D’Oyly Carte’s ‘Mikado’ and ‘Pirates’ Due in Costa Mesa

The reconstituted D’Oyly Carte Opera Company of Great Britain will present Gilbert and Sullivan’s “The Mikado” and “The Pirates of Penzance” Oct. 16-21 at the Orange County Performing Arts Center in Costa Mesa.

The exclusive engagement will be the first visit by the company to the United States since 1978 and is part of the Festival of Britain/Orange County co-sponsored by the South Coast Plaza mall in Costa Mesa and the British consulate in Los Angeles.

Originally formed in 1876 by Gilbert, Sullivan and impresario Richard D’Oyly Carte, the company was considered the bastion of authentic G&S; tradition for 107 years. But the D’Oyly Carte closed in 1982, after suffering increasing criticism for stagnant productions and declines in vocal and musical standards as well as box-office and subsidy woes.

The present company, which is run by Richard Condon, was launched in 1988 with part of a $1.7-million bequest from the late Dame Bridget D’Oyly Carte, granddaughter of Richard D’Oyly Carte. Bridget D’Oyly Carte died in 1985.

OCPAC President Thomas R. Kendrick said Monday that “Mikado” and “Pirates” will be presented to American audiences because “they are the two operas the company resumed production with (in 1988) and . . . these were the only two available for export.”

Kendrick said that the Center would be interested in bringing the D’Oyly Carte back, but probably could not afford another exclusive visit.

“We’re obviously subsidizing (this engagement) to a larger extent . . . than we would if they were on a national tour,” Kendrick said. “We could not do this again. There would have to be a national tour.”

Four performances of each opera will be presented in Orange County: “The Mikado,” directed by John Wells, at 8 p.m., Oct. 16-19; “Pirates,” directed by Keith Warner of the English National Opera, at 2 and 8 p.m. on Oct. 20 and 21. The company is bringing its own orchestra.

Tickets, priced at $12-$39, will go on sale approximately six weeks before the engagement. Information: (714) 556-2787.