A hilarious farce of sentimental pirates, bumbling policemen, dim-witted young lovers and an eccentric Major-General, Gilbert and Sullivan's comic musical follows young Frederic, an orphan who has mistakenly been apprenticed to an ineffectual but raucous band of pirates. He disavows the pirates' way of life and falls for the beautiful Mabel. His melodious tones win over the heart of Major General Stanley's songbird daughter, but when the Pirate King discovers General Stanley has lied about being an orphan to keep the pirates from stealing all of his belongings and carrying off his bevy of beautiful daughters, an "ingenious paradox" may prevent the budding romance and lead to the death of "The Very model of a modern Major-General."