W. S. Gilbert
Sir William Schwenck Gilbert (
18 November 1836 –
29 May 1911) was an
English dramatist,
librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his fourteen
comic operas produced in
collaboration with the
composer Sir Arthur Sullivan, of which the most famous include
H.M.S. Pinafore,
The Pirates of Penzance, and one of the most frequently performed works in the history of musical theatre,
The Mikado. These, as well as most of their other
Savoy operas, continue to be performed regularly throughout the
English-speaking world and beyond by opera companies, repertory companies, schools and community theatre groups. Lines from these works have become part of the English language, such as "
short, sharp shock", "What never? Well, hardly ever!", and "Let the punishment fit the crime".
See more at Wikipedia.org...