MIKADO, THE (1939 CRITERION)

In a small Japanese town, Ko-Ko is appointed to the unenviable position of executioner. Knowing he must successfully perform an execution before the appearance of the Mikado in a month, Ko-Ko finds a suitable victim in Nanki-Poo, who is distraught over his unrequited love for the maiden Yum-Yum. Nanki-Poo agrees to sacrifice his life if he is allowed to spend his remaining days with Yum-Yum, who is betrothed to executioner Ko-Ko.

• New video interview with Topsy-Turvy director Mike Leigh on The Mikado and its adaptation for the screen
• New video interview with Mikado scholars Josephine Lee and Ralph MacPhail Jr., tracing the 1939 filmed version of the opera back to its 1885 stage debut
• Short silent film promoting the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company's 1926 stage performance of The Mikado
• A booklet featuring an essay by critic Geoffrey O'Brien