Forget everything you've ever heard about the cruelty of the British navy; they're nothing but a pack of polite lovers, every last one of 'em. Ralph Rackstraw is naught but a humble sailor, and yet he pines sweetly for his captain's daughter, Josephine. Alas, she's been betrothed to world-class ninny Sir Joseph, the Lord of the Admiralty, by her ambitious father. Josephine returns Ralph's love, but because she must respect her father's wishes (and his lust for the increased social status her marriage to a Lord will bring to the family), she returns Ralph's love unopened. What's a poor sailor gotta do to get married? Gilbert & Sullivan's H.M.S. Pinafore satirizes the British class system and delivers some dandy songs in the process. The New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players presents a high-energy performance of H.M.S. Pinafore at 8 p.m. tonight at the Touhill Performing Arts Center on the University of Missouri-campus (1 University Boulevard at Natural Bridge Road; 314-516-4949 or www.touhill.org). Tickets are $36 to $56.
Sat., March 22, 8 p.m., 2014