10 things you didn't know about The Mikado
10 things you didn't know about The Mikado
Our five-star production of Gilbert and Sullivan's comedy classic The Mikado has been charming audiences and critics alike on its UK tour. Want to know more about it? Here are 10 things you might not know about The Mikado...
Our five-star production of Gilbert and Sullivan's comedy classic The Mikado has been charming audiences and critics alike on its UK tour. Want to know more about it? Here are 10 things you might not know about The Mikado...
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It almost didn't happen, as G&S had fallen out...
Although it's now their most popular piece, The Mikado very nearly didn't happen as Gilbert and Sullivan had fallen out prior to its writing. In 1884 Sir Arthur Sullivan was keen to bring the pair's lucrative comic opera partnership to an end in order to pursue 'serious' music. Luckily when Gilbert hit upon the idea for The Mikado, Sullivan was persuaded that they should work together again. Thank goodness they settled their differences!
When it opened, it was a smash hit!
Despite its inauspicious beginnings, The Mikado was immediately a huge hit with the public. After opening, it ran at the Savoy Theatre in London for a whopping 672 performances, and by the end of the year some 150 companies were performing it across Europe and the USA. In fact, it's estimated that it has been in constant production for the past 131 years. Pretty impressive!
The characters' names are a bit... unusual
As Gilbert was setting out to satirise the British, the names in the show are not authentic Japanese names, in fact many of them are based on nonsense nursery speak. The beautiful heroine is called Yum-Yum, advisors are Pooh-Bah and Pish-Tush, and the hero's name, Nanki-Poo, is Victorian baby-talk for handkerchief!
Ko-Ko's been played by plenty of famous faces
Ko-Ko, the hilarious Lord High Executioner at the heart of the story, has been played by comedy stars such as Eric Idle, Dudley Moore, Bill Oddie and even Groucho Marx! But we don't think any of them are a patch on our Ko-Ko, G&S legend Richard Suart...
And Ko-Ko's 'little list' changes every single night...
It's become a theatrical tradition for Ko-Ko's famous 'little list' aria to change at every performance. Listen out for references to modern politicians, pop stars, and the big news stories of the day. Our very own Ko-Ko, Richard Suart, has even published a book on the subject!
Oh, and there's a Kate Bush connection
Did you know that the designer of our new Mikado, Dick Bird, also designed Kate Bush’s 'Before the Dawn' tour? Dick's designs in the show have been hailed by the critics as 'spectacular', 'dazzling' and 'gorgeous', although reports that the production also features 'A Man With The Child In His Eyes' and cast members 'Running Up That Hill' are as yet unconfirmed...