List of W. S. Gilbert dramatic works

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Sir William Schwenck Gilbert by Frank Holl (1886) Frank Holl (1845-1888) - Sir William Schwenck Gilbert - NPG 2911 - National Portrait Gallery.jpg
Sir William Schwenck Gilbert by Frank Holl (1886)

The dramatist and author W. S. Gilbert wrote approximately 80 dramatic works during his career, as well as light verse, short stories and other works. He is best remembered for his series of 14 libretti for his joint operatic works with the composer Arthur Sullivan, but many of his other dramatic works were popular successes. [1]

Contents

List

In the following list, the title of each work appears in the first column, along with any further information (such as the source of an adaptation). The genre appears in the second column, and if the piece had music, the composer's name is listed in parentheses. The theatre and date of first performance appear in the third and fourth columns. All theatres were in London, unless otherwise stated. The works are listed in the approximate order of composition. (In a few cases, the first performance was many years after the work was first published.)

TitleGenreTheatreDate
Uncle BabyOne-Act Comedietta Lyceum Theatre 1863-10-31
Ruy Blas [published in Warne's Christmas Annual, 1866, based on the Victor Hugo drama, Ruy Blas .] Burlesque unperformedN/A
Hush-a-Bye, Baby, on the Tree Top; or, Harlequin Fortunia, King Frog of Frog Island, and the Magic Toys of Lowther Arcade [written with Chas. Millard] Pantomime Astley's1866-12-26
Dulcamara! or, The Little Duck and the Great Quack [parody of Donizetti's L'elisir d'amore ] Extravaganza St. James's Theatre 1866-12-29
La Vivandière; or, True to the Corps! [parody of Donizetti's La fille du régiment ]ExtravaganzaSt. James's Hall, Liverpool1867-06-15
Robinson Crusoe; or, The Injun Bride and the Injured Wife [written with H. J. Byron, Tom Hood, H. S. Leigh and Arthur Sketchley]Burlesque Haymarket 1867-07-06
Allow Me to ExplainOne-Act Farce Prince of Wales's Theatre 1867-11-04
Highly ImprobableOne-Act Farce Royalty Theatre 1867-12-05
A Colossal Idea [first pub. 1932]One-Act FarceunperformedN/A
Harlequin Cock Robin and Jenny Wren ; or, Fortunatus and the Water of Life, the Three Bears, the Three Gifts, the Three Wishes, and the Little Man who Woo'd the Little Maid Pantomime Lyceum1867-12-26
The Merry Zingara; or, The Tipsy Gipsy and the Pipsy Wipsy [parody of Balfe's The Bohemian Girl ]ExtravaganzaRoyalty1868-03-21
Robert the Devil; or, The Nun, the Dun, and the Son of a Gun [parody of Meyerbeer's Robert le diable ]Extravaganza Gaiety Theatre 1868-12-21
No Cards One-Act Musical Entertainment (Thomas German Reed/"Lionel Elliott"?) Gallery of Illustration 1869-03-29
The Pretty Druidess; or, The Mother, the Maid, and the Mistletoe Bough [parody of Bellini's Norma ]Extravaganza Charing Cross Theatre 1869-06-19
An Old Score [revived as Quits]Three-Act ComedyGaiety1869-07-26
Ages Ago One-Act Musical Entertainment (Frederic Clay)Gallery of Illustration1869-11-22
A Medical Man [published in Clement Scott's Drawing-Room Plays (1870)]One-Act Farce St. George's Hall 1872-10-24
The Princess [based on Tennyson's poem]Blank-Verse Parody Olympic Theatre 1870-01-08
The Gentleman in Black Two-Act Musical Play (Frederic Clay)Charing Cross1870-05-26
Our Island Home One-Act Musical Entertainment (Thomas German Reed)Gallery of Illustration1870-06-20
The Palace of Truth Three-Act Fairy ComedyHaymarket1870-11-19
The Brigands [translated and adapted from Les brigands by Meilhac and Halévy; published by Boosey, 1871]Three-Act Comic Opera (Jacques Offenbach)Theatre Royal, Plymouth1889-09-02
Randall's Thumb Three-Act Comedy Court Theatre 1871-01-25
A Sensation Novel Musical Entertainment in Three "Volumes" (Thomas German Reed)Gallery of Illustration1871-01-30
Creatures of Impulse One-Act Musical Play (Alberto Randegger)Court1871-04-28
Great Expectations [adapted from the Dickens novel]DramaCourt1871-05-29
On Guard [2] Three-Act Melodramatic ComedyCourt1871-10-28
Pygmalion and Galatea Three-Act Fairy ComedyHaymarket1871-12-09
Thespis ; or, The Gods Grown OldTwo-Act Comic Opera (Arthur Sullivan) Gaiety 1871-12-26
Happy Arcadia One-Act Musical Entertainment
(Frederic Clay)
Gallery of Illustration1872-10-28
The Wicked World Three-Act Fairy ComedyHaymarket1873-01-04
The Happy Land [written as F. Tomline, with Gilbert à Beckett]Two-Act Burlesque of The Wicked WorldCourt1873-03-03
The Realm of Joy [written as F. Latour Tomline: freely adapted from Le Roi Candaule by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy; title changed after a few nights to The Realms of Joy]One-Act FarceRoyalty1873-10-18
The Wedding March [written as F. Latour Tomline: translated from Un Chapeau de Paille d'Italie by Eugène Labiche]Three-Act FarceCourt1873-11-15
Charity Four-Act DramaHaymarket1874-01-03
Ought We To Visit Her? [adapted from the novel by Annie Edwardes] [3] Three-Act DramaRoyalty1874-01-17
Committed For Trial [written as F. Latour Tomline: translated from Le Réveillon by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy]Two-Act Farce Globe Theatre 1874-01-24
The Blue-Legged Lady [no author named: translated from La Dame aux Jambes d'Azur by Eugène Labiche and Marc-Michel]One-Act FarceCourt1874-03-04
Topsyturveydom One-Act Extravaganza
(Alfred Cellier)
Criterion Theatre 1874-03-21
Sweethearts Two-Act ComedyPrince of Wales's Theatre1874-11-07
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern [published in Fun, December 1874]Burlesque in Three Short "Tableaux" Vaudeville Theatre 1891-06-03
Trial by Jury One-Act Comic Opera
(Arthur Sullivan)
Royalty1875-03-25
Tom Cobb; or, Fortune's ToyThree-Act FarceSt. James's1875-04-24
Eyes and No Eyes ; or, The Art of SeeingOne-Act Musical Entertainment (Thomas German Reed)St. George's Hall1875-07-05
Broken Hearts Three-Act Verse DramaCourt1875-12-09
Princess Toto Three-Act Comic Opera (Frederic Clay)Theatre Royal, Nottingham1876-06-24
Dan'l Druce, Blacksmith Three-Act DramaHaymarket1876-09-11
On Bail [revised version of Committed for Trial]Three-Act FarceCriterion1877-02-03
Engaged Three-Act Farcical ComedyHaymarket1877-10-03
The Sorcerer Two-Act Comic Opera
(Arthur Sullivan)
Opera Comique 1877-11-17
The Forty Thieves [written with Robert Reece, F. C. Burnand, and H. J. Byron; three performances for charity]PantomimeGaiety1878-02-13
The Ne'er-Do-Weel [rewritten and restaged three weeks later as The Vagabond]Three-Act DramaOlympic1878-02-25
H.M.S. Pinafore ; or, The Lass that Loved a SailorTwo-Act Comic Opera
(Arthur Sullivan)
Opera Comique1878-05-25
Gretchen [based on Goethe's Faust ]Four-Act Verse TragedyOlympic1879-03-24
Lord Mayor's Day [translated from La Cagnotte by Eugène Labiche. Gilbert translated the first two acts, but was not credited.]Three-Act Farce Folly Theatre 1879-06-30
The Pirates of Penzance ; or, The Slave of DutyTwo-Act Comic Opera
(Arthur Sullivan)
Bijou, Paignton; Fifth Avenue, NY; and Opera Comique1879-12-30 & 1879-12-31
Patience ; or, Bunthorne's BrideTwo-Act Comic Opera
(Arthur Sullivan)
Opera Comique1881-04-23
Foggerty's Fairy Three-Act FarceCriterion1881-12-15
Iolanthe ; or, The Peer and the PeriTwo-Act Comic Opera
(Arthur Sullivan)
Savoy Theatre 1882-11-25
Princess Ida ; or, Castle Adamant [revised version of The Princess]Three-Act Comic Opera
(Arthur Sullivan)
Savoy1884-01-05
Comedy and Tragedy One-Act DramaLyceum1884-01-26
The Mikado ; or, The Town of TitipuTwo-Act Comic Opera
(Arthur Sullivan)
Savoy1885-03-14
Ruddygore ; or, The Witch's Curse [retitled Ruddigore after a few days]Two-Act Comic Opera
(Arthur Sullivan)
Savoy1887-01-22
The Yeomen of the Guard ; or, The Merryman and his MaidTwo-Act Comic Opera
(Arthur Sullivan)
Savoy1888-03-10
Brantinghame Hall Four-Act DramaSt. James's1888-11-29
The Gondoliers ; or, The King of BaratariaTwo-Act Comic Opera
(Arthur Sullivan)
Savoy1889-07-12
The Mountebanks Two-Act Comic Opera
(Alfred Cellier)
Lyric Theatre 1892-01-04
Haste to the Wedding [operatic version of The Wedding March]Three-Act Comic Opera
(George Grossmith)
Criterion1892-07-27
Utopia (Limited) ; or, The Flowers of Progress [retitled Utopia Limited after a few days]Two-Act Comic Opera
(Arthur Sullivan)
Savoy1893-10-07
His Excellency Two-Act Comic Opera
(F. Osmond Carr)
Lyric1894-10-27
The Grand Duke ; or, The Statutory DuelTwo-Act Comic Opera
(Arthur Sullivan)
Savoy1896-03-07
The Fortune Hunter Three-Act Drama Theatre Royal, Birmingham 1897-09-27
Harlequin and the Fairy's Dilemma [retitled The Fairy's Dilemma after a few days]Two-Act Domestic Pantomime Garrick Theatre 1904-05-03
Fallen Fairies; or, The Wicked World [operatic version of The Wicked World]Two-Act Comic Opera
(Edward German)
Savoy1909-12-15
The Hooligan One-Act Drama London Coliseum 1911-02-27
Trying a Dramatist; [published in Original Plays, Fourth Series (1911)] [4] One-Act Sketchunknownunknown

See also

Notes

  1. Stedman, Jane W. "Gilbert, Sir William Schwenck (1836–1911)", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, September 2004, online edition, May 2008, accessed 10 January 2010 (subscription or UK public library membership required)
  2. Link to the libretto of On Guard and review in The Times , Gilbert and Sullivan Archive, 25 November 2009
  3. Trutt, David. "Ought We To Visit Her?" at the Gilbert and Sullivan Archive, accessed 10 September 2010
  4. Trutt, David. "Trying A Dramatist by W. S. Gilbert" at the Gilbert and Sullivan Archive, accessed 10 September 2010

References