BWW Reviews: Take the Journey to SOUTH PACIFIC for Memories of a Lifetime

How can a song that is only 14 lines in length and lasts only about ninety seconds sum up a musical? When the lyrics are written by Oscar Hammerstein II and the music is by Richard Rodgers. The show is South Pacific, and the song is entitled "You've Got to Be Carefully Taught". It is sung by Lt. Joe Cable (Anderson Davis) who is confronting his racist feelings even though he loves a Tonkinese girl named Liat (Sumie Maeda). Cable is from Philadelphia and wonders how he can ever overcome his bigotry to marry her. He sings to Frenchman Emile de Becque (the astonishing talented David Pittsinger) who like Cable will is facing a similar situation since he is the father of two adorable Polynesian children, Negana (Christina Carrera) and Jerome (CJ Palma) and his hope of marriage to Ensign Nellie Forbush (a superb Carmen Cusack) may be in trouble since she is not  sure she wants to be step-mother to two dark-skinned children. By the way, Forbush hails from Little Rock, Arkansas where just 53 years ago President Eisenhower, to insure integration at Central High School (probably where Forbush would have gone) sent in the 101st Airborne Division to ensure the safety of nine Black students.

I had heard the composers were told to cut this number from the show due to its controversy. I decided to go to a reputable source for more information. James Alan Lovensheimer is the author of "South Pacific: Paradise Rewritten" (Broadway Legacies) published in 2006. Lovensheimer reported to me that "The number was controversial from the start...Throughout the out of town tryouts, people in the business tried to convince R&H to cut "You've Got to Be Carefully Taught" due to its controversial nature. Their response was always the same: the number reflected why they were drawn to the piece in the first place and they were not about to cut it. Even Michener writes about their tenacity in his autobiography."

And according to the "The Oxford Companion to the American Musical", "There were cities in the deep south that would not allow the tour".

You will also notice that there are only three Black sailors and due to the racism in the armed forces, work together alone maintaining an airplane.

This is a tour that should not be missed. Directed by Bartlett Sher, it features a cast of 34 with musical staging by Christopher Gattelli, sets by Michael Yeargan, costumes by Catherine Zuber, lighting by Donald Holder, sound by Scott Lehrer, and musical direction by Ted Sperling. Sher, Yeargan, Zuber, Holder and Lehrer all won Tony Awards in 2008.

The Kennedy Center gift shop has a lovely cover-table size book "The South Pacific Companion" by Laurence Maslon which normally sells for $40 but is on sale for $10. There is a lovely forward by Tony-winning composer Adam Guettel, the grandson of Rodgers. Guettel begins by writing, "Right now. In your mind. Listen to the first three notes of "Bali Ha'i". And again. Now faster. You are hearing the overture of South Pacific."

And what an overture it is played by an orchestra of 26, the largest of any touring Broadway production (and most Broadway productions) under the direction of Larry Goldberg. Besides Goldberg, three other musicians travel with the show: Susan French, Concertmaster (Violin), Braden Toan, Associate Conductor (Bassoon) and Emily Mitchell (Harp). The remaining of the tuxedo clad musicians are part of the Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra. They are superb. After the show, I recommend you remain in your seat to soak in the wonderful original orchestrations by Robert Russell Bennett (winner of a Special 2008 Tony Award).

The impressive cast includes Timothy Gulan (Luther Billis), Jodi Kimura (Bloody Mary), John Bolger (Capt. Brackett) and original cast member Genson Blimline (Stewpot). Both children, Carrera and Palma were also in the original cast.

The ensemble is extremely talented. I wish they had more work. You will love "There is Nothin' Like a Dame" and "I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Outa My Hair".

For more information, log onto www.SouthPacificOnTour.com.

My colleague Joel Markowitz has a wonderful interview with Pittsinger. There are links to videos from the show and from David's operatic career in the article. Log onto: 
http://dctheatrescene.com/2010/12/14/an-enchanted-chat-with-south-pacific-star-david-pittsinger/

Performances end January 16, 2011 The Dec. 31 performance begins at 8 p.m. and includes admission into the Kennedy Center's New Year's Eve party in the Grand Foyer. For tickets, call 202-467-4600 or 800-444-1324 or visit www.kennedy-center.org.

For comments, write to cgshubow@broadwayworld.com.

Photo Credit: Craig Schwartz

 

 

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