Trial by Jury

Trial by Jury is one-act operetta by Gilbert and Sullivan. It is the second of their fourteen collaborations and their earliest work still performed today. It opened at the Royalty Theatre in London on 25 March 1875 with Jacques Offenbach's La Périchole and the farce, Cryptoconchoid Syphonostomata.

Trial by Jury
Original programme
Written by	W. S. Gilbert (words) Arthur Sullivan (music)
Characters	Angelina, the Plaintiff Edwin, the Defendant Learned Judge
Date of premiere	25 March 1875
Place of premiere	Royalty Theatre London, England
Original language	English
Subject	Breach of promise
Genre	Operetta
Setting	Court of the Exchequer, ca. 1875

Trial by Jury moved about to several different theatres. It was performed about 300 times in its first two years. It was a popular and a critical success. It is only about 45 minutes long, has only one act, and has no spoken words.

Trial is about a young man who is sued for jilting his bethrothed. The judge hearing the case decides to marry the young woman himself. Today, it is sometimes played with another Gilbert and Sullivan operetta such as H.M.S. Pinafore.

Trial By Jury Media

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  A scene from Trial by Jury as illustrated in the magazine Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News of 1 May 1875

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  Gilbert's original sketch of Trial by Jury, published in Fun in 1868

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  April 1875 programme for La Périchole and Trial by Jury. Sullivan and Gilbert are the cherubs.

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  Trial by Jury - So I fell in love with a rich attorney's elderly ugly daughter

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  The Usher advises the jury. Drawing by W. S. Gilbert

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  Sullivan's original thematic sketch of Trial by Jury

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  Fred Sullivan as The Learned Judge

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  Part of the vocal score of "A nice dilemma"

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  Rutland Barrington as the Learned Judge

References

• Bradley, Ian. 2001. The Complete Annotated Gilbert and Sullivan. Oxford University Press. pp. 3-5.