Pirates of Penzance
Victorian comic opera
*The Pirates of Penzance* is a comic opera by Gilbert and Sullivan, first performed in 1879.
The story follows Frederic, a young man mistakenly apprenticed to pirates, and features the bumbling Pirate King, a troop of ineffective policemen, and romantic entanglements.
The work satirizes Victorian duty, honor, and class conventions.
It remains among the most frequently performed operettas: We're doing *Pirates of Penzance* at the community theater this spring.
- GilbertTraditional male name
- SullivanIrish-origin surname
- Gilbert and SullivanVictorian operetta collaborators
- operettaComic musical theater piece
- comic operaHumorous sung theatrical work
light opera · Mabel · Frederic · constables · duty · duty calls · paradox · patter · Victorian · encore · comic · apprentice · indenture · nursemaid · orphan · sentimental · parody · Savoy
- Pirate FilmsTreasure Island, Blackbeard, The Black Swan, Captain Kidd, Long John Silver
- Gilbert and SullivanW.S. Gilbert, Gilbert, Sullivan, The Mikado, H.M.S. Pinafore
Pirates of Penzancegrand opera
Fully sung dramatic spectacle
Parsifal · tragedy · La Traviata · Rigoletto · Tosca
Pirates of PenzanceWagner
German Romantic opera composer
Parsifal · Italian opera · Verdi · Puccini · Aida