The Sorcerer's Apprentice poem's story is alluded to in several episodes of the fairy-tale drama "Once Upon a Time", especially in "The Apprentice". A variation of the Dukas piece also plays in certain scenes. The apprentice himself is a recurring character, while the sorcerer is shown to be Merlin. The "Fantasia" version appears in the video game series "Kingdom Hearts", with the sorcerer Yen Sid serving as an adviser to the heroes, teaching Mickey, Sora, and Riku the Keyblade skills needed to guard the universe from his former friend Xehanort's plan. A world based on the "Fantasia" version also appears throughout the series,
The Sorcerer Barnett, conducted by Alfred Cellier, although unauthorised productions had appeared by 1879. In the early years of the 20th century, however, "The Sorcerer" gradually fell out of favour in Britain. As discussed below, it draws on an older theatrical tradition and satirises social and operatic conventions that are less accessible to modern audiences than the ones explored in the more famous G&S works starting with "H.M.S. Pinafore". The D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, which had exclusive rights to the opera in Britain, dropped "The Sorcerer" in 1901, and its principal repertory company did not play the piece again until 1916, after