The British Empire: a Utopia limited?

In 1893 the last but one of the collaborations between W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan was premièred at the Savoy theatre in London.  Utopia, Ltd is probably the least well known of their works- and even a hardcore G&S fan like myself has to say that it's not their best work.  The show is not at all cohesive and doesn't hang together well, good plot points are underdeveloped or left unresolved due to cuts (and the weakness of the lead soprano).  There are some highlights.  I wish one of the groups I'm in would find the time to learn "Eagle high," I love the plot trio "With wily brain," and coming from a group where some  tenors have a well-developed sense of their own importance the humour of "A tenor all singers above" where the tenor is moaning that he can't reach the top notes strikes home with me.  Nevertheless, it's still probably my least favourite of the G&S canon, and given how rarely it's performed compared to the more popular Pirates of Penzance or Mikado (or even middle of the range Ruddigore or Patience) I'm not alone.  Although initial audiences were favourable to Utopia, it didn't last as well as G&S's earlier shows.


But I wonder if  perhaps another reason for its relative unpopularity* is subject matter Gilbert is poking fun at.  In 1893 the British Empire was at its height, with vast amounts of the world under the rule of Queen-Empress Victoria.  And yet not everything was well- there were rumblings in India that would one day lead to independence, and Irish Home Rule was the hot political topic of the day.  In the very year that Utopia Ltd premièred the United States government intervened in Hawaii to overthrow the government that, they feared, would damage their business interests.  The Hawaiian crown princess had come to England to go to school- just as Gilbert's Princess Zara had- and found herself trying to stop her country being absorbed into the United States- and failing.  No doubt the US government argued that American Western government would be better for the islands than the Hawaiian monarchy.


So it is easy to see where Gilbert got the ideas for Utopia Ltd from.  Tropical island princess goes to England and brings back officials or "Flowers of Progress" to help transform the island into everything that she believes England to be- militarily and navally strong, virtuous, clean, healthy morally upright.  Unfortunately, some of the locals don't like it because it's working too well and they are being excluded from power, but their rebellion is foiled by the introduction of Government by Party which, it is said, will solve these problems by introducing imperfections.


Gilbert was no stranger to satire and controversy, but even at the time it would have been unfashionable to criticise the empire, or to call into question, as the finale does whether Britain is quite as perfect as she claims: 

"Such, at least, is the tale
Which is born on the gale,
From the island which dwells in the sea
Let us hope, for her sake
That she makes no mistake-

That she's all the professes to be!"

An earlier song, where the islanders praise Britain for many qualities which the audience would have known to be false underlines this:

"Society has quite forsaken all her wicked courses.

Which empties our police courts, and abolishes divorces"

"We haven't any slummeries in England!"

"Our peerage we've remodelled on an intellectual basis...

And literary merit meets with proper recognition!"

Perhaps sour grapes on Gilbert's part there?

In 1983, it probably was unfashionable to criticise the empire; but since the dismantling of the empire since the 1950's the opposite has been true. It is almost unthinkable for historians or politicians today to say anything favourable about the Empire or to admit that anything good came of it. It's not even taught about much in school, we're so uncertain of how to address the issues raised. Of course, much badness happened because of European Imperialism. But the way that the British put themselves and their past down annoys me sometimes. Yes, there are many things about the empire and imperial culture we can't be proud of. But that goes for most if not all countries. And there is some evidence to show that many of the countries that used to be in the Empire have benefited from the legacy. Some, not all. I'm not arguing it was a good thing.


This isn't a period of history I've ever specialised in, but I can make a guess that amongst the type of audience G&S usually attracts- generally speaking reasonably well educated middle classes, predominantly over 50- the memory of the empire has made them wary of a show which, at first sight, accepts imperialism and determines British ways of doing things as the right way, better than native ways.  In a way, you could say Utopia suffers simultaneously from being too much in favour and too much against the Empire.  But Gilbert used it to expose the flaws in his own society.  Perhaps there could be ways to produce it today that make it relevant to our own time- to expose the flaws in our globalised culture?  Unfortunately, I don't think anyone in the performing groups I'm in is going to rush to stage it!

*I'm pretty sure Utopia is still performed more than many pieces that were more popular at the time, although that's mainly due to it being part of the Gilbert and Sullivan canon.