Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1895-04-05
WRITING AN OPERA.
w. S. GILBERT TELLS HOW HE
WRITES COMIC LIBRETTO.
4 Work In Which the Poet and the
Hand - Mr.. {iilbcrt's LnbOriOus
Methods How He Gets His Ideas
for Popular Plots.
or ST. Jumcs Gazette


sidered the chief traits necessary t.
enable one to become a successful
playwright.
We'll" he replied thoughtfully
that opens up very large subject
They differ vastly. In my own line
should sum them up AZ follows: ii
the first place, the power OF catchin.
the public taste; then a thorough
knowledge of stagecraft and gift fo
stage management, the capacity to in
vent plot, the power to create charac
ters, an eye for dramatic situation ant
scenic effect, and finally the faculty tt
write readily dialogue, lyrics and
musical numbers"
81 believe, Mr.. Gilbert" | said
that you have little or no ear for
music. Don't you find this interfere,
with your rhythmical numbers?"
1T is quite true that / have no eal
for music, bnt have very sensitive
ear for rhythm; it is precisely the
difference between time and tune.
| am very fond of music, but l don't
know discord when hear one. On
the other hand. the slightest error in
time, which would probably escape a
musician, would jar most gratingly on
my ear. My fondness for music
chiefly lies in hearing pieces which
are connected in my mind with as
sociations. | would rather hear an
unknown soprano singing song !
knew than Patti singing one l did not
know"
Where do your plots come from
Mr.. Gilbertg
"Plots? Good gracious! where dc
they come from? l don't know. A
chance remark in conversation, little
accidental incident, a tritling object
may suggest train of thought which
develops into startling plot. OF
course / am talking of original plots
| don't call adapting play or trans,
latinga play writing one. Taking my
own plots. for instance, the 'Mikado
was suggested by a Japanese sword
which hangs in my study, The Yeo.
men OF the Guard by even a more un-
likely incident. l had 20 minutes one
day to wait at Uxbridge station for a
train, and | saw the advertisement OF
the Tower Furnishing Company.
representing number of beef-eaters
why, goodness only knows. 1t gave
me an idea, and | wrote the play
originally as one of modern life in the
Tower OF London. Then it suddenly
occurred to me to throw the time of il
back to that OF Queen Elizabeth. Hav.
ing got ones plot, the next step is to
| fit in the characters. And the chief
point in doing so is to invent original
characters.
al wrote out the play as a story
just as carefully as though it were to
be published in that form. then Try
to divide it into acts. / think two
acts the right number for comic opera
At least my experience-and that i,
80 years old-teaches me so. Some
times, of course, the original story
does not fall readily into two acts, ant
SO requires modification. Well, pu
it by for fortnight or more, and ther
rewrite the whole thing without re
ferring to the first copy l find tha
I have omitted some good things tina
were in the first edition and hav,
introduced some other good thing
that were not in it. compare tn
two, put them both aside and write i
out again. Sometimes l do this ,
dozen times; indeed the general pub
lie has no idea OF the trouble it take
to produce play that seems to rul
SO smoothly and so naturally.
"One must work up to good cur
tain. / believe very strongly in this
although never take up any contro
versies, but simply 60 my own way oil
my own lines. The last impression
is always the strongest, and the aud
ience will often pardon feeble, wear
some act for one dramatic climax O
its conclusion. i can generally judg
now what will have good effec
Sometimes, but very rarely, it
spoiled by the interpreters. They al
ways do their best, but OCCASIONAL
they fail to realize my intention. TIL
fact is that for comic opera man
artists, especially tenors and soprano
are necessarily engaged who are sinl
ers rather than actors, and it is not
be expected that carefully write
comedy dialogue will receive full ju
tice at their hands.
!, "Well, to 60 on with the writing
the play, l next sketch out quit
, roughly the dialogue and then fill
the musical numbers as feel incline
l do not attempt to write them in o
O der, but just as the humor takes me-
one here, one there, a sad one when
: feel depressed, bright one when
, am in happy mood. When at Ia
all those of the first act are don
it is sent to the composer to be set
music, with copy Of the rough skett
OF the dialogue to show him how ii
q different songs hang together. ge
o orally like reading it over to the col
' poser, so as to give him my idea of Il
!. rhythm, which, as a matter Of cour.
he varies at his pleasure.
"There must be perfect good fello
It ship between the writer and compos,
Las there is much give and take to