Die Piraten von Penzance - Wien - 2026/27

Volksoper Wien, Wien

Operetta by Arthur Sullivan and W. S. Gilbert

Revised dialogue by Jennifer Gisela Weiss

In German and English with German and English surtitles

In the 19th century, Penzance was one of the most idyllic and tranquil little towns on the British Isles. Pirates… here?! The kings of English operetta, the writing duo Gilbert & Sullivan, were able to humorously subvert their audience’s expectations. With this satirical and subversive “formula,” they created one hit after another.

The rather crude story of The Pirates of Penzance would have done full justice to British humor à la Monty Python even back in the 19th century: A young man isn’t trained to be a pilot but is sent to apprentice with the Pirates of Penzance because his hard-of-hearing governess confused “pilot” with “pirate.” Frederic would have completed his apprenticeship upon turning 21—if only he hadn’t been born in a leap year of all times! So, according to pirate logic, he is only five years old… From this existential dilemma unfolds a love story between the pirate apprentice and Mabel, a young lady from the British military aristocracy. Nothing ever worked out without the Queen in Gilbert & Sullivan’s works, and so Victoria, as the regina ex machina, will bring everything to a happy conclusion in the end.

The physical comedy duo Spymonkey scored a hit with audiences and critics alike with *Orpheus in the Underworld* at the Volksoper. With *The Pirates of Penzance*, they turn their attention to the most British of all operettas!