The Mikado

by W.S. Gilbert

A lighthearted burlesque of Victorian English culture and the vagaries of love, The Mikado offers an ideal matching of William Schwenck Gilbert's elegant comedic gifts with Arthur Sullivan's agile and refined musicianship. The tale unfolds amid a fanciful version of Japanese society, in which a wandering minstrel has the misfortune to fall in love with the beautiful ward of the Lord High Executioner of Titipu.
The sparkling lyrics and witty dialogue of this comic masterpiece are as much a delight to read as they are to hear with musical accompaniment. The complete libretto is reprinted in this edition from the standard performance text of The Mikado, complete with nine charming illustrations drawn by W. S. Gilbert himself.

Genres: Plays, Drama, Humor, Music, Classics, Fiction, Japan

64 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 1885

About the author

British playwright and lyricist Sir William Schwenck Gilbert wrote a series of comic operas, including Her Majesty's Ship Pinafore (1878) and The Pirates of Penzance (1879), with composer Sir Arthur Sullivan. This English dramatist, librettist, poet, and illustrator in collaboration with this composer produced fourteen comic operas, which include The Mikado , one of the most frequently performed works in the history of musical theatre. Opera companies, repertory companies, schools and community theatre groups throughout and beyond the English-speaking world continue to perform regularly these operas as well as most of their other Savoy operas. From these works, lines, such as "short, sharp shock", "What, never? Well, hardly ever!", and "Let the punishment fit the crime," form common phrases of the English language.

Gilbert also wrote the Bab Ballads , an extensive collection of light verse, which his own comical drawings accompany.

His creative output included more than 75 plays and libretti, numerous stories, poems, lyrics and various other comic and serious pieces. His plays and realistic style of stage direction inspired other dramatists, including Oscar Wilde and George Bernard Shaw. According to The Cambridge History of English and American Literature , the "lyrical facility" of Gilbert "and his mastery of metre raised the poetical quality of comic opera to a position that it had never reached before and has not reached since."

Reviews

[Bettie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bettie's Books

[Carolyn Page · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite possibly my favorite G.&S. Operetta--the opportunities for comic staging are practically limitless. The "little list" piece can be endlessly improved upon. Don't play it straight guys--ham it up!

[Amrendra · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Mikado is a comic operatic drama written way back in 1885. It is a satire on the late 19th century British institutions, society and politics. By setting the drama in exotic Japan, the author could soften the impact of his criticism of the British ways and laws.

The musical quality of the play has made it one of the most frequently performed works in the history of musical theatre.

Braid the raven hair - Weave the supple tress
Deck the maiden fair, In her loveliness
Paint the pretty face, Dye the coral lip
Emphasize the grace, Of her ladyship!
Art and nature, thus allied, Go to make a pretty bride.

[Ingrid · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting. I'd love to see it live.

[Claire Binkley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Now, the introduction made clear my awareness that this is not actually 19th-century Japan, but a story about what the 19th-century Britons, such as our author of consideration today, William Schwenck Gilbert, considered it probably might be like over there.

As such, it is more of a burlesque depicting what this author knew. The introduction says he lived 1836-1911.

So, I liked this story since it is from two foreign cultures I have studied at length. (ALSO, everything that happened in the Industrial Revolution happened during this same time period so I'm thinking, this is a period piece.)

His language is endearing.

[Greg Kerestan · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a pity the somewhat offensive racial stereotypes used ironically in "The Mikado" have made it increasingly difficult to produce, because as the "Big Three" go, The Mikado is the wackiest by far. With mediocre musicians, officious and gleefully corrupt bureaucrats, beautiful but airheaded maidens, topsy-turvy logic and the usual half-hearted romantic resolutions, and a heavier load of mid-story plot twists than usual, "The Mikado" clips along, with many of the most famous songs in the Gilbert and Sullivan canon.

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The Mikado" is the story of the son of the Japanese emperor (or Mikado) who returns to his native village after a year spent fleeing from the elderly Katisha, a woman in his father's court who loves him. He comes back to pursue his beloved Yum-Yum, but is is initially forbidden to marry her by her guardian Ko-Ko. Plot development in the play is propelled by the revelation of legal complications previously unknown. The play essentially follows Nanki-Poo's quest to marry Yum-Yum by surmounting a number of legal obstacles and catch 22s. A decree that makes flirting a capital punishment is circumvented by villagers by promoting the tailor Ko-Ko to the position of Lord High Executioner. Guilty of flirting, he can't hang himself (that would be "awkward"!). The lovelorn Nanki-Poo is on the verge of suicide after he learns that he can't marry Ko-Ko; at the same time the Mikado announces that, if someone isn't executed promptly, Titibu will be demoted to the rank of a village; Ko-Ko devises a plan: he agrees to let Nanki-Poo marry Yum-Yum for a month if he kills himself afterward, a plan which the young heir-posing-as-a-minstrel agrees to. So that's that, but then we discover another law: if a husband commits suicide, his wife must be killed. Yum-Yum protests. Ko-Ko devises another plan: they agree to draft a false affadavit claiming that Nanki-Poo killed himself. When the Mikado arrives in Titibu searching for his son, the villagers think he is checking to make sure they have executed someone and hand him the affidavit. Katisha and the Mikado realize that it's Nanki-Poo who's been killed; they threaten to kill Ko-Ko as a punishment. The only way Ko-Ko can be saved is if Nanki-Poo reveals that he is alive, which he is too frightened to do with Katisha there, so Nanki-Poo strikes a deal. Nanki-Poo tells Ko-Ko that if he marries Katisha, he will reveal his identity to the court, thereby saving Ko-Ko's life. Ko-Ko pretends to love Katisha, and the two get married, after which Nanki-Poo reveals his identity and he and Yum-Yum marry for good. A hilarious satire of British bureaucracy and prudery.

[Amy Meyers · Rating 4 out of 5]

And if someday it should happen that a victim must be found,
I’ve got a little list. I’ve got a little list.
Of society offenders who might well be underground, I’ve got a little list, yes, I’ve got a little list.

Gilbert is so funny. This opera hilariously pokes fun at the government—the grand Pooh-bah who is any job of the government he claims and the emperor requiring the grand executioner to make some execution. It’s fun to see how people have changed the “little list” song to fit their country’s current events through the years. It’s nice to laugh at how ridiculous humans can be.

And of course Sullivan—what a musician. He can do ballads, arias, recitatives, choruses, etc., all masterfully portraying Gilbert’s lyrics. Who is more to be praised for the success of these operas? I’m sure it’s not an easy choice to just pick Gilbert as the answer; surely he wouldn’t have been a success without Sullivan.

We read the complete annotated opera in the brick of a book edited by Ian Bradley, and we read all the annotations too, and listened to each song after reading the words so we could know what they were really saying. It will be a wonderful family memory.

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

In today's world this operetta is rather politically incorrect and always probably deliberately quite naughty with use of certain words for the names of the characters and places. I, however, really enjoyed it and reading the libretto and then watching a production of it, it was cool to see where some songs that I had known as a child were actually from (Tit Willow and To Sit in Solemn Silence).

[Susan Molloy · Rating 5 out of 5]

🖊 This Savoy Opera is great fun, both in the opera form and movie comedy version. A Savoy Opera is the precursor to the modern movie musicals begun in the late 1920s. I enjoyed this.

📕Published — 1885.
⬛️ Saw the stage play version in 2023.
🎥 1960 The Bell Telephone Hour television movie version with Groucho Marx.
༻ ༺ ༅ ✬ ༅ ༻ ༺ ༅ ✬ ༅ ༻༺ ༅ ✬ ༅ ༻ ༺

[Lorri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Told with witty dialogue and lyrics, and frivolous music and dance, characters humorously disguise and deceive themselves and others in order to outwit unjust laws, pacify authorities, preserve life, marry for love, and attain high status and rewards.

[Stacey Rice · Rating 4 out of 5]

A funny play about Victorian English culture, disguise in Japanese fashion.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is quite funny. I found myself singing rather than reading the chorus portions.

[Spiegel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amusing, even though it's meant to be performed, not read.

[Ourania · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to this operetta narrated by David Wales (Librivox). A funny satire of English politics and culture. I would love to see it live!

[Liel Asulin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Playful, charming little play. At times laugh-out-loud funny.

[Gwendolyn Simonalle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Honestly, I know it's a classic and all, but not a fan...

[Sianna · Rating 4 out of 5]

this was a great lighthearted short play i enjoyed it and would recommend it if you like plays

[grantlovesbooks · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not much fun to read. It's quite silly, just the script.
It might be something fun to watch, with the music.
A slightly amusing relic of it's time.

[cia sunshine ☭ · Rating 1 out of 5]

This seems very racist

[bella issa · Rating 2 out of 5]

well. the story would certainly be unequivocally funny if it wasn’t set in fake japan despite being a satire of english politics

[Konstantin R. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Funny and a brilliant tale set in Shogun Japan. With witty and dramatic characters, there is nothing lacking in this story of love and power. Although not all the songs sustain a similar level of excellence, the music is still to be very much admired.

[T.J. Burns · Rating 5 out of 5]

FREE AUDIOPLAY:
https://librivox.org/the-mikado-by-w-...

[Leslie · Rating 4 out of 5]

4½ stars. Read as part of The Complete Plays of Gilbert and Sullivan on my Kindle while I watched & listened to it on video.

As I said in my reviews of H.M.S. Pinafore and The Pirates of Penzance, I would never recommend reading these without watching or at least listening to the performance, as the songs are at the heart of Gilbert and Sullivan's operas. However, I often find it hard to tell what the words are so watching while having the text in front of me was a great help (especially in those cross-singing duets!).

[Ana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Following in the tradition of placing plays in faraway locations in order to better criticize Victorian society, this time around W.S. Gilbert sets the play in Japan. Now if you are looking for historical accuracy, then you've got the wrong play. This operatic act puts a heavy emphasis on comedy and wordplay, while managing to create a satire on the romantic entanglements of the upper class and criticizing social norms and institutions.

P.S: See this live, it's great!

[Michael Christopher · Rating 3 out of 5]

Witty without resorting to sarcasm very often, skewers high English society while pretending to be set in Japan. Unfortunately, the jokes don't translate as well to people who aren't immersed in British culture.

[Elisabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

"I'm really very sorry for you all, but it's an unjust world, and virtue is triumphant only in theatrical performances."

3.5 stars. Plenty of classically funny and clever bits, but it's a little long-winded in places.

[Nika · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was in this show with The Victorian Lyric Opera co.

[Ian]

Needs the music.... and a little salt

[Madeleine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read the part of the prince in this one