Gilbert and Sullivan ancestor and the device of the ghostly ancestors stepping out of their portraits. When "Ruddigore" closed, no new opera was ready. Gilbert again proposed a version of the "lozenge" plot for their next opera, and Sullivan reiterated his reluctance to set it. While the two men worked out their artistic differences, and Sullivan finished other obligations, Carte produced revivals of such old favourites as "H.M.S. Pinafore", "The Pirates of Penzance", and "The Mikado". "The Yeomen of the Guard" (1888), their only joint work with a serious ending, concerns a pair of strolling players—a jester and a singing girl—who are caught
Gilbert and Sullivan their repertories. In 1980, a Broadway and West End production of "Pirates" produced by Joseph Papp brought new audiences to Gilbert and Sullivan. Between 1988 and 2003, the revived D'Oyly Carte Opera Company revived the operas on tour and on the West End. Today, many professional repertory companies, such as NYGASP, Opera della Luna, Opera a la Carte, National Gilbert & Sullivan Opera Company Opera North, Ohio Light Opera and other small opera companies, and numerous amateur societies, churches, schools and universities continue to produce the works. The most popular G&S works also continue to be performed from time to