# Consistency's nice but she wanted variety Gilbert & Sullivan



## pddolan (15 d ago)

Hello, I am a brand "newbie" and I don't anticipate spending much time at all on this forum, but who knows. Anyway, about forty years ago I was a member of a light opera society in England and participated in the chorus of a few Gilbert & Sullivan musicals, and from that time I have a question. Realizing that I may be completely on the wrong track, I would like to ask what musical the line "consistency's nice but she wanted variety" came from? I may not be remembering this snippet accurately and it may not be from Gilbert & Sullivan at all, but I'm trying to get its source off of my mind.

Thank you for your indulgence and thank you in advance for any help,

Pat


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## BBSVK (10 mo ago)

Hi @pddolan , wellcome aboard.

I don't know Gilbert and Sullivan, but maybe the moderator @Art Rock could move your post to us, to the Opera forum ? 

(Not necessarily immediately)


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## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

BBSVK said:


> maybe the moderator @Art Rock could move your post to us, to the Opera forum ?
> 
> (Not necessarily immediately)


Not immediately, but still.. doing it now. Welcome pddolan.


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

It sounds familiar and the first of the G&S Operettas to come to mind is Iolanthe and this refers to Phyllis. However, I think that the line isn't quite right. I have the libretto somewhere.

It's not what I was thinking about. I know G&S quite well, but I can't place that line. Sorry!

N.


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## pddolan (15 d ago)

Thank you for replying. The two G&S musicals that I can remember doing were The Gondolier and The Sorcerer.


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

It's Gondoliers?

"But existence was slow and we wanted variety." Act Two Tessa? It's in the bit before the cachuca.

I'll look it up!

N.


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## The Conte (May 31, 2015)

Got it! It's in the entrance scena of the girls in act two of gondoliers.

The line is actually sung by Vittoria. "Existence was slow and we wanted variety."

N.


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## pddolan (15 d ago)

Thank you! For about forty years it seems, my version has been different and no doubt the mind was playing tricks on me and because it suited a particular situation, I made up my own line. The words from the Sorcerer "Sprites of earth and air, fiends of flame fire, demon souls come here in shoals, this evil dead conspire...." have also rolled around in my head all these years, and I probably don't have them correct either. Thanks again. Pat


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## Seattleoperafan (Mar 24, 2013)

pddolan said:


> Thank you! For about forty years it seems, it's been my version and know doubt the mind was playing tricks on me. The line from the Sorcerer "Sprites of earth and air, fiends of flame fire, evil souls come here in shoals, this evil dead conspire...." has also rolled around in my head all these years, and I probably don't have that right either. Thanks again. Pat


If you post here I think it would be helpful if you mentioned Gilbert and Sullivan in your title and you can go back in and change it if you like.


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## BBSVK (10 mo ago)

Gilbert without Sullivan created a parody on Norma, A Pretty Druidess, using the musical mix of several operas by various authors. Does anybody ever play it these days ?


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