''The Carp'' is a one-act

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 ...

(styled "a whimsicality") with a libretto by Frank Desprez and music by

Alfred Cellier Alfred Cellier (1 December 184428 December 1891) was an English composer, orchestrator and conductor. In addition to conducting and music directing the original productions of several of the most famous Gilbert and Sullivan works and writing t ...

. It was first produced at the

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 P ...

from 13 February 1886 to 19 January 1887, as a companion piece to ''

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 ...

''. It was then revived as companion to ''

Ruddigore ''Ruddigore; or, The Witch's Curse'', originally called ''Ruddygore'', is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It is one of the Savoy Operas and the tenth of fourteen comic operas written tog ...

'' from 21 February 1887 to 5 November 1887. The piece also toured throughout 1888. No printed libretto or vocal score is found in British Library. A copy of the libretto is in the Lord Chamberlain's collection. As the score is lost, modern amateur productions have played the piece with original music. One such score, composed by

Quade Winter Edward Quade Winter (April 8, 1951 – October 8, 2019) was an American composer, musical restorer and translator, specializing in the light operas of Victor Herbert. He began his career as a performer, singing opera for over two decades. Early ye ...

, was originally requested in 1998 by the Gilbert and Sullivan Archive for their Web Opera series, and later orchestrated for production by the

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in 1999. It was revived in 2011 by Concert Operetta Theater of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The fashion in the late

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardia ...

was to present long evenings in the theatre, and so producer

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 ...

preceded his

Savoy opera 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 ...

s with curtain raisers such as ''The Carp''.

W. J. MacQueen-Pope Walter James MacQueen-Pope (11 April 1888 – 27 June 1960), known familiarly as Popie, was an English theatre historian and publicist. From a theatrical family which could be traced back to contemporaries of Shakespeare, he was in management for ...

commented, concerning such curtain raisers: :This was a one-act play, seen only by the early comers. It would play to empty boxes, half-empty upper circle, to a gradually filling stalls and dress circle, but to an attentive, grateful and appreciative pit and gallery. Often these plays were little gems. They deserved much better treatment than they got, but those who saw them delighted in them. ...

hey Hey or Hey! may refer to: Music * Hey (band), a Polish rock band Albums * ''Hey'' (Andreas Bourani album) or the title song (see below), 2014 * ''Hey!'' (Julio Iglesias album) or the title song, 1980 * ''Hey!'' (Jullie album) or the title s ...

served to give young actors and actresses a chance to win their spurs ... the stalls and the boxes lost much by missing the curtain-raiser, but to them dinner was more important.MacQueen-Pope, Walter James. ''Carriages at Eleven'' (1947), London: Robert Hale and Co., p. 23

Synopsis

In a charming rural 17th century setting, near a stream and rustic bridge, Piscator arrives, looking forward to a quiet day's fishing. He is interrupted by Amandus, who wants to commit suicide by drowning himself in the river. Piscator, upset, tells Amandus that he has, throughout his life, tried to catch a particular carp at this place. If Amandus throws himself in, he will chase away the carp and spoil a lifetime of work. Amandus, in turn, tells Piscator of his hopeless love affair. He promises to wait until after 6 PM, when Piscator must return home, before drowning himself. Amanda arrives, and she wants to commit suicide in the river, also over a hopeless love affair. Piscator tells her she must wait, and then goes up the bank, where he has seen the carp nibble at his line. Amanda tells Amandus about her plan to throw herself into the river, but Amandus notes that he has already claimed the pool for that purpose. Amandus's love is Clorinda, Amanda's dearest friend. Amanda then gives Amandus information that casts Clorinda in a bad light. She also shows Amandus that Clorinda has given a very unflattering profile of Amandus in a letter that Clorinda wrote to Amanda. As the two continue to converse, Amanda finds out that her love, Corydon, is Amandus's best friend. Amandus reveals, however, that Corydon had paid off a gambling debt to Amandus by giving him Amanda's ring. He also relates some rather unflattering things that Corydon had told him about Amanda. Soon, the two are no longer enamoured of their former loves and are now in love with each other. By the time Piscator returns, neither of them wishes to commit suicide any more. The-carp-cartoon

Musical numbers

*No. 1 – The Fisherman, at the Break of Day *No. 2 – I Loved Her! *No. 3 – Why does azure deck the sky? *No. 4 – It's really very hard *No. 5 – My heart is doubly broken! – Mem'ries *No. 6 – Finale – Mem'ries

Cast information

The original cast was: *Amandus (

tenor A tenor is a type of classical male singing 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 low extreme for tenors is wide ...

) – Charles Hildesley *Amanda ( soprano) – Josephine Findlay *Piscator ( bass) – Eric Lewis At the end of July 1886, Amandus was taken over by Charles Wilbraham. In September 1896, Rose Hervey took over the role of Amanda and sometimes shared the part with Miss Lindsay. After ''The Mikado'' closed, J. M. Gordon took over the role of Piscator.

Notes

References

''The Carp'' at the Gilbert and Sullivan Archive
curtain raisers]

External links

Links to libretto, synopsis, cast list and other information
* ttps://www.gsarchive.net/companions/gas2.html Article on Savoy curtain raisers {{DEFAULTSORT:Carp, The English-language operas English comic operas Operas 1886 operas Operas by Alfred Cellier Libretti by Frank Desprez