For about 45 years, ending in 1991, the Barnard Gilbert & Sullivan Society offered students of Columbia and Barnard the opportunity to perform the delightful operettas of Gilbert and Sullivan. This student-run group was self-financed through ticket sales, relying on a small stipend from the Barnard Student Activities budget. It produced two G&S shows per year, generally in the Minor Latham Playhouse at Barnard.

Through the years, several people who later became famous performed with Barnard G&S, including Bowser from Sha-Na-Na, Peter Falco (TV reporter), Evelyn Baron (actress in Big River and other Broadway shows), Michael Musto (writer, Village Voice), Adam Belanoff (writer, including many episodes of Murphy Brown and other works for TV and film), Jean-Louise Kelly (actress in Mr. Holland's Opus), and many others.

Barnard G&S was one of the largest student-run theater groups, mounting shows that required casts of about 30 students and orchestras of up to 30 musicians. The directors and conductors were also often students or faculty members. Performers included students, faculty, and staff, as well as members of the community. The New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players, New York's only regular professional Gilbert and Sullivan group, was an offshoot of the Barnard group and is now celebrating its 30th anniversary.