The Mikado
“The Mikado”
Jenny Ayers
June 8, 2013
Music Appreciation
Summer 2013
Having never before attended an opera, and not sure what to expect, I found myself both entertained and pleasantly satisfied by the operatic comedy of “The Mikado”. The performance took place at Wallace Hall at Gadsden State Community College, George Wallace location. I attended the 7:30 performance on Saturday, June 8th. The performance lasted a little under three (3) hours, and I found myself laughing and pleased that I had chosen to attend. “The Mikado” was composed by the team of W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan, and was first performed in 1885. The setting was in a mythical Japanese town called “Titipu”. Using a different country and a mythical town allowed Gilbert, the writer, to make fun of British politics without the British government being aware. He used this method in several of his operas to hide the sarcasm aimed at the British government and his dislike of them. W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan are both of British decent. Gilbert’s early career began in law and in 1861 he began publishing comic ballads that he also illustrated. Sullivan had a musical background even at an early age, composing his first anthem at age eight (8). In 1870, Gilbert and Sullivan met and began working together. Sullivan would write the music and Gilbert would provide the lyrics. Together, they made an amazing team and an impact on the operatic world. In the performance of “The Mikado”, we are taken to the mythical town of Titipu where Mikado, the ruler of Japan has just given Ko-Ko, a cheap tailor, the title “Lord High Executioner”, and told him he must find someone to execute before his return to Titipu. The Mikado’s son, Nanki-poo, who disguised himself as a musician to avoid marrying Katisha, came to Titipu to find a girl he had fallen in love with at a band concert named Yum-Yum. Nanki-poo later learns that Yum-Yum is already promised to be Ko-Ko’s bride
Jenny Ayers
June 8, 2013
Music Appreciation
Summer 2013
Having never before attended an opera, and not sure what to expect, I found myself both entertained and pleasantly satisfied by the operatic comedy of “The Mikado”. The performance took place at Wallace Hall at Gadsden State Community College, George Wallace location. I attended the 7:30 performance on Saturday, June 8th. The performance lasted a little under three (3) hours, and I found myself laughing and pleased that I had chosen to attend. “The Mikado” was composed by the team of W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan, and was first performed in 1885. The setting was in a mythical Japanese town called “Titipu”. Using a different country and a mythical town allowed Gilbert, the writer, to make fun of British politics without the British government being aware. He used this method in several of his operas to hide the sarcasm aimed at the British government and his dislike of them. W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan are both of British decent. Gilbert’s early career began in law and in 1861 he began publishing comic ballads that he also illustrated. Sullivan had a musical background even at an early age, composing his first anthem at age eight (8). In 1870, Gilbert and Sullivan met and began working together. Sullivan would write the music and Gilbert would provide the lyrics. Together, they made an amazing team and an impact on the operatic world. In the performance of “The Mikado”, we are taken to the mythical town of Titipu where Mikado, the ruler of Japan has just given Ko-Ko, a cheap tailor, the title “Lord High Executioner”, and told him he must find someone to execute before his return to Titipu. The Mikado’s son, Nanki-poo, who disguised himself as a musician to avoid marrying Katisha, came to Titipu to find a girl he had fallen in love with at a band concert named Yum-Yum. Nanki-poo later learns that Yum-Yum is already promised to be Ko-Ko’s bride