In each of the new Gilbert and Sullivan operas, Bond's roles continued to grow larger and more challenging, until with Margaret, Phœbe, and Tessa in The Gondoliers (1889–91), Bond's roles were at least as important as any other female role. By the time The Gondoliers was in preparation, Gilbert felt that his regular principal cast members were becoming too demanding and that the precision and style of D'Oyly Carte productions could be maintained only if there were no "stars". He endeavoured to make the nine leading roles as co-equal as he could. Bond, aware of her importance to the company, declined to appear unless her salary was raised from twenty pounds to thirty pounds a week. Gilbert bitterly resisted the raise, but Bond prevailed: "I was the only one who asked for a rise, and Gilbert was furious with me. All the time we were rehearsing [The Gondoliers] he never spoke to me, and only acknowledged my existence by sometimes saying sneeringly: 'Make way for the High-Salaried Artiste!' ...Passing storms like this did occasionally ruffle the course of our friendship, but on the whole it flowed on deep and strong". During the run of The Gondoliers, Queen Victoria called for a royal command performance of the show at Windsor Castle. Bond wrote,
