H.M.S. Pinafore, or “The Lass that Loved a Sailor,” offers plot twists, whistleable tunes and rollicking fun aboard Her Majesty’s gallant ship Pinafore. The story of a lass

whose sorry lot is to “love too well” and a sailor who “alas, loves a lass above his station” remains

popular 140 years after its premiere. Gilbert wrote many jokes meant to poke fun at the

arch snobbery of these British characters, and Sullivan parodied Italian opera, wrote traditional British hymn tunes and provided his famous patter

songs. The longevity of this operetta can be attributed to not only its historical musical importance but also that an audience just wants to sing along with these tunes. One does not need to know this musical theatre work to understand its humor, only observe, “things are seldom what they seem.”