South Pacific opened on Broadway in 1949 and ran until 1954 — 1,925 performances. It was based on James Michener’s book, Tales of the South Pacific,and has several plot lines, with two parallel romances. It has been made into a movie twice, in 1958 and again in 2001. It has earned a Pulitzer for drama and four Tony Awards, and the revival in New York won seven Tonys. It has toured the US and Britain, and been revived in both countries several times. It is a winner. It is an inherently powerful drama as well as being great entertainment.
I’ve often said that I don’t go to theatrical opening nights in Lake County because they always seem to be more like the last dress rehearsal. In fact, it’s likely that many other people feel the same way, since the audience for first nights is usually woefully slim. But I heard that the opening night for South Pacific on March 4 would be fully formed, plentifully rehearsed, well staged and, as is so important in a musical, beautifully sung. I felt confident about the singing, having heard many of the cast sing in many other venues, and we’ve seen many members of the cast acting in other plays.
So I took a chance and went to the opening night. It was a remarkable success. Big house, that is. I’m sorry if you weren’t there, but there weren’t many empty seats left to put you into. I’m sure glad I went.
There was another reason I had for looking forward to South Pacific. Along with the long-time LCTC performers who we have seen growing as actors, there is a new character in Lake County theatre, Shona Lorenzo, who plays Bloody Mary. I was asked months ago to sit on the panel reviewing the auditions for this musical and that evening I saw Shona for the first time. I saw immediately that she has “star quality.” That is, when she is on stage, she doesn’t have to try to dominate the scene, her charisma and energy capture the audience. In the scenes where she needs to let the other actors stand out and be the center of attention, she does so, and the brakes she puts on her magnetism are a very becoming quality. I recommended her for the part, and I wanted to see how she did. You would be glad to do so also.
The romantic leads are played by Dennis Fay and Barbara Clark. They are both actors of note and accomplished singers. I try to never miss anything with Barbara Clark in it. In fact, director Suna Flores managed to assemble a wonderful cast for this. I won’t recite all the names for you, although I would take pleasure in typing out every one of those names. If you come down to the Little Theater and see the production, they will give you a program, and it has every cast member listed.
South Pacific started as a successful stage production and was then filmed. In 2010 it was broadcast live on PBS. Most people who have seen it have seen the movie. The screen version was filmed almost as though a camera had been set up in the audience for the stage version. I never saw the Broadway staging, but after seeing the film in the last year and now the local version, I must say that it works much better on stage. It is a very formal theatrical production, and the limitations of set and scene are worked into it in a very effective way. That’s what you expect from Rodgers and Hammerstein.
South Pacific has a wonderful slate of songs. More of them have established lives of their own in the popular songbook than is usually the case with material from musicals. Some Enchanted Evening, Younger Than Springtime, A Cockeyed Optimist and I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Outta My Hair are very familiar. You’ve Got To Be Taught is a classic. These songs are all clearly in the “pop music” continuum. The most musically difficult song, the hardest to sing in the show, is Bali Hai. It has a huge range, chord changes and unexpected turns. It is sung by Bloody Mary, Shona Lorenzo. The way she sings the other songs in the show, you can tell that she has sung popular music to good effect, but in Bali Hai it seemed to me that that sort of song requires a high level of singing lessons and coaching. Of course, it works for Bloody Mary. She’s a larger-than-life eccentric mother figure, and she can sing any way she pleases and thrill you with it.
I have several criticisms, none of them huge. The first is a criticism of the program. It has this in common with most local community theater productions. The program isn’t a program. It is a compendium of biographies of the actors. This is understandable, since the actors are all volunteers, and the second biggest thing they get out of it is their name in print. I wouldn’t want to see them denied this, but I feel denied when the program doesn’t have the program in it. I expect to see a note as to the time and location for each scene and a note as to what scene precedes the intermission. This doesn’t even need a full page. Suna Flores’ notes give us a good one-paragraph background on the play, but where the scenes are supposed to be taking place remains a mystery, as does the idea that two weeks pass between acts one and two.
Well, and of course the seats aren’t that comfortable and the lights and sound are not the most up-to-date … See what I mean, minor criticisms. What do you want? This is community theatre, long on talent but short on means. They’ve been bringing good product to the stages of Lake County for decades now, and they’ve done it again with South Pacific. I like most of the things that the Lake County Theatre Company does, and if I don’t, I keep my mouth shut about it. But I am willing to shout loud when it is all tight and top drawer. You should see this. It is great entertainment and you will be entertained, you will laugh, you will cry. Some Enchanted Evening indeed!
