Book by Oscar
Hammerstein II and Joshua Logan
Music by Richard
Rodgers
Lyrics by Oscar
Hammerstein II
Directed by Janet
Tweedie
Musical direction by
Jenna Hinton
Queanbeyan Players
Inc.
Queanbeyan Performing
Arts Centre to 11 June
Review by Len Power 2
June 2017
Starting with ‘Oklahoma!’ in 1943, the team of Rodgers and
Hammerstein produced several landmark musicals that are still performed regularly
around the world to this day. The secret
to their success was their choice of stories with universal themes that still
resonate with audiences. In ‘South
Pacific’, which opened in 1949, their target was racism – a controversial issue
to tackle at that time.
‘South Pacific’ was based on James A. Michener’s 1947 volume of short stories, ‘Tales
Of The South Pacific’. Set in wartime,
the show focusses on the romances of a young mid-western nurse and a middle-aged
Frenchman who had been married to a Polynesian woman and had two children with
her and a young lieutenant who falls in love with a local Tongan girl. When things get serious between the couples,
racism threatens to tear them apart.
Janet Tweedie’s production for Queanbeyan Players is nicely
atmospheric with a good painted backdrop of a Pacific island scene and period settings
by Roger Timewell. Tristan Foon is credited
with set design drawings. The excellent
lighting effects by Hamish McConchie add considerably to the atmosphere of the
show and the costumes by Janetta McRae are generally fine.
As the nurse, Nellie Forbush, Ellen Scott nicely captures
the naivity and freshness of a young woman struggling with aspects of a love
affair that take her outside her comfort zone.
She sings the famous songs very effectively and pleasantly, especially ‘I’m
In Love With A Wonderful Guy’.
The role of the Frenchman, Emile de Beque, was written for
an operatic bass singer and, while Michael Moore gives the songs his best shot,
his lighter baritone voice can’t make the songs soar with the weight and emotion
that an opera singer can achieve. In addition,
more thought needed to be given to his costumes. In the white dinner suit, he looked every
inch the cultured Frenchman described in one of the songs, but his other
costumes looked too modern and sloppily casual.
As Bloody Mary, Tina Robinson gave a fine performance as
this island woman, singing ‘Bali Ha’i’ and ‘Happy Talk’ very well. As Lieutenant Joseph Cable, Anthony
Simeonovic sang well but his characterisation was a bit too steely and
cold. He should show more emotion when
his feelings have been unlocked by his affair with the young Tongan girl, Liat,
played delicately by Jadziah Oakes.
There was good work by supporting cast members, especially
Joseph McGrail-Bateup as Captain George Brackett and Andrew Macmillan as Luther
Billis. Singing by the enthusiastic
chorus was fine and there was a nice sense of individual characters amongst
them. They did, however, struggle with the choreography set for them by Belinda
Hassall which seemed too often to be dance for its own sake and added little to
the show.
Musical direction by Jenna Hinton was excellent with good
sound produced by the orchestra throughout the evening. Sound levels between singers and orchestra
were fine.
On opening night, too many of the cast were slow at picking
up cues but hopefully this will improve as the season progresses. Some scene changes took too long, especially
one in the second act where chorus members were brought on in front of the curtain
to just mill around and gossip to cover the change.
Overall, Janet Tweedie has produced an entertaining production
of this much loved show which has some of the most beautiful songs ever written
for musical theatre.
Len Power’s reviews
are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 ‘Artcetera’ program (9am Saturdays) and
‘Dress Circle’ (3.30pm Mondays).