A 2nd Trombone! - The music of The Mikado

The Schirmer edition of
score 

Rehearsals officially started on April 6th with two weeks of music rehearsals. Before we begin staging the show, our music director works with the leads and chorus to ensure both quality of the singing as well as to gain an understanding of musical phrasing. In an operetta, a lot of character personality can be conveyed through the way a song is sung and it is important that our cast understand how to portray that personality. Much of the personality is found in the score itself, through dynamics and articulations (a fancy word for the markings that tell you how to sing or play a part; for example whether to slur two notes together or sing them separately). In addition to the score, some of the personality will come from director's suggestions or an actor's personal interpretation of their character. Towards the end of the first two weeks the cast will have worked through all the music in the show and will be fully prepared to begin staging the actual scenes that you see on the stage.

I thought it might make an interesting point to talk about the different versions of the score as well as some interesting facts about one of the most famous songs in the show. As you might expect of a show like The Mikado, there are multiple versions of the score and one of the most interesting is the "First Night Edition" that still survives in some places. It is not very often performed and there are some major differences between that and the Schirmer score we will be using. Most notably, is the fact that Yum-Yum's aria "The sun whose rays" was originally in Act 1 of the show. However, the original Yum-Yum complained that she would not be able to do the song justice so shortly after "Three little maids" and "So please you sir" and so it was moved to Act 2 just after the opening chorus. In addition, some minor changes were made including; removing a verse from "Were you not to Ko-Ko plighted" and "So please you sir" was originally a quintet with Yum-Yum, Pitti-Sing, Peep-Bo, Pooh-Bah, and Pish-Tush, however Pish-Tush has left the stage earlier with the chorus and with no convenient way to bring him back, the part is often cut from productions. In addition the "Little List" song was originally later in Act 1 then where it lies now and had a chorus refrain, the music for which was left out of the autograph score making it very difficult to add back into the show.

Jordan Eldgredge as Ko-Ko

Speaking of the "Little List" song, this is a song that has an interesting role in the show. It is pure satire meant to poke fun at the culture and society of Gilbert and Sullivan's time. Because of it's role in the show, this song is often rewritten to poke fun at more modern trends. We will be doing this very thing for our production of the show and I hope to be able to share our rewrite with you soon. In the meantime, I'll leave you with the lyrics from our 2010 production of The Mikado. As always you can keep in touch with us on Facebook, Twitter, and our website.

As some day it may 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,
And who never would be missed — who never would be missed!

There’s the pestilential nuisances who e-mail you with spam —
Like “bankers” from Nigeria whose goal it is to scam.
The loud-mouthed TV dietitians yelling that you’re fat —
They’ll send you some concoction that’ll slim you just like that!
The telephone solicitors who simply won’t desist —
They’d none of ’em be missed — they’d none of ’em be missed!
He’s got ’em on the list — he’s got ’em on the list;
And they’ll none of them be missed — they’ll none of them be missed.

There’s the operetta singer, and the others of his race,
The off-pitch soloist — I’ve got him on the list!
The people who smoke cigarettes and puff them in your face —
They never would be missed — they never would be missed!

The CEO who runs his enterprise into the ground,
But walks away with millions when the whole affair is found,
All fat cats working Wall Street and the bonuses they flout,
And the idiotic Senators who help to bail them out,
And that singular anomaly, the sub-prime mortgagist
I don’t think he’d be missed — I’m sure he’ll not be missed!
He’s got him on the list — he’s got him on the list;
And I don’t think he’ll be missed — I’m sure he’ll not be missed.

And the people who pollute TV with shows that they contrive,
The exhibitionist — I’ve got him on the list!
The people who cause accidents when texting while they drive,
They’d none of ’em be missed — I wish they’d all desist.

The talk show host who claims to be so balanced and so fair,
But never is objective when his show is on the air,
Montgomery Theater renovators canceling our shows —
Just how this place will look next year — well, heaven only knows!
And all the social Twitter Facebook MySpace Friendster-ists
I don’t think they’ll be missed — I’m sure they’ll not be missed!
You may put ’em on the list — you may put ’em on the list;
And they’ll none of them be missed — they’ll none of them be missed!