The Princess (W. S. Gilbert play) College, the first university-level women's college in Britain, had been established at the University of Cambridge in 1869. However, by the time Gilbert and Sullivan collaborated on "Princess Ida" in 1883, a women's college was a well-established concept. Westfield College, London's first women's college, had opened in 1882 and is cited as a model for Castle Adamant, the women's college in "Princess Ida". The lyrics to the songs in "The Princess" were set to popular tunes from popular operetta and grand opera of the time, including works by Hervé and Jacques Offenbach. The three young men are played by women,
Gilbert and Sullivan is not found in the librettos. Many other children's books have since been written retelling the stories of the operas or adapting characters or events from them. In the 19th century, the most popular Gilbert and Sullivan songs and music were adapted as dance pieces. Many musical theatre and film adaptations of the operas have been produced, including the following: Gilbert and Sullivan Gilbert and Sullivan refers to the Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the dramatist W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911) and the composer Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900) and to the works they jointly created. The two men collaborated on fourteen comic operas