording of 1990: "a performance full of the kind of life that can only come from the experience of stage performances".<ref>Blyth, p. 109</ref> The online ''Discography'' site also mentions the 1981 Papp recording as "excellent", despite its inauthentic 1980 re-orchestrations that "changed some of the timbres so as to appeal to a rock-oriented public".<ref>Shepherd, Marc. [http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pirpapp.htm "Papp's ''Pirates'' (1980)"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091125094254/http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pirpapp.htm |date=25 November 2009 }}. ''A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography'', 7 July 2010, accessed 20 August 2009</ref>

Of the available commercial videos, the ''Discography'' site considers the Brent Walker better than the Papp version.<ref>Shepherd, Marc. [http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pir.htm List and assessments of recordings of the opera] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101212082252/http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pir.htm |date=12 December 2010 }}. ''A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography'', 9 July 2009, accessed 30 July 2016</ref> More recent professional productions have been recorded on video by the [[International Gilbert and Sullivan Festival]].<ref>[http://www.gsfestivals.org/shop/professional-shows "Professional Shows from the Festival"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120626161615/http://gsfestivals.org/shop/professional-shows |date=26 June 2012 }}, Musical Collectibles catalogue website, accessed 15 October 2012</ref>

'''Selected recordings'''
* 1929 D'Oyly Carte – Conductor: [[Malcolm Sargent]]<ref>Shepherd, Marc. [http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pir1929.htm "The 1929 D'Oyly Carte ''Pirates''"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305213833/http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pir1929.htm |date=5 March 2016 }}, ''A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography'', 29 March 2009, accessed 20 August 2009</ref>
* 1957 D'Oyly Carte – [[New Symphony Orchestra (London)#Post-war NSO|New Symphony Orchestra of London]]; Conductor: [[Isidore Godfrey]]<ref name=DOC1957>Shepherd, Marc. [http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pir1957.htm "The 1957 D'Oyly Carte ''Pirates''"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160526230937/http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pir1957.htm |date=26 May 2016 }}, ''A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography'', 29 March 2009, accessed 30 July 2016</ref>
* 1961 Sargent/Glyndebourne – [[Pro Arte Orchestra]], Glyndebourne Festival Chorus; Conductor: Sir Malcolm Sargent<ref>Shepherd, Marc. [http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pirsarg.htm "The Sargent/EMI ''Pirates'' (1961)"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305012152/http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pirsarg.htm |date=5 March 2016 }}, ''A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography'', 12 July 2009, accessed 30 July 2016</ref>
* 1968 D'Oyly Carte (with dialogue) – [[Royal Philharmonic Orchestra]]; Conductor: Isidore Godfrey<ref name=DOC1968>Shepherd, Marc. [http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pir1968.htm "The 1968 D'Oyly Carte ''Pirates''"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303233625/http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pir1968.htm |date=3 March 2016 }}, ''A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography'', 7 September 2008, accessed 30 July 2016</ref>
* 1981; 1983 Papp's Pirates (with dialogue) – Director: [[Wilford Leach]]; Musical Director: William Elliott; Choreographer: [[Graciela Daniele]]<ref>Shepherd, Marc. [http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pirpapp.htm "Papp's Pirates (1980)"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091125094254/http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pirpapp.htm |date=25 November 2009 }}, ''A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography'', 7 July 2010, accessed 30 July 2016</ref>
* 1982 Brent Walker Productions (with dialogue) – Ambrosian Opera Chorus, [[London Symphony Orchestra]]; Conductor: [[Alexander Faris]]; Stage Director: Michael Geliot<ref>Shepherd, Marc. [http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pirwalk.htm "The Brent Walker ''Pirates'' (1982)"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305012010/http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pirwalk.htm |date=5 March 2016 }}, ''A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography'', 11 November 2009, accessed 30 July 2016</ref>
* 1990 New D'Oyly Carte – Conductor: John Pryce-Jones<ref>Shepherd, Marc. [http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pirndoc.htm "The New D'Oyly Carte ''Pirates'' (1990)"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306195941/http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pirndoc.htm |date=6 March 2016 }}, ''A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography'', 2 December 2001, accessed 30 July 2016</ref>
* 1993 Mackerras/Telarc – Orchestra and Chorus of the [[Welsh National Opera]]; Conductor: Sir Charles Mackerras<ref>Shepherd, Marc. [http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pirmack.htm "The Mackerras/Telarc ''Pirates'' (1993)"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305012319/http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/pirmack.htm |date=5 March 2016 }}, ''A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography'', 8 September 2008, accessed 30 July 2016</ref>
* 1994 [[Essgee Entertainment]] (video adaptation) – Director and Choreographer: Craig Schaefer; Orchestrator and Conductor: Kevin Hocking; Additional Lyrics: Melvyn Morrow<ref>Shepherd, Marc. [http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/piressgee.htm "The Essgee Pirates (1994)"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305011155/http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/piressgee.htm |date=5 March 2016 }}, ''A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography'', 9 July 2009, accessed 30 July 2016</ref>

==Cultural impact==
{{main|Cultural influence of Gilbert and Sullivan}}

===Major-General's Song===
{{main|Major-General's Song}}
[[File:Modern Major General, Bab.png|thumb|upright|The Major-General carries an encyclopedia in this "Bab" drawing.]]
''Pirates'' is one of the most frequently referenced works of Gilbert and Sullivan. The [[Major-General's Song]], in particular, is frequently parodied, [[pastiche]]d and used in advertising.<ref>Zetland, Earl. [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL81E47F8C9314A1D7 "Modern Major General Parodies"], accessed 7 May 2012</ref> Parody versions have been used in political commentary as well as entertainment media.<ref>Hinkle, A. Barton. "Hinkle: The Attorney General's Song", ''[[Richmond Times-Dispatch]]'', 10 May 2010</ref> Its challenging [[patter song|patter]] has proved interesting to comedians; notable examples include [[Tom Lehrer]]'s song "[[The Elements (song)|The Elements]]" and [[David Hyde Pierce]]'s monologue as host of ''[[Saturday Night Live]]''.<ref>[http://snltranscripts.jt.org/94/94kmono.phtml "David Hyde Pierce's Monologue"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120320074805/http://snltranscripts.jt.org/94/94kmono.phtml |date=20 March 2012 }}, SNL transcripts, accessed 15 February 2010</ref> In 2010, comedian [[Ron Butler]] released a YouTube pastiche of the song in character as [[Barack Obama|President Obama]] which, as of September 2021, had garnered more than 1.9 million views.<ref>Butler, Ron. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y54FRMedT_s "Obama! A Modern U.S. President (musical spoof)"], YouTube, 11 October 2010</ref><ref>Zacher, Scotty. [http://chicagotheaterbeat.com/2010/10/18/gilbert-and-sullivan-spoof-a-modern-us-president-fun/ "Gilbert and Sullivan spoof: A Modern US President. (Fun!!)"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111108180017/http://chicagotheaterbeat.com/2010/10/18/gilbert-and-sullivan-spoof-a-modern-us-president-fun/ |date=8 November 2011 }}, ''Chicago Theatre Beat'', 18 October 2010, accessed 7 May 2012</ref>

Pastiche examples include the ''[[Animaniacs]]'' version, "I am the very model of a cartoon individual", in the episode "H.M.S. Yakko";<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBFGj7LX530 "Animaniacs – Cartoon Individual"], YouTube, accessed 15 February 2010</ref> the ''[[Doctor Who]]'' audio "I am the very model of a [[Gallifrey]]an buccaneer" in ''[[Doctor Who and the Pirates]]'';<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIdDXQ2h1Pc "Doctor Who Gallifreyan Buccaneer"], YouTube, accessed 15 February 2010. Other songs, from ''Pirates'', ''Pinafore'' and ''[[Ruddigore]]'', are also parodied in the recording</ref> the ''[[Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip]]'' version in the episode "The Cold Open" (2006), where the cast performs "We'll be the very model of a modern network TV show";<ref name=Studio>Schillinger, Liesl: [https://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/22/theater/22schi.html?_r=1&pagewanted=1 "Dress British, Sing Yiddish"] ''The New York Times'', 22 October 2006</ref> and the ''[[Mass Effect 2]]'' video game version, where the character [[Mordin Solus]] sings: "I am the very model of a scientist Salarian".<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-HgVM6JSIY "''Mass Effect 2'' Mordin Singing"], YouTube, 23 January 2010</ref>

The song is often used in film and on television, unchanged in many instances, as a character's audition piece, or seen in a "school play" scene. Examples include a ''[[VeggieTales]]'' episode entitled "[[The Wonderful World of Auto-Tainment!]]"; the ''[[Frasier]]'' episode "[[Fathers and Sons (Frasier episode)|Fathers and Sons]]"; ''[[The Simpsons]]'' episode "[[Deep Space Homer]]"; and the ''[[Mad About You]]'' episode "Moody Blues", where Paul directs a charity production of ''Penzance'' starring his father, Burt, as the Major-General. In ''[[The Muppet Show]]'' (season 3, episode 4) guest host, comedian [[Gilda Radner]], sings the song with a {{convert|7|ft|m|adj=mid|-tall}} talking carrot (Parodying the pilot/pirate confusion in ''Pirates'', Radner had requested a {{convert|6|ft|m|adj=mid|-tall}} talking ''parrot'', but was misheard).<ref>[http://www.tv.com/the-muppet-show/gilda-radner/episode/176733/summary.html?tag=ep_list;ep_title;12 The Muppet Show] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080508135023/http://www.tv.com/the-muppet-show/gilda-radner/episode/176733/summary.html?tag=ep_list;ep_title;12 |date=8 May 2008 }}, TV.com, accessed 25 July 2009</ref> In an episode of ''[[Home Improvement (TV series)|Home Improvement]]'', Al Borland begins to sing the song when tricked into thinking he is in a soundproof booth. In the ''[[Babylon 5]]'' episode "[[Atonement (Babylon 5)|Atonement]]", [[Marcus Cole (Babylon 5)|Marcus Cole]] uses the song to drive [[Stephen Franklin (Babylon 5)|Dr Stephen Franklin]] crazy on a long journey to Mars.

Examples of the use of the song in advertising include [[Martyn Green]]'s pastiche of the song listing all of the varieties of [[Campbell's Soup]]<ref>Stone, David. [https://www.gsarchive.net/whowaswho/G/GreenMartyn.htm "Martyn Green"], {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060905101325/https://www.gsarchive.net/whowaswho/G/GreenMartyn.htm |date=5 September 2006 }} ''Who Was Who in the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company'', 2003, accessed 2 December 2011</ref> and a 2011 [[Geico]] commercial in which a couple that wants to save money, but still listen to musicals, finds a roommate, dressed as the Major-General, who awkwardly begins the song while dancing on a coffee table.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpaS2Q3hTlA "Roommate – Easier Way to Save – GEICO Commercial,"] Geico, accessed 2 December 2011</ref> [[Gimbels]] department store had a campaign sung to the tune of the Major-General's Song that began, "We are the very model of a modern big department store."<ref name=Gimbels>One of these ads ran in ''The New York Times'' on 27 October 1953 as a full-page advertisement.</ref> George Washington, in the number "Right Hand Man" from the 2015 musical ''[[Hamilton (musical)|Hamilton]]'' by [[Lin-Manuel Miranda]], refers to himself with irony as "The model of a modern major general", which he rhymes with "men are all". Miranda commented: "I always felt like 'mineral' wasn't the best possible rhyme."<ref>Mead, Rebecca. [http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/02/09/hamiltons "All About the Hamiltons"], ''[[The New Yorker]]'', 9 February 2015 Issue, 2 December 2015</ref>

===Film and television===
Other film references to ''Pirates'' include ''[[Kate & Leopold]]'', where there are multiple references, including a scene where Leopold sings "I Am The Very Model of A Modern Major-General" while accompanying himself on the piano; and in ''[[Pretty Woman]]'', Edward Lewis ([[Richard Gere]]) covers a social gaffe by prostitute Vivian Ward ([[Julia Roberts]]), who comments that the opera ''[[La traviata]]'' was so good that she almost "peed [her] pants", by saying that she had said that she liked it better than ''The Pirates of Penzance''". In [[Walt Disney Company|Walt Disney's]] cartoon ''[[Mickey, Donald, Goofy: The Three Musketeers]]'' (2004), there is a performance of ''Pirates'' that becomes the setting for the climactic battle between the Musketeers and [[Pete (Disney)|Captain Pete]]. ''Pirates'' songs sung in the cartoon are "With cat-like tread", "Poor wand'ring one", "Climbing over rocky mountain" and the Major-General's song. "Poor wand'ring one" was used in the movie ''[[An American Tail]]''.<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0090633/soundtrack "Soundtrack for ''An American Tail'' (1986)"]. Internet Movie Database, accessed 22 April 2010</ref> The soundtrack of the 1992 film ''[[The Hand That Rocks the Cradle (1992 film)|The Hand That Rocks the Cradle]]'' includes "Poor Wand'ring One" and "Oh Dry the Glistening Tear".<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104389/soundtrack ''The Hand That Rocks the Cradle'' soundtrack"]. Internet Movie Database, accessed 21 June 2010</ref> A nonsense pastiche of the Major-General's song in the 2017 film ''[[Despicable Me 3]]'', sung by [[Minions (Despicable Me)|Minions]], was termed "amusing"<ref>Marsh, Calum. [https://nationalpost.com/entertainment/movies/resistance-is-futile-why-the-ubiquity-of-the-minions-cannot-and-will-never-be-contained "Resistance is futile: Why the ubiquity of the Minions cannot (and will never) be contained"], ''[[National Post]]'', 29 June 2017</ref> and "the film's finest moment";<ref>Prigge, Matt. [https://www.metro.us/despicable-me-3-finds-a-loopy-series-finally-running-out-of-gas "''Despicable Me 3'' finds a loopy series finally running out of gas"], ''Metro'', 26 June 2017</ref> it was uploaded to YouTube by [[Illumination Entertainment]] as a singalong challenge, which has garnered more than 19 million views as of 2023.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwgTtwJHoWQ "#DespicableMeChallenge – In Theaters June 30"], YouTube, [[Illumination Entertainment]], 4 July 2019</ref>

Television references, in addition to those mentioned above, included the series ''[[The West Wing]]'', where ''Pirates'' and other Gilbert and Sullivan operas are mentioned in several episodes, especially by Deputy Communications Director, [[Sam Seaborn]], who was recording secretary of his school's Gilbert and Sullivan society. In ''[[Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip]]'', a poster from ''Pirates'' hangs on [[Matt Albie]]'s office wall. Both TV series were created by [[Aaron Sorkin]]. In the pilot episode of the 2008 [[CTV Television Network|CTV]] series ''[[Flashpoint (TV series)|Flashpoint]]'', a police officer and his partner sing the policeman's song. In an ''[[Assy McGee]]'' episode entitled "Pegfinger", Detective Sanchez's wife is a member of a community theatre that performs the opera. In a 1986 episode of the animated television adaptation of ''[[The Wind in the Willows (TV series)|The Wind in the Willows]]'' entitled ''A Producer's Lot'', several characters put on a production of ''Pirates''.<ref>[http://www.tv.com/the-wind-in-the-willows/a-producerand039s-lot/episode/266956/summary.html "A Producer's Lot"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629024005/http://www.tv.com/the-wind-in-the-willows/a-producerand039s-lot/episode/266956/summary.html |date=29 June 2011 }}. TV.com, accessed 14 March 2011</ref> In a 2005 ''[[Family Guy]]'' episode "[[Peter's Got Woods]]", [[Brian Griffin]] sings "Sighing Softly", with [[Peter Griffin]]'s assistance. In a 2012 episode, "[[Killer Queen (Family Guy)|Killer Queen]]", Peter gives a garbled rendition of the [[Major-General's Song]].<ref>Pierson, Robin. {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20140329003847/http://www.thetvcritic.org/reviews/comedies/family-guy/season-77/killer-queen/ "Episode 16 – 'Killer Queen'"]}}, ''The TV Critic'', 21 March 2012, accessed 29 August 2013</ref> In the 2009 ''[[Criminal Minds]]'' episode "The Slave of Duty", [[Aaron Hotchner|Hotch]] quotes "Oh dry the glist'ning tear".<ref>[http://www.tv.com/m/shows/criminal-minds/the-slave-of-duty-1308753/trivia/ "The Slave of Duty"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150625232836/http://www.tv.com/m/shows/criminal-minds/the-slave-of-duty-1308753/trivia/ |date=25 June 2015 }}, ''Criminal Minds'', Season 5, Episode 10, 2009 (TV.com, accessed 24 June 2015). Hotch notes, at her funeral, that he met his slain ex-wife at tryouts for a high school production of ''The Pirates of Penzance''. He quotes from ''[[Iolanthe]]'' and then quotes the opening lines of "Oh dry the glist'ning tear", up to "... to see their father weep".</ref> In the 1992 episode "The Understudy" of ''[[Clarissa Explains it All]]'', the title character is chosen to understudy Mabel in a school production of ''Pirates'' and is unprepared when she must go on; a scene from ''[[The Mikado]]'' is also heard.<ref>[https://archive.today/20130205000746/http://www.tv.com/clarissa-explains-it-all/the-understudy/episode/56697/summary.html?tag=ep_guide;summary "The Understudy"]. Episode Summary, TV.com, accessed 26 July 2011</ref>

===Other references===
[[File:1887SorcererRuddigoreWallpaper.jpg|right|thumb|Wallpaper showing characters from ''Pirates'' and other Savoy operas]]
Other notable instances of references to ''Pirates'' include a ''[[New York Times]]'' article on 29 February 1940, memorialising that Frederic was finally out of his [[indenture]]s.<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/1940/02/29/archives/frederic-goes-free.html?sq=%2522Pirates%2520of%2520Penzance%2522%25201940&scp=3&st=cse "Frederic Goes Free"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', 29 February 1940, p. 18</ref> Six years previously, the arms granted to the [[Penzance|municipal borough of Penzance]] in 1934 contain a pirate dressed in Gilbert's original costuming, and Penzance had a rugby team called the Penzance Pirates, which is now called the [[Cornish Pirates]]. In 1980, [[Isaac Asimov]] wrote a short story called "The Gilbert & Sullivan Mystery" (later retitled "The Year of the Action"), concerning whether the action of ''Pirates'' took place on 1 March 1873, or 1 March 1877 (depending on whether Gilbert took into account the fact that 1900 was not a leap year).<ref>[http://www.asimovreviews.net/Books/Book303.html "The Year of the Action"] in ''[[Banquets of the Black Widowers]]'' (1984); first published as "The Gilbert & Sullivan Mystery" in ''[[Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine]]'', 1 January 1981</ref> The plot of [[Laurie R. King]]'s 2011 novel ''Pirate King'' centers on a 1924 silent movie adaptation of ''The Pirates of Penzance''.<ref>[http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9970915-pirate-king "''Pirate King''"], Goodreads.com, accessed 13 July 2013</ref>

The music from the chorus of "With cat-like tread", which begins "Come, friends, who plough the sea," was used in the popular American song, "[[Hail, Hail, the Gang's All Here]]." "With cat-like tread" is also part of the soundtrack, along with other Gilbert and Sullivan songs, in the 1981 film, ''[[Chariots of Fire]]'', and it was pastiched in the "HMS Yakko" episode of ''[[Animaniacs]]'' in a song about surfing a whale.<ref name=MUGSS>[https://web.archive.org/web/20061013163848/http://www.mugss.org/society/gands/culture/ "G&S Pop culture references"], Manchester Universities Gilbert and Sullivan Society, accessed 30 November 2011</ref> In the case ''[[Pierson v. Ray]]'', which established the doctrine of [[qualified immunity]] for police officers, the [[United States Supreme Court]] held that "[a] policeman's lot is not so unhappy that he must choose between being charged with dereliction of duty if he does not arrest when he had probable cause, and being punished with damages if he does."<ref>Schwartz, Joanna C. (2017). "How Qualified Immunity Fails", ''[[Yale Law Journal]]'', Yale Law School. Retrieved 26 February 2020</ref> State courts have cited the same song for other purposes: "Where does this extraordinary situation leave the lower... Courts and State Courts in their required effort to apply the decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States...? Like the policeman in Gilbert and Sullivan's ''The Pirates of Penzance'', their 'lot is not a happy one.'"<ref>''Wagonheim v. Maryland State Board of Censors'', 255 Md. 297, 321 (1969); and ''In re Stevens'', 119 Cal.App.4th 1228, 15 Cal.Rptr.3d 168 (2d Dist. 2004) ("a felon's 'capacity for innocent enjoyment' is just as great as any honest man's.")</ref>

==Other adaptations==
;Stage
* ''Di Yam Gazlonim'', a [[Yiddish]] adaptation of ''Pirates'' by Al Grand<ref name=Studio/> that continues to be performed in North America. The 2006 production at the [[National Yiddish Theater Folksbiene]] was nominated for the 2007 [[Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival]]. The ''[[Montreal Express]]'' wrote in 2009, "Grand's adaptation is a delightfully whimsical treatment".<ref>[https://archive.today/20120804140140/http://www.montrealexpress.ca/article-340765-The-Pirates-of-Penzance-in-Yiddish.html "The Pirates of Penzance... in Yiddish?"], ''Montreal Express'', 25 May 2009</ref>
* ''The Parson's Pirates'' by [[Opera della Luna]] premiered in 1995.
* ''Pirates! Or, Gilbert and Sullivan Plunder'd'' (2006), is a musical comedy set on a Caribbean island, involving a [[Haitian vodou|voodoo]] curse that makes the pirates "landsick". It was first presented 1 November 2006 at [[Goodspeed Opera House]] in [[East Haddam, Connecticut]], then in 2007 at the [[Paper Mill Playhouse]] in [[Millburn, New Jersey]], in 2009 at the [[Huntington Theatre Company]] in [[Boston]], Massachusetts, and at [[The Muny]] in [[St. Louis]], Missouri, in 2012. Other Gilbert and Sullivan numbers, such as the Nightmare song from ''[[Iolanthe]]'' are interpolated.<ref>Saltzman, Simon: [http://www.curtainup.com/piratesnj07.html CurtainUp New Jersey Review 2007] CurtainUp, accessed 13 June 2009</ref><ref>Nesti, Robert: [https://web.archive.org/web/20120118233601/http://www.edgeboston.com/index.php?ch=entertainment&sc=theatre&sc2=&sc3=performance&id=92259 "Pirates! (Or, Gilbert and Sullivan Plunder'd)"] edgeboston.com, 8 June 2009</ref>
* ''[[Pirates of Penzance – The Ballet!]]'' premiered in 1991
* [[Essgee Entertainment]] produced an adapted version in 1994 in Australia and New Zealand.<ref>[http://essgee.com/html/PirateOLDHome.html Essgee Entertainment's ''Pirates''], Simon Gallaher, accessed 25 July 2009</ref> Their producer, [[Simon Gallaher]] (Frederic in the Australian Papp production), produced another adaptation of ''Pirates'' that toured Australia from 2001 to 2003<ref>[https://www.davidspicer.com.au/author/simon-gallaher "Simon Gallaher"], DavidSpicer.com. Retrieved 23 April 2022</ref>
* All-male versions of the opera include a long-running adaptation by [[Sasha Regan]] at the [[Union Theatre, London|Union Theatre]] in 2009, which transferred to [[Wilton's Music Hall]] in London in 2010<ref>Church, Michael. [https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/classical/reviews/the-pirates-of-penzance-wiltonrsquos-music-hall-london-1944869.html "The Pirates of Penzance, Wilton's Music Hall, London"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304210808/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/classical/reviews/the-pirates-of-penzance-wiltonrsquos-music-hall-london-1944869.html |date=4 March 2016}} ''The Independent'', 14 April 2010</ref> and toured in Australia in 2012.<ref>Spicer, David. [http://www.stagewhispers.com.au/reviews/sasha-regan%E2%80%99s-pirates-penzance "Sasha Regan's ''The Pirates of Penzance''"], ''Stage Whispers'', 2012</ref><ref>[http://www.artsprojects.com.au/tour/pirates-of-penzance-directed-by-sasha-regan "Sasha Regan ''Pirates of Penzance'' (UK)"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130408203223/http://artsprojects.com.au/tour/pirates-of-penzance-directed-by-sasha-regan |date=8 April 2013 }}, ''Arts Projects Australia'', 2012</ref>

;Film and TV
* ''[[The Pirate Movie]]'', a 1982 musical romantic comedy film loosely based on the opera.
* ''[[The Pirates of Penzance (film)|The Pirates of Penzance]]'', a 1983 film adaptation of Papp's Broadway production.
* ''Die Piraten'', a German-language version, was premiered on German television in 1968 and starred [[Arleen Auger]] as Mabel, [[Gerd Nienstedt]] as the Pirate King and [[Martha Mödl]] as Ruth, with [[Franz Marszalek]] conducting. Mabel falls in love with the Pirate King, among other plot changes. A 2-CD set of the broadcast was issued by Gala Records in 2000.<ref>Shepherd, Marc. [http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/piraten.htm "''Die Piraten'' (1968)"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150920022805/http://gasdisc.oakapplepress.com/piraten.htm |date=20 September 2015 }}, Gilbert and Sullivan Discography, 13 April 2009, accessed 13 October 2015</ref>
* Several other television adaptations of the opera have been made, beginning in 1939.<ref>[https://us.imdb.com/find?s=all&q=Pirates+of+Penzance List of television and film adaptations]{{Dead link|date=June 2021 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

==See also==
* ''[[Our Island Home]]'', one of the sources of the libretto for ''Pirates''

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Sources==
* {{cite book|last=Ainger|first=Michael|year=2002|title=Gilbert and Sullivan – A Dual Biography|location=Oxford|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=0-19-514769-3}}
* {{cite book|last=Allen|first=Reginald|year=1979|title=Gilbert and Sullivan in America, The Story of the First D'Oyly Carte Opera Company American Tour|location=New York|publisher=The Pierpont Morgan Library}}
* {{cite book|last=Allen|first=Reginald|year=1975|edition=2nd|title=The First Night Gilbert and Sullivan|publisher=Chappell & Co. Ltd|isbn=0-903443-10-4}}
* {{cite book|last=Bond|first=Jessie|year=1930|author-link=Jessie Bond|title=The Life and Reminiscences of Jessie Bond, the Old Savoyard (as told to Ethel MacGeorge)|url=http://diamond.boisestate.edu/gas/books/bond/bond_home.html|location=London|publisher=John Lane, The Bodley Head|access-date=22 October 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150906114856/http://diamond.boisestate.edu/gas/books/bond/bond_home.html|archive-date=6 September 2015|url-status=dead}} (Chapters 5 and 6)
* {{cite book|last=Blyth|first=Alan|author-link=Alan Blyth|title=Opera on CD|publisher=Kyle Cathie|location=London|year=1994|isbn=1-85626-103-4}}
* {{cite book|last=Bordman|first=Gerald|title=American Operetta: From H. M. S. Pinafore to Sweeney Todd|location=Oxford|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=1981|isbn=0-19-502869-4|url=https://archive.org/details/americanoperetta00bord}}
* {{cite book|last=Bradley|first=Ian|author-link=Ian Bradley|year=1982|title=The Annotated Gilbert and Sullivan|location=Harmondsworth, England|publisher=Penguin Books|isbn=0-14-070848-0|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/annotatedgilbert00sull}}
* {{cite book|last=Bradley|first=Ian|year=2005|title=Oh Joy! Oh Rapture!: The Enduring Phenomenon of Gilbert and Sullivan|location=Oxford, England|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=0-19-516700-7|url=https://archive.org/details/ohjoyohraptureen00brad}}
* {{cite book|last=Gänzl|first=Kurt|year=1986|author-link=Kurt Gänzl|title=The British Musical Theatre—Volume I, 1865–1914|location=Oxford|publisher=Oxford University Press}}
* {{cite book|last=Holden|first=Amanda|author-link=Amanda Holden (writer)|year=1997|title=The Penguin Opera Guide|publisher=Penguin Books|isbn=014051385X|location=London|url=https://archive.org/details/operaguidepengui00nich}}
* {{cite book|last=Hughes|first=Gervase|author-link=Gervase Hughes|year=1959|title=The Music of Sir Arthur Sullivan|location=London|publisher=Macmillan & Co Ltd}}
* {{cite book|last=Jacobs|first=Arthur|author-link=Arthur Jacobs|year=1986|title=Arthur Sullivan: A Victorian Musician|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=0-19-282033-8|location=Oxford}}
* {{cite journal|doi=10.2307/3052183|last=Lamb|first=Andrew|author-link=Andrew Lamb (writer)|date=Spring 1986|title=From ''Pinafore'' to Porter: United States–United Kingdom Interactions in Musical Theater, 1879–1929|jstor=3052183|journal=American Music|publisher=University of Illinois Press|volume=4|issue=1|pages=34–49}}
* {{cite book|editor-last=March|editor-first=Ivan|title=The Penguin Guide to Opera on Compact Discs|location=Harmondsworth|publisher=Penguin Books|year=1993|isbn=0-14-046957-5|url=https://archive.org/details/penguinguidetoop00gree}}
* {{cite book|editor-last=March|editor-first=Ivan|title=The Penguin Guide to Recorded Classical Music|location=Harmondsworth|publisher=Penguin Books|year=2007|isbn=978-0-14-103336-5|url=https://archive.org/details/penguinguidetore00lond}}
* {{cite book|last=Rees|first=Terence|author-link=Terence Rees|year=1964|title=Thespis – A Gilbert & Sullivan Enigma|location=London|publisher=Dillon's University Bookshop}}
* {{cite book|last=Rollins|first=Cyril|year=1962|author2=R. John Witts |title=The D'Oyly Carte Opera Company in Gilbert and Sullivan Operas: A Record of Productions, 1875–1961|location=London|publisher=Michael Joseph}} Also, five supplements, privately printed
* {{cite book|last=Shaw|first=Bernard|author-link=George Bernard Shaw|editor-last=Laurence|editor-first=Dan H.|title=Shaw's Music: The Complete Musical Criticism of Bernard Shaw|publisher=Max Reinhardt|location=London|year=1981|volume=1|isbn=0-370-31270-8}}
* {{cite book|last=Shaw|first=Bernard|editor-last=Laurence|editor-first=Dan H.|title=Shaw's Music: The Complete Musical Criticism of Bernard Shaw|publisher=Max Reinhardt|location=London|year=1981|volume=2|isbn=0-370-31271-6}}
* {{cite conference|last1=Tillett|first1=Selwyn|first2=Roderick|last2=Spencer|date=21 September 2002|title=Forty Years of ''Thespis'' Scholarship|conference=Sullivan Society Festival weekend|location=Cirencester|url=http://www.chimesmusicaltheatre.co.uk/Thespis.pdf|access-date=25 May 2006|url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070619222651/http://www.chimesmusicaltheatre.co.uk/Thespis.pdf|archive-date=19 June 2007}}
* {{cite book|last=Williams|first=Carolyn|year=2010|title=Gilbert and Sullivan: Gender, Genre, Parody|location=New York|publisher=Columbia University Press|isbn=978-0-231-14804-7}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
{{Wikiquote}}
{{Wikisource}}
'''General'''
* [https://gsarchive.net/pirates/html/index.html ''The Pirates of Penzance'' at The Gilbert & Sullivan Archive]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120720071930/http://www.themorgan.org/music/manuscript/115806 Sullivan's autograph manuscript, 1879]
* [https://gsarchive.net/pirates/programmes/pp_00/pp_0.html 1880 London theatre programme]
* [http://www.savoyoperas.org.uk/pirates/pp2.html Review of the opening night] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120207032729/http://www.savoyoperas.org.uk/pirates/pp2.html |date=7 February 2012 }} by [[Clement Scott]]
* [http://www.mtishows.com/show_detail.asp?showid=000061 Papp's version of ''The Pirates of Penzance''] at the Music Theatre International website
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090524174741/http://www.vam.ac.uk/collections/theatre_performance/objects_theatre_performance/doyly_carte/index.html D'Oyly Carte Prompt Books] at The Victoria and Albert Museum
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EugH7Be9Ds Televised scenes from ''Pirates'', D'Oyly Carte Opera Company], 1955
* {{librivox book | title=The Pirates of Penzance | author=W. S. GILBERT}}

'''Lists of productions'''
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20200809080517/http://www.floormic.com/show/120645 ''The Pirates of Penzance'']. Production list at Floormic.com
* [http://www.ibdb.com/show.php?ID=7113 ''The Pirates of Penzance''] at The Internet Broadway Database
* [https://www.imdb.com/find?tt=on;nm=on;mx=20;q=The%20Pirates%20of%20Penzance ''The Pirates of Penzance''] at [[IMDb]]

{{Gilbert and Sullivan}}
{{The Pirates of Penzance}}
{{Pirates}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Pirates of Penzance, The}}
[[Category:The Pirates of Penzance| ]]
[[Category:1879 operas]]
[[Category:Cornwall in fiction]]
[[Category:Drama Desk Award–winning musicals]]
[[Category:English comic operas]]
[[Category:English-language operas]]
[[Category:Operas adapted into films]]
[[Category:Operas by Gilbert and Sullivan]]
[[Category:Operas set in England]]
[[Category:Operas]]
[[Category:Penzance]]
[[Category:Fiction about piracy]]
[[Category:Tony Award–winning musicals]]
[[Category:Victorian era in popular culture]]
[[Category:Works about orphans]]