Trial by jury

Illustration of a scene from Trial by Jury

Trial by Jury ("jury court") is an operetta (in the original: "comic opera") in one act with music by Arthur Sullivan based on a libretto by WS Gilbert . The first performance of the play took place on March 25, 1875 at the Royalty Theater in London . The story is about a breach of engagement charge and turns satirically against the judge and the legal system.

Trial by Jury was the second joint opera production after Thespis Gilbert and Sullivan's . The work, which is very popular with critics and audiences, was performed 131 times during the first season.

content

people

The judge (weird baritone)
The applicant (soprano)
The accused (tenor)
Lawyer of the applicant (lyric baritone)
Bailiff (bass baritone)
Juror Speaker (Bass)
Associate Judge (mute)
First bridesmaid
Choir of Bridesmaids, Jurors, Lawyers and Spectators

action

The scene takes place at the Court of the Exchequer , where the jury and spectators have gathered to attend the trial for breach of engagement.

The bailiff admonishes the jury to listen to the plaintiff's arguments and adds that they “need not heed” what the “brutal defendant” has to say. Nevertheless, he notes that "this negotiation must be negotiated free of any bias!" The defendant Edwin enters the scene and is hostile by the jury even before he has even made his case. He frankly informed the court that he abandoned the plaintiff because he was “unbearably bored” and he then immediately turned to another woman. The jury remember their own moody youth, but as gentlemen they are now, they have no sympathy for the accused.

Illustration by WS Gilbert to the Judge's Song

The judge enters the scene pompously and describes how he came to his current position, namely by courting the “old, ugly daughter” of a wealthy public prosecutor. The prosecutor then supported the career of his future son-in-law until he became filthy rich and abandoned the daughter. The jury and spectators are delighted with the judge and overlook the fact that he has just confessed to having committed the same injustice as the defendant.

The jury takes the oath, and the plaintiff, Angelina, is called into the courtroom. Her bridesmaids go ahead, one of whom attracts the judge's gaze. But when Angelina appears in a full wedding dress, she promptly wins the hearts of the judge and the jury. In a moving speech, the lawyer explains Edwin's betrayal to the plaintiff. Angelina pretends to be unwell and stumbles into the arms of the judge and then the jury spokesman. Edwin counters that his changing inclinations are only natural and offers to marry both the applicant and his new lover, if everyone agrees. The judge thinks this is a "reasonable proposition", but the defense lawyer protests that it is a serious offense to have more than one wife. Everyone is puzzled about the “dilemma” they are now facing.

In a desperate gesture, Angelina hugs Edwin and moans about her loss, apparently with the aim of getting the jury to order Edwin to pay damages. Edwin replies that he is a smoker, a drinker and, when drunk, a brute. The plaintiff would not have endured him for a day anyway, so the compensation would have to be low. The judge suggests getting Edwin drunk to see if he would actually "kick and beat up" Angelina, but everyone but Edwin refuses to do this experiment. The impatient judge offers to close the case by marrying Angelina himself. This is accepted by everyone, and the operetta closes with “boundless joy”.

Musical numbers

1.	“Hark, the hour of ten is sounding” (chorus); "Now, Jurymen, hear my advice" (court usher)
1a.	"Is this the Court of the Exchequer?" (Defendant)
2.	“When first my old, old love I knew” (defendant and chorus); "Silence in Court!" (Bailiff)
3.	"All hail great Judge!" (Choir and judge)
4th	“When I, good friends, was call'd to the bar” (judge and choir)
5.	“Swear thou the Jury” (attorney and bailiff); "Oh will you swear by yonder skies" (usher and choir)
6th	"Where is the Plaintiff?" (Lawyer and bailiff); “Comes the cheated flower” (choir of bridesmaids and applicant)
7th	"Oh, never, never, never, since I joined the human race" (judge, jury spokesman, choir)
8th.	"May it please you, my lud!" (Lawyer, choir)
9.	"That she is reeling is plain to see!" (Judge, jury spokesman, plaintiff, lawyer and choir)
10.	“Oh, gentlemen, listen, I pray” (Defendant and Choir of Bridesmaids)
11.	"That seems a reasonable proposition" (judge, lawyer and choir)
12.	“A nice dilemma we have here” (Ensemble)
13.	“I love him, I love him, with love unceasing” (plaintiff, defendant and chorus); “The question, gentlemen, is one of liquor” (judge and ensemble)
14th	"Oh, joy unbounded, with wealth surrounded" (Ensemble)

Web links

literature

Michael Ainger: Gilbert and Sullivan - A Dual Biography. Oxford University Press, Oxford 2002, ISBN 0-19-514769-3
Andrew Crowther: Contradiction Contradicted - The Plays of WS Gilbert. Associated University Presses, Cranbury 2000, ISBN 0-8386-3839-2
Arthur Jacobs: Arthur Sullivan - A Victorian Musician. Oxford University Press, Oxford 1986, ISBN 0-19-282033-8
Cyril Rollins, R. John Witts: The D'Oyly Carte Opera Company in Gilbert and Sullivan Operas: A Record of Productions, 1875-1961. Michael Joseph, London 1962. In addition, five supplementary volumes self-published.
Jane W. Stedman: WS Gilbert, A Classic Victorian & His Theater. Oxford University Press, Oxford 1996, ISBN 0-19-816174-3