In the Sulks

". The piece also toured frequently from 1879 to 1882.

There is no printed libretto or vocal score. A copy of the libretto is in the Lord Chamberlain's collection. [Add. MS. 53231 Play no. 6 in Jan-Feb 1880.]

The fashion in the late Victorian era was to present long evenings in the theatre, and so producer Richard D'Oyly Carte preceded the savoy operas with curtain raisers. [Lee Bernard. [http://www.sheffieldtelegraph.co.uk/classical/Swashbuckling-Savoy-curtainraiser-.4348391.jp "Swash-buckling Savoy curtain-raiser",] "Sheffield Telegraph", 1 August 2008]

ynopsis

After an argument, Mr. Liverby is sulking and refusing to speak to his wife. Mrs. Liverby decides to make him jealous and writes a love letter to herself, allegedly from a young man. Mr. Liverby finds a love letter, but when he learns it was a joke he forgives her. However, the letter turns out not to be the one Mrs. Liverby had written, but another one written by a young man who has been hanging around the house for days trying to get an opportunity to speak to her. She is terrified, but her husband refuses to listen, thinking that this is another joke to try to make him lose his temper again, and he is determined to stay in a good humour. The young man eventually turns out to be Mr. Liverby's nephew who had been let go by Liverby's firm, and who has merely been trying to persuade Mrs. Liverby to put in a good word for him. Mr. Liverby agrees to reinstate his nephew, and all ends happily.

Musical numbers

*No. 1 - Song - Georgina
*No. 2 - Duet - Liverby and Georgina
*No. 3 - Trio - Georgina, Liverby and Joseph
*No. 4 - Finale

Cast information

The original cast was:

*Mr. James Liverby, "a man of business". George Temple
*Mrs. Georgina Liverby, "his wife". Lilian La Rue
*Joseph, "a boy in buttons". Frank Thornton
*one "muta persona". Ellen Shirley

When the "Pirates" company returned from New York in 1881, Julia Gwynne replaced La Rue as Kate (in "Pirates") and Mrs. Liverby. [ [http://math.boisestate.edu/gas/whowaswho/G/GwynneJulia.htm Gwynne at the Whowaswho website] ] When George Temple left at the end of the run of "Pirates", W. H. Seymour took over the role of Mr. Liverby.

Notes

References

* [http://math.boisestate.edu/gas/companions/in_the_sulks/index.html "In the Sulks" at the Gilbert and Sullivan Archive]
* [http://math.boisestate.edu/gas/companions/index.html List of Savoy opera curtain raisers]

External links

* [http://www.halhkmusic.com/inthesulks.html Song list and link to libretto]
* [http://math.boisestate.edu/gas/companions/gas2.html Article on Savoy curtain raisers]