Stage Production Notes
With music by Arthur Sullivan, and a libretto by W.S. Gilbert H.M.S. Pinafore is a romantic comedy set aboard a ship. The captain wishes for his daughter Josephine to marry Sir Joseph Porter, however Josephine is in love with Ralph Rackstraw, a common sailor. A Portsmouth bumboat woman, Buttercup, intervenes and saves the day when she reveals the true identities of Ralph Rackstraw and Joseph Porter.
The opera first premiered on May 25, 1878 at the Opera Comique in London. H.M.S. Pinafore played to small houses due to an unusually long heat wave, and closing notices were repeatedly posted. Attendance improved after Sullivan included selections from the show in Promenade Concerts at Covent Garden. H.M.S. Pinafore became a huge hit, and continued to play until March 1880.
The production spawned hundreds of “pirated” performances in the United States and Australia, with the first officially sanctioned international performances taking place in late 1879.
In 1977, H.M.S Pinafore was the first Gilbert and Sullivan opera to receive a command performance at Windsor Castle since 1891, when The Gondoliers was performed for Queen Victoria.
H.M.S Pinafore continues to be performed by professional and amateur companies around the world, and behind The Mikado, is the second-most recorded Gilbert and Sullivan opera.
The first official performance of H.M.S Pinafore in Australia took place under the direction of entrepreneur J.C. Williamson at the Theatre Royal in Sydney in November, 1879. American performance taking place in New York in December, 1879.
Essgee Entertainment was, and still is, a prominent Australian recording and concert producer throughout the 1980s. The company staged a highly acclaimed production of Pirates of Penzance in 1994, which led to The Mikado in 1995, and H.M.S. Pinafore in 1997. All three productions were performed around Australia and New Zealand, filmed, and made available on television, VHS, and later DVD, in those markets.
Essgee Entertainment’s H.M.S. Pinafore was a new production that featured a three-dimensional rotating ship, along with a “mega-mega-mix” finale. Also known as the “omega mix,” the mega-mix combined highlights from the company’s three musicals into a lavish seven minute finale, complete with pyrotechnics. The cast included well-known Australian performers Simon Gallaher, Jon English, and Amanda Muggleton.
The production opened on January 2, 1997 at the Victorian Arts Center’s State Theatre where it received generally positive reviews. Writing for The Age, Helen Thomson stated “The original satire of England’s absurd class system lends itself beautifully to an egalitarian Australian version that misses no opportunity to send up the Poms” and described the production as “bright, energetic and amusing.” Stephen Dunne, critic for the Sydney Morning Herald was less enthusiastic, stating “It’s not nearly as funny as it should be and not nearly as funny as the previous updatings occasionally were.”
Audiences loved the production, and the show ran for just over a month before closing on February 8. The production embarked on a successful multi-city tour around Australia before touring New Zealand. During the New Zealand run, local celebrity Rima Te Wiata replaced Amanda Muggleton in the role of Buttercup.
With music by Arthur Sullivan, and a libretto by W.S. Gilbert H.M.S. Pinafore is a romantic comedy set aboard a ship. The captain wishes for his daughter Josephine to marry Sir Joseph Porter, however Josephine is in love with Ralph Rackstraw, a common sailor. A Portsmouth bumboat woman, Buttercup, intervenes and saves the day when she reveals the true identities of Ralph Rackstraw and Joseph Porter.
The opera first premiered on May 25, 1878 at the Opera Comique in London. H.M.S. Pinafore played to small houses due to an unusually long heat wave, and closing notices were repeatedly posted. Attendance improved after Sullivan included selections from the show in Promenade Concerts at Covent Garden. H.M.S. Pinafore became a huge hit, and continued to play until March 1880.
The production spawned hundreds of “pirated” performances in the United States and Australia, with the first officially sanctioned international performances taking place in late 1879.
In 1977, H.M.S Pinafore was the first Gilbert and Sullivan opera to receive a command performance at Windsor Castle since 1891, when The Gondoliers was performed for Queen Victoria.
H.M.S Pinafore continues to be performed by professional and amateur companies around the world, and behind The Mikado, is the second-most recorded Gilbert and Sullivan opera.
The first official performance of H.M.S Pinafore in Australia took place under the direction of entrepreneur J.C. Williamson at the Theatre Royal in Sydney in November, 1879. American performance taking place in New York in December, 1879.
Essgee Entertainment was, and still is, a prominent Australian recording and concert producer throughout the 1980s. The company staged a highly acclaimed production of Pirates of Penzance in 1994, which led to The Mikado in 1995, and H.M.S. Pinafore in 1997. All three productions were performed around Australia and New Zealand, filmed, and made available on television, VHS, and later DVD, in those markets.
Essgee Entertainment’s H.M.S. Pinafore was a new production that featured a three-dimensional rotating ship, along with a “mega-mega-mix” finale. Also known as the “omega mix,” the mega-mix combined highlights from the company’s three musicals into a lavish seven minute finale, complete with pyrotechnics. The cast included well-known Australian performers Simon Gallaher, Jon English, and Amanda Muggleton.
The production opened on January 2, 1997 at the Victorian Arts Center’s State Theatre where it received generally positive reviews. Writing for The Age, Helen Thomson stated “The original satire of England’s absurd class system lends itself beautifully to an egalitarian Australian version that misses no opportunity to send up the Poms” and described the production as “bright, energetic and amusing.” Stephen Dunne, critic for the Sydney Morning Herald was less enthusiastic, stating “It’s not nearly as funny as it should be and not nearly as funny as the previous updatings occasionally were.”
Audiences loved the production, and the show ran for just over a month before closing on February 8. The production embarked on a successful multi-city tour around Australia before touring New Zealand. During the New Zealand run, local celebrity Rima Te Wiata replaced Amanda Muggleton in the role of Buttercup.
Filmed Production Notes
Essgee’s H.M.S. Pinafore was filmed twice to accommodate an Australian and New Zealand audience in May, 1997, at the St. James Theater in Auckland, New Zealand. The Australian version featured Amanda Muggleton as Buttercup, while the New Zealand version featured Rima Te Wiate.
The Australian version was released to international television markets, and later on VHS and DVD.
H.M.S Pinfore is available on DVD and digital download via Esgee Entertainment.
Essgee’s H.M.S. Pinafore was filmed twice to accommodate an Australian and New Zealand audience in May, 1997, at the St. James Theater in Auckland, New Zealand. The Australian version featured Amanda Muggleton as Buttercup, while the New Zealand version featured Rima Te Wiate.
The Australian version was released to international television markets, and later on VHS and DVD.
H.M.S Pinfore is available on DVD and digital download via Esgee Entertainment.
H.M.S. Pinafore PRODUCTION CREDITS
Theatre: St. James Theatre, New Zealand
Producer: Essgee Entertainment
Music and Lyrics: W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan
Additional Lyrics: Drew Forsythe
Director: Craig Schaefer, film: Peter Butler
Orchestrations: Kevin Hocking
Choreography: Craig Schaefer
Scenic and Costume Design: Graham Maclean
Lighting Design: Donn Brynes
Sound Design: Urban Dynamics
Stage Manager: Amanda Ferguson
Conductor: Kevin Hocking
Cast:
Jon English (Dick Deadeye), Amanda Muggleton (Buttercup), Andrea Gallaher (The Absolutely Fabulettes), Melissa Langton (The Absolutely Fabulettes), Marissa Craig (The Absolutely Fabulettes), David Gould (Captain Corcoran), Drew Forsythe (Sir Jospeh Porter), Helen Donaldson (Josephine), Simon Gallaher (Ralph Rackstraw), Jason Barry-Smith (Boatswain)
Ensemble: Peter Bodnar, Christophe Broadway, Robert Dale, Peter Dennis, Michael Falzon, Tristan Glendinning, Gary Jones, Aidan MacBride-Stewart, Glenn A. Mayo, John Pemberton, Lachlan Youngberg
Special appearances by: Derek Metzger and Rima Te Wiata
Theatre: St. James Theatre, New Zealand
Producer: Essgee Entertainment
Music and Lyrics: W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan
Additional Lyrics: Drew Forsythe
Director: Craig Schaefer, film: Peter Butler
Orchestrations: Kevin Hocking
Choreography: Craig Schaefer
Scenic and Costume Design: Graham Maclean
Lighting Design: Donn Brynes
Sound Design: Urban Dynamics
Stage Manager: Amanda Ferguson
Conductor: Kevin Hocking
Cast:
Jon English (Dick Deadeye), Amanda Muggleton (Buttercup), Andrea Gallaher (The Absolutely Fabulettes), Melissa Langton (The Absolutely Fabulettes), Marissa Craig (The Absolutely Fabulettes), David Gould (Captain Corcoran), Drew Forsythe (Sir Jospeh Porter), Helen Donaldson (Josephine), Simon Gallaher (Ralph Rackstraw), Jason Barry-Smith (Boatswain)
Ensemble: Peter Bodnar, Christophe Broadway, Robert Dale, Peter Dennis, Michael Falzon, Tristan Glendinning, Gary Jones, Aidan MacBride-Stewart, Glenn A. Mayo, John Pemberton, Lachlan Youngberg
Special appearances by: Derek Metzger and Rima Te Wiata
Sources
Books
Articles
Websites
- Ian Bradley, “The Complete Annotated Gilbert & Sullivan: 20th Anniversary Edition,” Oxford University Press (2016)
- Eds. Carl Simpson and Ephraim Hammett Jones, H.M.S. Pinafore by Arthur Sullivan and William Schwenck Gilbert, Courier Corporation (2002)
- Carolyn Williams, Gilbert and Sullivan: Gender, Genre, Parody, Columbia University Press (2012)
Articles
- Stephen Dunne, “Listless, if not listing,” Sydney Morning Herald (Feb 26, 1997)
- Ailsa McPherson, “Theatre Royal,” The Dictionary of Sydney (2010)
- Melvyn Morrow, “The Pirates of H.M.S. Pinafore,” Essgee Entertainment (undated)
- Leann Richards, “The Theatre Royal Sydney to 1913,” History of Australian Theatre (undated)
- Helen Thomson, “Convention goes, entertainment flows,” The Age (Jan 6, 1997)
Websites
- Essgee Entertainment, “H.M.S. Pinafore,” Accessed via: http://www.essgee.com/html/PINindex.html
- Esgee Entertainment, “About Essgee,” Accessed via: http://www.essgee.com/index.html
- Rodgers and Hammerstein, “H.M.S. Pinafore,” Accessed via: http://www.rnh.com/show/48/HMS-Pinafore#shows-history
Written by Luisa Lyons (August, 2017)