The Sorcerer is a two-act comic opera, with a libretto by W. S. Gilbert and music by Arthur Sullivan. It was the British duo's third operatic collaboration. The plot of The Sorcerer is based on a Christmas story, An Elixir of Love, that Gilbert wrote for The Graphic magazine in 1876. A young man, Alexis, is obsessed with the idea of love levelling all ranks and social distinctions. To promote his beliefs, he invites the proprietor of J. W. Wells & Co., Family Sorcerers, to brew a love potion. This causes everyone in the village to fall in love with the first person they see and results in the pairing of comically mismatched couples. In the end, Wells must sacrifice his life to break the spell.
Theatre poster, 1884
1878 programme cover
Richard Temple with Mrs Howard Paul in The Sorcerer (1877)
Incantation scene
Comic opera, sometimes known as light opera, is a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending and often including spoken dialogue.
Rossini, circa 1810–1815
Poster for a 19th-century production of Orpheus in the Underworld
Scene from H.M.S. Pinafore, 1886 Savoy Theatre souvenir programme
A "toy soldier" from Babes in Toyland, 1903