Premiere of Thespis, first Gilbert and Sullivan opera

Commission and Context. At the end of 1871, John Hollingshead, proprietor of London's Gaiety Theatre, commissioned Sullivan to work with Gilbert to create the burlesque-style comic opera Thespis. Gilbert's account describes the commission as a holiday piece for Christmas, Thespis, or The Gods Grown Old, staged at the Gaiety Theatre. Gilbert's most successful play to date, Pygmalion and Galatea, had opened on 9 December, only a few days before rehearsals for Thespis were to begin.

Premiere and Reception. Thespis premièred in London on 26 December 1871. The specific venue is contested; passages indicate the Gaiety Theatre, while legacy data suggests the Royalty Theatre. The opera's run was interrupted in February 1872 due to religious observances. Scholars note the work looks backward to French opéra bouffe, featuring a Gilbertian invasion plot where outsiders affect society.

Collaborators. Arthur Sullivan, an English composer, had previously achieved acclaim for his incidental music to The Tempest and comic opera Cox and Box. W. S. Gilbert, an English dramatist and librettist, was known for burlesques such as Robert the Devil. Their collaboration on Thespis marked the beginning of a partnership that produced fourteen comic operas.