The Plot of Pineapple Poll Some time ago, after that terribly sneaky bonus question last year about the tunes used in the ballet suite for Pineapple Poll, we asked if anyone didn't know the plot of the ballet. Well, we have at least one honest member, who has confessed to not knowing the plot of the ballet, so here it is. For those of us more familiar with Bab Ballads than ballet, we would recognize this story as basically being that of the Bab Ballad The Bumboat Woman's Story (1870). In the ballet, though, Poll is much younger, and a love interest (besides Captain Belaye) is added, but it's basically the same story. According to Charles Mackerras's program notes that accompanied the EMI/HMV Greensleeve recording (#ESD 7028), the story goes like this: Scene 1: Morning at Portsmouth OPENING DANCE {tunes from Mikado, Trial By Jury, Patience, Sorcerer, Gondoliers, and Mikado} Sailors from the H.M.S. Hot Cross Bun are meeting with their sweethearts in front of the tavern "The Steam Packet", while Jasper, the Pot-boy serves drinks. POLL'S DANCE AND PAS DE DEUX {tunes from Gondoliers and Patience} Pineapple Poll bounds in to sell her wares. Jas- per, who is in love with her, makes shy advances, which she rejects, since she (and every other girl in town) is in love with the dashing Captain Belaye. BELAYE'S SOLO {tunes from Patience and Cox and Box} Captain Belaye appears, and dances a hornpipe that sends all the girls into a swoon. The sailors all take their girlfriends away, leaving Belaye alone to meet with his fiance Blanche. PAS DE TROIS {tunes from Mikado, Pirates of Penzance, Ruddigore} Blanche arrives with her chaperon aunt Mrs. Dimple, who chatters through their tete a tete. Since their love-making isn't getting anywhere anyway, Belaye escorts them off. FINALE {tunes from Patience, Ruddigore, Iolanthe, and Patience The girls are all still mooning about Belaye, which infuriates their boyfriends. An altercation ensues, and Belaye's entrance only makes matters worse. The scene ends in general confusion. Scene 2: The Quayside, that Evening POLL'S SOLO/JASPER'S SOLO {tunes from Iolanthe, and Princess Ida} Belaye returns to his ship, followed by Poll, who disguises herself in some sailor's clothes she finds on the wharf. She runs onto the ship, and presently other sailors go on board, too. Jasper comes on the scene, finds Poll's clothes, and thinks that she has drowned herself. He dances alone with her clothes. Scene 3: On board H.M.S. Hot Cross Bun, next morning BELAYE'S SOLO AND SAILOR'S DRILL {tunes from Princess Ida, Gondo- liers, and Ruddigore} Belaye drills his crew, which has suddenly become quite clumsy. Poll can't take her eyes off of the captain, so she is continually out of step. Finally, the captain order the firing of his cannon (which, according to the Bab Ballad, he is very proud of), and the blast causes Poll to faint. POLL'S SOLO {tunes from Trial by Jury, Patience, and Princess Ida} Belaye tries to revive her, but upon hearing a clock chime in the distance, he takes a ring from his pocket and runs off the ship. Poll recovers, and is bewildered by the unmasculine behavior of the crew. ENTRY OF BELAYE WITH BLANCHE AS BRIDE/RECONCILIATION: {tunes from Yeomen of the Guard, Trial by Jury, Iolanthe, Ruddigore} Belaye returns to the ship, and presents his new wife, Blanche, to the crew, who all faint in horror. The crew all tear off their sailor suits, and the whole crew turns out to be Portsmouth girls. The real sailors rush onto the ship in a rage, but they and their girlfriends are soon reconciled. FINALE {tunes from Mikado, Trial by Jury, H.M.S. Pinafore, Patience, Princess Ida, Pirates of Penzance/Thespis, Overture Di Ballo, and Yeomen of the Guard} Belaye is promoted to Admiral, while Jasper, somehow or other, becomes captain of the Hot Cross Bun. Poll promptly falls in love with him, and everybody lives happily ever after, with Mrs. Dimple raised on high as a rather school- marmish Britannia. It seems a pity that more ballet companies either can't or don't perform this work, because it sounds like it would be a lot of fun to give, as well as see. [This article appeared in Issue 32 (December 1991) of Precious Nonsense, the newsletter of the Midwestern Gilbert & Sullivan Society. Posted by permission of Sarah Cole, Society Secre- tary/Archivist. For information on Society membership write to: The Midwestern Gilbert & Sullivan Society, c/o Miss Sarah Cole, 613 W. State St., North Aurora, IL 60542-1538.]