''Patience; or, Bunthorne's Bride'', is a

comic opera Comic opera, sometimes known as light opera, is a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending and often including spoken dialogue. Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a ne ...

in two acts with music by

Arthur Sullivan Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan (13 May 1842 – 22 November 1900) was an English composer. He is best known for 14 comic opera, operatic Gilbert and Sullivan, collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including ''H.M.S. Pinaf ...

and libretto by

W. S. Gilbert Sir William Schwenck Gilbert (18 November 1836 – 29 May 1911) was an English dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his collaboration with composer Arthur Sullivan, which produced fourteen comic operas. The most f ...

. The opera is a

satire Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming ...

on the

aesthetic movement Aestheticism (also the Aesthetic movement) was an art movement in the late 19th century which privileged the aesthetic value of literature, music and the arts over their socio-political functions. According to Aestheticism, art should be prod ...

of the 1870s and '80s in England and, more broadly, on fads, superficiality, vanity, hypocrisy and pretentiousness; it also satirises romantic love, rural simplicity and military bluster. First performed at the

Opera Comique The Opera Comique was a 19th-century theatre constructed in Westminster, London, between Wych Street, Holywell Street and the Strand. It opened in 1870 and was demolished in 1902, to make way for the construction of the Aldwych and Kingsway. ...

, London, on 23 April 1881, ''Patience'' moved to the 1,292-seat

Savoy Theatre The Savoy Theatre is a West End theatre in the Strand in the City of Westminster, London, England. The theatre was designed by C. J. Phipps for Richard D'Oyly Carte and opened on 10 October 1881 on a site previously occupied by the Savoy Pala ...

on 10 October 1881, where it was the first theatrical production in the world to be lit entirely by

electric light An electric light, lamp, or light bulb is an electrical component that produces light. It is the most common form of artificial lighting. Lamps usually have a base made of ceramic, metal, glass, or plastic, which secures the lamp in the soc ...

. Henceforth, the

Gilbert and Sullivan Gilbert and Sullivan was a Victorian era, Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the dramatist W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911) and the composer Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900), who jointly created fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which ...

comic operas would be known as the

Savoy Operas Savoy opera was a style of comic opera that developed in Victorian England in the late 19th century, with W. S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan as the original and most successful practitioners. The name is derived from the Savoy Theatre, which impr ...

, and both fans and performers of Gilbert and Sullivan would come to be known as "Savoyards." ''Patience'' was the sixth operatic collaboration of fourteen between Gilbert and Sullivan. It ran for a total of 578 performances, which was seven more than the authors' earlier work, ''

H.M.S. Pinafore ''H.M.S. Pinafore; or, The Lass That Loved a Sailor'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and a libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It opened at the Opera Comique in London, on 25 May 1878 and ran for 571 performances, which ...

'', and the second longest run of any work of musical theatre up to that time, after the

operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs, and dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, length of the work, and at face value, subject matter. Apart from its s ...

Les Cloches de Corneville ''Les cloches de Corneville'' (''The Bells of Corneville'', sometimes known in English as ''The Chimes of Normandy'') is an opéra-comique in three acts, composed by Robert Planquette to a libretto by Clairville (Louis-François Nicolaïe), Loui ...

''.

Background

Design for an Aesthetic theatrical poster

The opera is a

on the

of the 1870s and '80s in England, part of the 19th-century European movement that emphasised

aesthetic Aesthetics, or esthetics, is a branch of philosophy that deals with the nature of beauty and taste, as well as the philosophy of art (its own area of philosophy that comes out of aesthetics). It examines aesthetic values, often expressed th ...

values over moral or social themes in literature, fine art, the decorative arts, and interior design. Called "Art for Art's Sake", the movement valued its ideals of beauty above any pragmatic concerns.Smith, Steve
"A Satire With Targets Not So Well Remembered"
''The New York Times'', 5 January 2014 Although the output of poets,

painters Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...

and designers was prolific, some argued that the movement's art, poetry and fashion was empty and self-indulgent. That the movement was so popular and also so easy to ridicule as a meaningless fad helped make ''Patience'' a big hit. The same factors made a hit out of '' The Colonel'', a play by

F. C. Burnand Sir Francis Cowley Burnand (29 November 1836 – 21 April 1917), usually known as F. C. Burnand, was an English comic writer and prolific playwright, best known today as the librettist of Arthur Sullivan's opera ''Cox and Box''. The son of ...

based partly on the satiric cartoons of

George du Maurier George Louis Palmella Busson du Maurier (6 March 1834 – 8 October 1896) was a Franco-British cartoonist and writer known for work in ''Punch'' and a Gothic novel ''Trilby'', featuring the character Svengali. His son was the actor Sir Gerald d ...

in ''

Punch Punch commonly refers to: * Punch (combat), a strike made using the hand closed into a fist * Punch (drink), a wide assortment of drinks, non-alcoholic or alcoholic, generally containing fruit or fruit juice Punch may also refer to: Places * Pun ...

'' magazine. ''The Colonel'' beat ''Patience'' to the stage by several weeks, but ''Patience'' outran Burnand's play. According to Burnand's 1904 memoir, Sullivan's friend the composer

Frederic Clay Frederic Emes Clay (3 August 1838 – 24 November 1889) was an English composer known principally for songs and his music written for the stage. Although from a musical family, for 16 years Clay made his living as a civil servant in HM Treasury ...

leaked to Burnand the information that

were working on an "æsthetic subject", and so Burnand raced to produce ''The Colonel'' before ''Patience'' opened. Modern productions of ''Patience'' have sometimes updated the setting of the opera to an analogous era such as the

hippie A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to different countries around ...

1960s, making a flower-child poet the rival of a

beat poet The Beat Generation was a literary subculture movement started by a group of authors whose work explored and influenced American culture and politics in the post-war era. The bulk of their work was published and popularized by Silent Generatione ...

. The two poets in the opera are given to reciting their own verses aloud, principally to the admiring chorus of rapturous maidens. The style of poetry Bunthorne declaims strongly contrasts with Grosvenor's. The former's, emphatic and obscure, bears a marked resemblance to Swinburne's poetry in its structure, style and heavy use of alliteration. The latter's "

idyll An idyll (, ; from Greek , ''eidullion'', "short poem"; occasionally spelt ''idyl'' in American English) is a short poem, descriptive of rustic life, written in the style of Theocritus' short pastoral poems, the ''Idylls'' (Εἰδύλλια). U ...

ic" poetry, simpler and pastoral, echoes elements of

Coventry Patmore Coventry Kersey Dighton Patmore (23 July 1823 – 26 November 1896) was an English poet and literary critic. He is best known for his book of poetry ''The Angel in the House'', a narrative poem about the Victorian ideal of a happy marriage. A ...

and

William Morris William Morris (24 March 1834 – 3 October 1896) was a British textile designer, poet, artist, novelist, architectural conservationist, printer, translator and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts Movement. He ...

. Gilbert scholar Andrew Crowther comments, "Bunthorne was the creature of Gilbert's brain, not just a caricature of particular Aesthetes, but an original character in his own right."Crowther, Andrew
"Bunthorne and Oscar Wilde"
''The Gilbert and Sullivan Archive'', 8 June 2009 The makeup and costume adopted by the first Bunthorne,

George Grossmith George Grossmith (9 December 1847 – 1 March 1912) was an English comedian, writer, composer, actor, and singer. His performing career spanned more than four decades. As a writer and composer, he created 18 comic operas, nearly 100 musical ...

, used Swinburne's velvet jacket, the painter

James McNeill Whistler James Abbott McNeill Whistler (; July 10, 1834July 17, 1903) was an American painter active during the American Gilded Age and based primarily in the United Kingdom. He eschewed sentimentality and moral allusion in painting and was a leading pr ...

's hairstyle and monocle, and knee-

breeches Breeches ( ) are an article of clothing covering the body from the waist down, with separate coverings for each human leg, leg, usually stopping just below the knee, though in some cases reaching to the ankles. Formerly a standard item of Weste ...

like those worn by

Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish poet and playwright. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular playwrights in London in the early 1890s. He is ...

and others. George Grossmith as Bunthorne, 1881 (second version)

According to Gilbert's biographer Edith Browne, the title character, Patience, was made up and costumed to resemble the subject of a

Luke Fildes __NOTOC__ Sir Samuel Luke Fildes (3 October 1843 – 28 February 1927) was a British painter and illustrator born in Liverpool and trained at the South Kensington and Royal Academy Schools. He was the grandson of the political activist Mar ...

painting. ''Patience'' was not the first satire of the aesthetic movement played by

Richard D'Oyly Carte Richard D'Oyly Carte (; 3 May 1844 – 3 April 1901) was an English talent agent, theatrical impresario, composer, and hotelier during the latter half of the Victorian era. He built two of London's theatres and a hotel empire, while also establi ...

's company at the

. Grossmith himself had written a sketch in 1876 called ''

Cups and Saucers ''Cups and Saucers'' is a one-act "satirical musical sketch" written and composed by George Grossmith. The piece pokes fun at the china collecting craze of the later Victorian era, which was part of the Aesthetic movement later satirised in ''Pati ...

'' that was revived as a companion piece to ''

'' in 1878, which was a satire of the blue pottery craze. A popular misconception holds that the central character of Bunthorne, a "Fleshly Poet," was intended to satirise

, but this identification is retrospective. According to some authorities, Bunthorne is inspired partly by the poets

Algernon Charles Swinburne Algernon Charles Swinburne (5 April 1837 – 10 April 1909) was an English poet, playwright, novelist, and critic. He wrote several novels and collections of poetry such as ''Poems and Ballads'', and contributed to the famous Eleventh Edition ...

and

Dante Gabriel Rossetti Gabriel Charles Dante Rossetti (12 May 1828 – 9 April 1882), generally known as Dante Gabriel Rossetti (), was an English poet, illustrator, painter, translator and member of the Rossetti family. He founded the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhoo ...

, who were considerably more famous than Wilde in early 1881 before Wilde published his first volume of poetry. Rossetti had been attacked for immorality by Robert Buchanan (under the pseudonym "Thomas Maitland") in an article called "The Fleshly School of Poetry", published in ''

The Contemporary Review ''The Contemporary Review'' is a British biannual, formerly quarterly, magazine. It has an uncertain future as of 2013. History The magazine was established in 1866 by Alexander Strahan and a group of intellectuals anxious to promote intellig ...

'' for October 1871, a decade before ''Patience''. Nonetheless, Wilde's biographer

Richard Ellmann Richard David Ellmann, FBA (March 15, 1918 – May 13, 1987) was an American literary critic and biographer of the Irish writers James Joyce, Oscar Wilde, and William Butler Yeats. He won the U.S. National Book Award for Nonfiction for ''James ...

suggests that Wilde is a partial model for both Bunthorne and his rival Grosvenor.Ellmann, pp. 135 and 151–52 Carte, the producer of ''Patience'', was also Wilde's booking manager in 1881 as the poet's popularity took off. In 1882, after the New York production of ''Patience'' opened, Gilbert, Sullivan and Carte sent Wilde on a US lecture tour, with his green carnation and knee-breeches, to explain the English aesthetic movement, intending to help popularise the show's American touring productions. Sydney Granville Grosvenor

Although a satire of the aesthetic movement is dated today, fads and hero-worship are evergreen, and "Gilbert’s pen was rarely sharper than when he invented Reginald Bunthorne". Gilbert originally conceived ''Patience'' as a tale of rivalry between two curates and of the doting ladies who attended upon them. The plot and even some of the dialogue were lifted straight out of Gilbert's

Bab Ballad ''The Bab Ballads'' is a collection of light verses by W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911), illustrated with his own comic drawings. The book takes its title from Gilbert's childhood nickname. He later began to sign his illustrations "Bab". Gilbert w ...

"The Rival Curates." While writing the libretto, however, Gilbert took note of the criticism he had received for his very mild satire of a clergyman in ''

The Sorcerer ''The Sorcerer'' is a two-act comic opera, with a libretto by W. S. Gilbert and music by Arthur Sullivan. It was the British duo's third operatic collaboration. The plot of ''The Sorcerer'' is based on a Christmas story, ''An Elixir of Lo ...

'', and looked about for an alternative pair of rivals. Some remnants of the Bab Ballad version do survive in the final text of ''Patience.'' Lady Jane advises Bunthorne to tell Grosvenor: "Your style is much too sanctified – your cut is too canonical!" Later, Grosvenor agrees to change his lifestyle by saying, "I do it on compulsion!" – the very words used by the Reverend Hopley Porter in the Bab Ballad. Gilbert's selection of aesthetic poet rivals proved to be a fertile subject for topsy-turvy treatment. He both mocks and joins in Buchanan's criticism of what the latter calls the poetic "affectations" of the "fleshly school" – their use of archaic terminology, archaic rhymes, the refrain, and especially their "habit of accenting the last syllable in words which in ordinary speech are accented on the penultimate." All of these poetic devices or "mediaevalism's affectations", as Bunthorne calls them, are parodied in ''Patience''. For example, accenting the last syllable of "lily" and rhyming it with "die" parodies two of these devices at once. On 10 October 1881, during its original run, ''Patience'' transferred to the new

, the first public building in the world lit entirely by electric light. Carte explained why he had introduced electric light: "The greatest drawbacks to the enjoyment of the theatrical performances are, undoubtedly, the foul air and heat which pervade all theatres. As everyone knows, each gas-burner consumes as much oxygen as many people, and causes great heat beside. The incandescent lamps consume no oxygen, and cause no perceptible heat." When the electrical system was ready for full operation, in December 1881, Carte stepped on stage to demonstrate the safety of the new technology by breaking a glowing lightbulb before the audience.

Roles

*Colonel Calverley (''Officer of Dragoon Guards'') (

bass-baritone A bass-baritone is a high-lying bass or low-lying "classical" baritone voice type which shares certain qualities with the true baritone voice. The term arose in the late 19th century to describe the particular type of voice required to sing thr ...

) *Major Murgatroyd (''Officer of Dragoon Guards'') (

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...

) *Lieut. The Duke of Dunstable (''Officer of Dragoon Guards'') (

tenor A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The lo ...

) *Reginald Bunthorne (''a Fleshly Poet'') (comic baritone) *Archibald Grosvenor (''an Idyllic Poet'') (lyric baritone) *Mr. Bunthorne's Solicitor (silent) *The Lady Angela (''Rapturous Maiden'') (

mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano or mezzo (; ; meaning "half soprano") is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A below middle C ...

) *The Lady Saphir (''Rapturous Maiden'') (mezzo-soprano or

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...

) *The Lady Ella (''Rapturous Maiden'') (soprano) *The Lady Jane (''Rapturous Maiden'') (

contralto A contralto () is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range is the lowest female voice type. The contralto's vocal range is fairly rare; similar to the mezzo-soprano, and almost identical to that of a countertenor, typically b ...

) *Patience (''a Dairy Maid'') (soprano) *Chorus of Rapturous Maidens and Officers of Dragoon Guards

Synopsis

Rapturous Maidens, 1919 Patience, Gilbert Sullivan

;Act I In front of Castle Bunthorne, a group of "lovesick maidens" are all in love with the aesthetic poet Bunthorne ("Twenty lovesick maidens we"). Lady Jane, the oldest and plainest of them, announces that Bunthorne, far from returning their affections, has his heart set on the simple milkmaid Patience. Patience appears and confesses that she has never loved anyone; she is thankful that love has not turned her miserable as it has them ("I cannot tell what this love may be"). Soon, the ladies' old sweethearts, the 35th Dragoon Guards, appear ("The soldiers of our Queen"), led by Colonel Calverley ("If you Want a Receipt for that Popular Mystery"), Major Murgatroyd, and the ordinary but immensely rich Lieutenant the Duke of Dunstable. They arrive ready to propose marriage, only to discover their intendeds fawning over Bunthorne, who is in the throes of poetical composition, pretending to ignore the attention of the ladies thronging around him ("In a doleful train"). Bunthorne reads his poem and departs, while the officers are coldly rebuffed and mocked by the ladies, who turn up their noses at the sight of their red and yellow uniforms. The Dragoons, reeling from the insult, depart ("When I first put this uniform on"). Bunthorne, left alone, confesses that his

aestheticism Aestheticism (also the Aesthetic movement) was an art movement in the late 19th century which privileged the aesthetic value of literature, music and the arts over their socio-political functions. According to Aestheticism, art should be pro ...

is a sham and mocks the movement's pretensions ("If you're anxious for to shine"). Seeing Patience, he reveals that, like her, he does not like poetry, but she tells him that she cannot love him. Later, Lady Angela, one of Bunthorne's admirers, explores with Patience the latter's childhood crush ("Long years ago"). Lady Angela rhapsodises upon love as the one truly unselfish pursuit in the world. Impressed by her eloquence, Patience promises to fall in love at the earliest opportunity. Serendipitously, Archibald Grosvenor arrives; he is another aesthetic poet who turns out to be Patience's childhood love. He has grown to be the infallible, widely loved "Archibald the All-Right" ("Prithee, pretty maiden"). The two declare themselves in love but are brought up short by the realisation that as Grosvenor is a perfect being, for Patience to love him would be a selfish act, and therefore not true love; thus, they must part. Passmore and Lytton as Bunthorne and Grosvenor 1900 Patience opera

Passmore and Lytton as Bunthorne and Grosvenor 1900 Patience opera

Bunthorne, heartbroken by Patience's rejection, has chosen to

raffle A raffle is a gambling competition in which people obtain numbered tickets, each of which has the chance of winning a prize. At a set time, the winners are drawn at random from a container holding a copy of each number. The drawn tickets are chec ...

himself off among his lady followers ("Let the merry cymbals sound"), the proceeds going to charity. The Dragoons interrupt the proceedings, and, led by the Duke, attempt to reason with the ladies ("Your maiden hearts, ah, do not steel"), but the ladies are too busy clamouring for raffle tickets to listen ("Come walk up"). Just as Bunthorne is handing the bag to the unattractive Jane, ready for the worst, Patience interrupts the proceedings and proposes to unselfishly sacrifice herself by loving the poet ("True Love must single-hearted be"). A delighted Bunthorne accepts immediately, and his followers, their idol lost, return to the Dragoons to whom they are engaged ("I hear the soft note of the echoing voice"). All seems resolved until Grosvenor enters and the ladies, finding him poetic, aesthetic, and far more attractive than Bunthorne, become his partisans instead ("Oh, list while we a love confess"), much to the dismay of the Dragoons, Patience, Bunthorne and especially Grosvenor himself. Act II
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Lady Jane, accompanying herself on the cello, laments the passing of the years and expresses hope that Bunthorne will "secure" her before it is too late ("Silvered is the raven hair"). Meanwhile, Grosvenor wearily entertains the ladies ("A magnet hung in a hardware shop") and begs to be given a half-holiday from their cloying attentions. Bunthorne is furious when Patience confesses her affection for Grosvenor; she laments the bitter lesson she has learned about love ("Love is a plaintive song"). Bunthorne longs to regain his former admirers' admiration; Jane offers her assistance ("So go to him, and say to him"). The Dragoon officers attempt to earn their partners' love by appearing to convert to the principles of aestheticism ("It's clear that mediaeval art"). Angela and Saphir are favourably impressed and accept Calverly and Murgatroyd in matrimony; Dunstable graciously bows out ("If Saphir I choose to marry"). Bunthorne threatens Grosvenor with a dire curse unless he undertakes to become perfectly commonplace. Intimidated, and also pleased at the excuse to escape the celebrity caused by his "fatal beauty", Grosvenor agrees ("When I go out of door"). This plot backfires, however, when Grosvenor reappears as an ordinary man; the ladies follow him into ordinariness, becoming "matter-of-fact young girls." Patience realises that Grosvenor has lost his perfection, and so it will no longer be selfish for her to marry him, which she undertakes to do without delay. The ladies, following suit, return to their old fiancés among the Dragoons. In the spirit of fairness, Dunstable chooses the "plain" Lady Jane as his bride for her very lack of appeal. Bunthorne is left with the "vegetable love" that he had (falsely) claimed to desire. Thus, "Nobody sBunthorne's bride."

Musical numbers

*Overture (includes "Turn, oh turn, in this direction", "So go to him and say to him", and "Oh list while we a love confess"). The Overture was prepared by

Eugen d'Albert Eugen (originally Eugène) Francis Charles d'Albert (10 April 1864 – 3 March 1932) was a Scottish-born pianist and composer. Educated in Britain, d'Albert showed early musical talent and, at the age of seventeen, he won a scholarship to stud ...

, who was then a pupil of Sullivan's, based on Sullivan's sketch. ;Act I Patience Bunthorne and Jane

*1. "Twenty love-sick maidens we" (Angela, Ella and Chorus of Maidens) *2. "Still brooding on their mad infatuation" (Patience, Saphir, Angela, and Chorus) *2a. "I cannot tell what this love may be" (Patience and Chorus) *2b. "Twenty love-sick maidens we" (Chorus of Maidens – Exit) *3. "The soldiers of our Queen" (Chorus of Dragoons) *3a. "If you want a receipt for that popular mystery" (Colonel and Chorus)¹ *4. "In a doleful train two and two we walk" (Angela, Ella, Saphir, Bunthorne, and Chorus of Maidens and Dragoons) *4a. "Twenty love-sick maidens we" (Chorus of Maidens – Exit) *5. "When I first put this uniform on" (Colonel and Chorus of Dragoons) *6. "Am I alone and unobserved?" (Bunthorne) *7. "Long years ago, fourteen maybe" (Patience and Angela) *8. "Prithee, pretty maiden" (Patience and Grosvenor) *8a. "Though to marry you would very selfish be" (Patience and Grosvenor) *9. "Let the merry cymbals sound" (Ensemble) ¹ This was originally followed by a song for the Duke, "Though men of rank may useless seem." The orchestration survives in Sullivan's autograph score, but without a vocal line. There have been several attempts at a reconstruction, including one by

David Russell Hulme David Russell Hulme (born 19 June 1951) is a Welsh conductor and musicologist. He is an Emeritus Reader and the former Director of Music at Aberystwyth University and is known for his research and publications on the music of Arthur Sullivan, t ...

that was included on the 1994 new D'Oyly Carte Opera Company recording. Lady Jane and Bunthorne

;Act II *10. "On such eyes as maidens cherish" (Chorus of Maidens) *11. "Sad is that woman's lot" (Jane) *12. "Turn, oh turn, in this direction" (Chorus of Maidens) *13. "A magnet hung in a hardware shop" (Grosvenor and Chorus of Maidens) *14. "Love is a plaintive song" (Patience) *15. "So go to him, and say to him" (Jane and Bunthorne) *16. "It's clear that mediaeval art" (Duke, Major, and Colonel) *17. "If Saphir I choose to marry" (Angela, Saphir, Duke, Major, and Colonel) *18. "When I go out of door" (Bunthorne and Grosvenor) *19. "I'm a Waterloo House young man" (Grosvenor and Chorus of Maidens) *20. "After much debate internal" (Ensemble) ''Note on topical references:'' Songs and dialogue in ''Patience'' contain many topical references to persons and events of public interest in 1881. In particular, the Colonel's song, Act I, item 3a above, is almost entirely composed of such references. The Wikisource text of the opera contains links explaining these references.

Production history

The original run of ''Patience'' in London, split across two theatres, was the second longest of the Gilbert and Sullivan series, eclipsed only by ''

The Mikado ''The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, their ninth of fourteen Gilbert and Sullivan, operatic collaborations. It opened on 14 March 1885, in London, whe ...

''. The original sets were designed by John O'Connor.Rollins and Witts, Appendix, p. VII Its first London revival was in 1900, making it the last of the revivals for which all three partners (Gilbert, Sullivan, and D'Oyly Carte) were alive. At that time, Gilbert admitted some doubts as to whether the æsthetic subject would still be appreciated, years after the fad had died out. Gilbert wrote to Sullivan after the premiere of this revival (which the composer was too ill to attend), "The old opera woke up splendidly." In the British provinces, ''Patience'' played – either by itself, or in repertory – continuously from summer 1881 to 1885, then again in 1888. It rejoined the touring repertory in 1892 and was included in every season until 1955–56. New costumes were designed in 1907 by Percy Anderson, in 1918 by

Hugo Rumbold Hugo Cecil Levinge Rumbold (7 February 1884 – 19 November 1932) was an English designer of theatrical scenery and costumes. Among those who commissioned designs from him were Sir Herbert Tree, Sir Thomas Beecham, Arthur Bourchier and Rupert D' ...

and in 1928 by

George Sheringham George Sheringham (13 November 1884 – 11 November 1937) was a British painter and theatre designer. One of the first recipients of the Royal Designers for Industry distinction in 1937, he is remembered for his work for the D’Oyly Carte Opera ...

, who also designed a new set that year. New designs by

Peter Goffin Peter Goffin F.R.S.A. (28 February 1906 - 22 March 1974), was an English set and costume designer and stage manager, known for his work with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company. Biography Goffin was born in Plymouth, England, the son of Willam Earl Go ...

debuted in 1957. The opera returned to its regular place in the repertory, apart from a break in 1962–63. Late in the company's history, it toured a reduced set of operas to reduce costs. ''Patience'' had its final D'Oyly Carte performances in April 1979 and was left out of the company's last three seasons of touring. In America, Richard D'Oyly Carte mounted a production at the

Standard Theatre Standard Theatre or Standard Theater may refer to: ;in Australia *Royal Standard Theatre, in Sydney, known as "Standard Theatre", since demolished ;in Canada; * Standard Theatre (Toronto, Ontario) ;in the United States *Standard Theatre, early n ...

in September 1881, six months after the London premiere. One of the "pirated" American productions of ''Patience'' starred the young

Lillian Russell Lillian Russell (born Helen Louise Leonard; December 4, 1860 or 1861 – June 6, 1922), was an American actress and singer. She became one of the most famous actresses and singers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, known for her beauty ...

. In Australia, the opera's first authorised performance was on 26 November 1881 at the Theatre Royal,

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, produced by J. C. Williamson. ''Patience'' entered the repertory of the

English National Opera English National Opera (ENO) is an opera company based in London, resident at the London Coliseum in St Martin's Lane. It is one of the two principal opera companies in London, along with The Royal Opera. ENO's productions are sung in English ...

in 1969, in an acclaimed production with

Derek Hammond-Stroud Derek Hammond-Stroud (10 January 192614 May 2012) was an English baritone opera singer best known for his performances of German lieder and his international performances in opera, particularly the roles of Alberich in Richard Wagner, Wagner's '' ...

as Bunthorne. The production was later mounted in Australia and was preserved on video as part of the Brent Walker series. In 1984, ENO also took the production on tour to the Metropolitan Opera House, in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. The following table shows the history of the D'Oyly Carte productions in Gilbert's lifetime:

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:

Recordings

Of the recordings of this opera, the 1961 D'Oyly Carte Opera Company recording (with complete dialogue) has been the best received. Two videos, Brent Walker (1982) and Australian Opera (1995), are both based on the respected

production first seen in the 1970s. A D'Oyly Carte production was broadcast on

BBC2 BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...

television on 27 December 1965, but the recording is believed lost. Several professional productions have been recorded on video by the

International Gilbert and Sullivan Festival The International Gilbert and Sullivan Festival was founded in 1994 by Ian Smith and his son Neil and is held every summer in England. The two- or three-week Festival of Gilbert and Sullivan opera performances and fringe events attracts thousands ...

since 2000. ;Selected recordings *1930 D'Oyly Carte – Conductor:

Malcolm Sargent Sir Harold Malcolm Watts Sargent (29 April 1895 – 3 October 1967) was an English conductor, organist and composer widely regarded as Britain's leading conductor of choral works. The musical ensembles with which he was associated include ...

*1951 D'Oyly Carte – Conductor:

Isidore Godfrey Isidore Godfrey OBE (27 September 1900 – 12 September 1977), born Israel Gotfryd, was musical director of the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company for 39 years, from 1929 to 1968. He conducted most of the company's performances during that period, exce ...

*1961 D'Oyly Carte (with dialogue) – New Symphony Orchestra of London; Conductor: Isidore Godfrey *1962 Sargent/Glyndebourne –

Pro Arte Orchestra The Pro Arte Orchestra was a British symphony orchestra founded in 1955.Potts, Joseph E.“Orchestral Profile – The Pro Arte Orchestra” ''The Gramophone'', October 1959, p. 163 (p. 33 in online version) Background The Pro Arte Orchestra was fou ...

, Glyndebourne Festival Chorus; Conductor: Sir Malcolm Sargent *1982 Brent Walker Productions (video) – Ambrosian Opera Chorus, London Symphony Orchestra; Conductor:

Alexander Faris Samuel Alexander "Sandy" Faris (11 June 1921 – 28 September 2015) was a Northern Irish composer, conductor and writer, known for his television theme tunes, including the theme music for the 1970s TV series '' Upstairs, Downstairs''. He compos ...

; Stage Director: John Cox *1994 New D'Oyly Carte – Conductor: John Owen Edwards *1995 Australian Opera (video) – Conductor: David Stanhope; Stage Director: John Cox

Oscar Brand Oscar Brand (February 7, 1920 – September 30, 2016) was a Canadian-born American folk singer-songwriter, radio host, and author. In his career, spanning 70 years, he composed at least 300 songs and released nearly 100 albums, among them Can ...

and

Joni Mitchell Roberta Joan "Joni" Mitchell ( Anderson; born November 7, 1943) is a Canadian-American musician, producer, and painter. Among the most influential singer-songwriters to emerge from the 1960s folk music circuit, Mitchell became known for her sta ...

recorded "Prithee Pretty Maiden" for the Canadian folk music TV program ''

Let's Sing Out ''Let's Sing Out'' was a Canadian music television series which aired on CTV from 1963 to 1966, then on CBC Television until 1968. Premise This series, patterned after the American ''Hootenanny'' show, featured contemporary folk music hosted by ...

'', broadcast by

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV) is a Canadian English-language broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster. The network began operations on September 6, 1952. Its French-l ...

in 1966."Prithee, Pretty Maiden"
JoniMitchell.com, retrieved 21 June 2015

Notes

References

Jessie Bond as Lady Angela in Patience 1881

* * * * * * * * * * * * * Also, five supplements, privately printed. *

External links

''Patience'' at The Gilbert & Sullivan ArchiveComplete downloadable vocal score
* ttps://gsarchive.net/patience/programmes/250perf/pc250.html Souvenir Programme marking the 250th performance of ''Patience''in 1881
Biographies of the people listed in the historical casting chart
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Patience (Opera) Operas by Gilbert and Sullivan English-language operas English comic operas Operas 1881 operas Operas set in England