Backdrops for Opera Anywhere Regional Tour 

The Pirates of Penzance is a lively comic opera bursting with wit, romance and gloriously absurd twists. As a child, Frederic was mistakenly apprenticed to a band of soft-hearted pirates after his nursemaid misheard instructions that he should be apprenticed to a pilot. Raised at sea, Frederic grows up determined to live an honest and respectable life.

On the day he believes his apprenticeship ends, Frederic falls in love with Mabel, the daughter of the eccentric Major-General Stanley. However, his plans are thrown into chaos when he discovers a technicality: because he was born on 29 February, his contract only expires on his “birthday”, meaning he must return to the pirates. Torn between love and duty, Frederic faces bungling policemen, loyal pirates and a whirlwind of comic misunderstandings before the story races towards a joyful, topsy-turvy conclusion.

With sparkling music, sharp humour and unforgettable characters, The Pirates of Penzance is a feel-good classic that delights audiences of all ages.

Interesting Fact: The opera premiered in December 1879 in New York with Sullivan conducting, but there had been a single performance prior to this in Paignton, UK to secure the British copyright. After a successful three-month run in New York, it subsequently ran for 363 performances at the Opera Comique in London. In a letter from Sullivan to his mother, he wrote, “I think it will be a great success, for it is exquisitely funny, and the music is strikingly tuneful and catching.” And indeed it is!