Princess Ida Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Princess Ida
Welsh tenor Henry Bracy dressed as Hilarion
Written by	W. S. Gilbert (words) Arthur Sullivan (music)
Characters	Princess Ida Hilarion King Gama King Hildebrand Cyril Florian Lady Blanche Lady Psyche
Date of premiere	5 January 1884
Place of premiere	Savoy Theatre London, England
Original language	English
Subject	Gender roles Women's education Feminism Evolution
Genre	Operetta
Setting	Women's college in the Middle Ages

Princess Ida; or, Castle Adamant is a fun and clever operetta by Gilbert and Sullivan. An operetta is like a light opera with spoken parts and catchy songs. This show was the eighth of their fourteen operettas. It first opened at the Savoy Theatre in London, England on January 5, 1884. It ran for 246 performances, which was a bit shorter than some of their other popular shows. After its first run, Princess Ida wasn't performed in London again until 1919.

Gilbert based Princess Ida on an earlier play he wrote in 1870. That play was inspired by a long poem from 1847 called The Princess by Alfred, Lord Tennyson. Princess Ida is special because it's the only Gilbert and Sullivan operetta that has three acts. It's also their only operetta written in blank verse, which means it doesn't rhyme.

Even though audiences liked Princess Ida at first, some critics weren't so keen on it. The story talks about ideas that were important a long time ago, like the roles of men and women. Because of this, it's not as popular with today's audiences as some of Gilbert and Sullivan's other works.

The Story of Princess Ida
Images for kids
See also

The Story of Princess Ida

A Princess's Promise

The operetta begins with a promise made long ago. When Princess Ida was just a baby, she was promised in marriage to Prince Hilarion. This was a common custom for royal families back then.

A College for Women

As Princess Ida grew up, she decided she didn't want to marry Hilarion. Instead, she chose a different path. She built a special university called Castle Adamant. This university was only for women. Ida believed women should be educated and live independently, away from men.

Princes in Disguise

Prince Hilarion, along with his two friends, Cyril and Florian, decided to visit Castle Adamant. They wanted to see Princess Ida and remind her of her promise. To get inside the women's college, they came up with a clever plan. They dressed up as women!

Discovery and War

It wasn't long before their disguise was discovered. Princess Ida and her students were very upset. This led to a big conflict between Ida's women and Hilarion's army. A war broke out!

A Peaceful Ending

As the fighting continued, many people were getting hurt. Princess Ida saw the damage and realized the war was not worth it. She decided to accept her fate and agreed to marry Prince Hilarion. This brought an end to the conflict and a happy resolution to the story.

Images for kids

W. Russell Flint illustration, 1909: luncheon scene Act II: Hilarion (disguised as a woman) speaks with Ida.
Scene from Gilbert's 1870 play, The Princess: Hilarion and his companions, disguised as women (but played by women impersonating men) meet Princess Ida and her students.
Bab illustration for Princess Ida
Lytton as Gama, 1921
Illustration by Gilbert for the "Darwinian Man" song; compare with Darwin image above.
Rutland Barrington as Hildebrand, 1884
"I can tell a woman's age in half a minute – and I do!" (A line from King Gama's song, "If you give me your attention.")
Ida, Blanche and the students, 1884.
"Gently, Gently": 1884 illustration
"Jump for Joy and Gaily Bound!" (from Act II)
Winifred Lawson as Princess Ida, 1922
"Gently, Gently": Darnton (Cyril, left), Oldham (Hilarion, right) and Granville (Florian), 1921

Princess Ida facts for kids

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