H.M.S. Pinafore was the fourth collaboration between Gilbert and Sullivan, and proved spectacularly successful on both sides of the Atlantic. However, United States copyright law of the time did not respect British copyright, and most of the productions in America—probably including the one here advertised—were unauthorised and gave no income to the creators. In order to attempt to gain American copyright on their next opera, The Pirates of Penzance, the entire company was taken to New York City in order to stage its official première.Image credit: A.S. Seer's Print