It was the fifth Gilbert & Sullivan comic opera mounted by ACT — one of the most popular in the string of G&S hits which have been performed all over the world for more than a century. Typically there is a ridiculously funny plot, involving a mix-up of infants, spouses paired-up by a game of blind-man’s bluff, a pair of could-be kings with the potential of three queens, a topsy-turvy Mediterranean court where the royals serve the servants, an impoverished duke who incorporates himself and markets his social position for lucrative profit, a Grand Inquisitor who stole the Prince and delights in a little bit of gentle torture, a nursemaid-turned brigand who springs the surprise ending about who is really king.  Worked into this staging was the fun of spoofing Canadian and Island politics.

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The plot aside, the music is glorious: comic ditties, haunting love ballads, soaring choruses. The production also featured two exotic sets — the canals and bridges of Venice, and the lavish court of the island kingdom of Barataria … two remarkable sailing vessels gliding across the stage … a riot of bright colour in the costumes of gondoliers, peasant maidens and Spanish aristocrats … and four fantastic dance numbers.

  The show involved — cast, orchestra, crew and production — a total of 91 people!