Appreciation: Gondoliers

We caught a performance of Gilbert & Sullivan's Gondoliers at UC-Davis this afternoon. It was my first Gondoliers since, um, about April 1947, when I (aged 11) was hauled along, more or less unwillingly, to admire the annual class musical at Manchester (NH) High School Central. I certainly liked it better this time, although I think I can see why it is (on this side of the puddle, at least) one of the less popular G&S offerings. Granted that it offers a lot of the signature devices that make G&S so enduringly popular, still on the whole I'd say it's a bit more S than G, a reminder that Sullivan in his other life burdened us with stuff like Onward, Christian Soldiers! and The Lost Chord. Especially at the start: at least in this avatar, you lead off with about 20 minutes of uninterrupted singing--no banter--that leaves you pining for surtitles.

Two things I wouldn't have noticed in 1947:

One, how much it taps into, not only Commedia dell'Arte, but the whole grand tradition of comic schtick, straight back to Plautus and Terence. This isn't a criticism. Every text is a context, and something like G&S can be more fun if you recognize the element of parody and homage.

And two, how much it owes to "real"opera. I said at the break that it certainly offered echoes of Donizetti. Mrs. B said: you mean Rossini. Well, no actually, I meant Donizetti, but I can see her point. From Donizetti, there's the cheerful absurdity of Daughter of the Regiment or Elixir of Love. But reflecting Rossini, there are those marvellous tandem contraptions where the soprano is climbing Mount Everest while the orchestra swims the Mediterranean (or sometimes, the other way around). And the glorious ensembles--but the ensembles go all the way back to Mozart.

Fun fact: Gondoliers opened in 1889, the 12th G&S and their last big success. For comparison, Verdi premiered Otello in 1887 and Falstaff in 1893. For strength and staying power at the end of a long career, I'd say Verdi gets the prize.