Act I
let the pirate bumper pass – a bumper is a cup or glass filled to the brim, as for a toast
scuttling a Cunarder – sinking a passenger ship of the Cunard line
cutting out a White Star – separating a passenger ship of the White Star line from the surrounding ships in order to capture it (the Titanic was a ship of the White Star line)
on breakers always steering – always making mistakes and getting into trouble; as when steering a ship toward waves breaking on rocks
can it be Custom House – customs enforcement patrol, like our Coast Guard
the glass is rising very high – weather-glass: a barometer (rising indicates fair weather)
your pirate caravanserai – as “caravanserai” is a sort of inn for caravans and their occupants, the only excuse for applying this word to a group of men it that it rhymes with Chancery (almost)
Wards in Chancery – minors under the protection of the Court of Chancery
from Marathon to Waterloo – in 490 BC. the Greeks defeated the Persians at Marathon (the messenger who died after running the 26 miles to Athens with the news somehow inspired modem “marathons”). Napoleon’s final defeat was at Waterloo in 1815.
the scientific names of beings animalculous – an animalcule is a microscopic animal
I answer hard acrostics – a parlor game similar to charades, with acted-out words, whose first letters then spell out the real message to be discovered.
quote in elegiacs all the crimes of Heliogabolus – even the use of a verse form (elegiacs) could not soften the awful deeds of this most appalling Roman emperor (212-222 AD)
In conics I can floor peculiarities parabolous – conics is the study of geometric properties of a cone cut by imaginary planes, producing parabolas, ellipses, and hyperbolas. To floor is to defeat (as in wrestling). Parabolous is Gilbert’s adjective variant of parabolic.
I can tell undoubted Raphaels from Gerard Dows and Zoffanies – three painters, from three different centuries and countries, and with quite distinct styles.
the croaking chorus from “The Frogs” of Aristophanes – a comedy produced in Athens in 405 B.C. (the croaking chorus goes “Berkekekex, koax, koax”)
a washing-bill in Babylonic cuneiform – a laundry-list, in ancient wedge-shaped writing
ev’ry detail of Caractacus’s uniform – this Welsh king who resisted the Roman invasion of Britain had a limited uniform: it consisted of woad, a blue dye… and nothing else!
whistle all the airs from that infernal nonsense Pinafore – H.M.S. Pinafore was the Gilbert & Sullivan show which preceded The Pirates of Penzance. It was their first great success
mamelon and ravelin – terms for strategic earthworks: mamelon is a mound used in fortifications, ravelin is a sort of ridge
such affairs as sorties and surprises – sudden troop movement outward when besieged
and when I know precisely what is meant by commissariat – the provisioning branch of the Army
has never sat a gee – never ridden a horse (“gee-gee” being a childish way of referring to a horse, derived from a word of command to horses)
Divine Emollient! – something that softens, as poetry apparently does, even for pirates
Pray observe the magnanimity we display to lace and dimity – a thin cotton fabric.
Act II
dishonor on the family escutcheon – shield displaying heraldic insignia; family crest
threatened with emeutes – a French term for riots or brawls
when the coster’s finished jumping on his mother – costermongers (street vendors of fruit, fish, etc.) were sometimes rather rough characters
life preserver – a stick or bludgeon loaded with lead, intended for self-defense, but all too often used by evil-doers (as in this case)
silent matches – Matches which were ignited by dipping them in a bottle of asbestos and sulphuric acid so they ignited silently.
dark lantern – A hand lantern with a sliding shutter to allow the user to hide or control the light, historically used by thieves, police, and others needing concealed illumination.
unshriven, unannealed – without having made confession or having received extreme unction
with humbled mien – manner, or general bearing
we love our House of Peers – the House of Lords, one of the two Houses of Parliament. A peer has at least one of the following titles: duke, marquis, earl, viscount, and baron.
Hymeneally coupled, conjugally matrimonified – Hymen was the Greek god of marriage ceremonies
The Gilbert & Sullivan Very Light Opera Company’s 2026 production of The Pirates of Penzance, set in the Old West, required an almost entirely new glossary.
Act I
“A guttier curly wolf ne’er broke a bangtail nor roped a dogie.” – A grittier tough guy never tamed a wild horse or secured a motherless calf.”
prairie schooner – A horse or ox-drawn covered wagon used for passengers or freight hauling, widely used in the mid-nineteenth century for Westward migrations
iron pyrite – Commonly known as fool’s gold, it is an iron sulfide with a metallic luster and a pale brass-yellow hue that gives it a superficial resemblance to gold.
Wells Fargo – Founded by Henry Wells and William G. Fargo in 1852, Wells Fargo & Company provided “express” mail and banking services to California, as well as transporting gold from California to the Philadelphia Mint
élan and distingué – élan is style, vigor, liveliness, flash; distingué means someone who is distinguished, refined, elegant.
Rockefellers and Vanderbilts – The Rockefeller fortune was founded on oil, at one point controlling 90% of the United States oil production, and eventually included railroads in the West. The Vanderbilt fortune was built on shipping, especially during the Gold Rush, and railroads.
“The Cartwrights” –The Cartwright Family were characters in the Western television series Bonanza, which ran on NBC from 1959 to1973.
men who do not honor fences – Those who aren’t bound by convention or rules that limit their freedom.
Thirty-seven states – The United States included thirty-seven states from 1867, with the admission of Nebraska to the Union, until 1876 with the admission of Colorado.
from Marathon to Lexington – in 490 BC. the Greeks defeated the Persians at Marathon (the messenger who died after running the 26 miles to Athens with the news somehow inspired modern “marathons”). The battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775, were the first major military actions between the British Army and the patriot militias during the American Revolutionary War.
I answer hard acrostics – A parlor game similar to charades, with acted-out words, whose first letters then spell out the real message to be discovered.
another newer testament – The Book of Mormon.
the croaking chorus from “The Frogs” of Aristophanes – a comedy produced in Athens in 405 B.C. (the croaking chorus goes “Berkekekex, koax, koax”)
oath of old Hippocrates – The Hippocratic Oath is an oath of ethics historically taken by physicians. It requires a new physician to swear to uphold specific ethical standards.
Sanskrit and Sumerian – Sanskrit is a classical language from northern Indian region, belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. Sumerian is the oldest attested language, from ancient Sumer, now modern-day Iraq.
Moroni and his clarion – The angel Moroni reportedly visited Joseph Smith and guided him to the golden plates which were the source of the Book of Mormon. The image of Moroni blowing a trumpet is atop many Mormon temples.
Winchester – Winchester rifles are lever action repeating rifles manufactured by the Winchester Repeating Arms Company. The Model 1873 was marketed as “The Gun That Won the West.”
Bowie knife – A Bowie knife has a large, fixed-blade sheath knife, created by Rezin Bowie in the early nineteenth-century for his brother James Bowie, who became famous for his use of a large knife in a duel.
Donner Party – The Donner Party was a group of American pioneers migrating to California in a wagon train. Delayed due to a multitude of mishaps, they spent the winter of 1846 – 1847 snowbound in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, some resorting to cannibalism to survive.
when in Missouri all the pain of being dispossessed – Early Mormon settlers faced hostility from Missouri residents, culminating in their forced expulsion in 1833. They fled to Illinois, establishing the city of Nauvoo. Subsequent hostility from Illinois residents led to the Mormon migration to the Utah Territory, beginning in 1847.
Two thousand men – The Mormon Brigade was infantry battalion of the United States Army. It was the only unit in American military history recruited solely from one religious group and having a religious title as the unit designation. The volunteers served from July 1846 to July 1847 during the Mexican-American War.
may I suggest that in the West our destiny is manifest! – Manifest Destiny, a term coined in 1845 by newspaper editor John O’Sullivan, was the 19th-century belief that the United States was divinely destined to expand across North America, spreading its culture, government, and institutions.
Divine Emollient! – something that softens, as poetry apparently does, even for pirates
pray observe the magnanimity we display to lace and dimity – a thin cotton fabric.
Act II
unstained escutcheon – shield displaying heraldic insignia; family crest
five and a little bit over – Gilbert originally set The Pirates of Penzance in 1877, forgetting that 1900 was not a leap year. As a result, Frederic’s 21st birthday actually would have been 1944, not 1940. Our production corrects that error, by setting the piece in 1873. As a result, Frederic’s 21st birthday would correctly be 1940.
silent matches – Matches which were ignited by dipping them in a bottle of asbestos and sulphuric acid so that they ignited silently.
dark lantern – A hand lantern with a sliding shutter to allow the user to hide or control the light, historically used by thieves, police, and others needing concealed illumination.
Honest Abe – Abraham Lincoln’s nickname from the 1830s, from a purported incident when he worked as a store clerk in New Salem, Illinois and walked miles just to return a few pennies to a customer he had accidentally overcharged.
Brigadier – A one-star general. This designation replaced that of Major General in the United States army. Brigadier generals commanded a brigade.
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