FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE &
BROADCAST Press
contact: Dawn Flood publicity@westernstage.com Please see release for all appropriate public
information
South Pacific
Opens at The Western Stage
The Western Stage concludes its 2007 season with Rodgers and
Hammerstein’s World War II epic South
Pacific. Based on a novel by James Michener, this timeless drama from the
golden age of the American musical explores questions of love, race, and
prejudice. South Pacific plays on the main stage, Hartnell College Performing
Arts Center, November 30 - December 8. Performances
are Friday and Saturday at
American
theatre is chock-full of great playwriting teams: Kaufman and Hart, Gilbert and
Sullivan, Brecht and Weill. But few can match the record of success the great
musical team of Rodgers and Hammerstein. From their first collaboration, the
groundbreaking “Oklahoma” in 1943, to their final project, “The Sound of Music”
in 1959, they proved to be the most innovative and successful teams in Broadway
history.
This holiday season
The Western Stage gives local theatergoers an opportunity to discover what made
Rodgers and Hammerstein the best of their generation with “South Pacific”.
Opening November 10 and running through December 8, “South Pacific” blends
classic standards like “I’m Going to Wash that Man Right Outta’ My Hair” and
“Some Enchanted Evening” with a powerful story of love, race, and prejudice.
Set on a South
Pacific island during World War II, the play follows the adventures of Emile de
Becque, a middle-aged French plantation owner. The romance begins when he meets
and falls in love with Ensign Nellie Forbush, a Navy nurse. Marriage is all but
assured until she discovers that her fiancée has had two Eurasian children with
a Polynesian girl. Unable to reconcile her discomfort with the mixed race
children, she threatens to call the marriage off.
Meanwhile, in
a parallel plot, a Marine Lieutenant named Cable comes to the island to ask
Emile to help him on a mission to set up a coast watch on a nearby Japanese
held island. While visiting Emile, Cable falls in love with the daughter of
Bloody Mary, a Tankanese souvenir dealer. However, when Mary tries to persuade
Cable to marry her daughter, Cable refuses because of her race.
Perceiving
that he lost everything by losing Nellie, Emile decides to help Lieutenant
Cable on his dangerous mission to the Japanese held island where one of them
may or may not return alive.
Considered
Rodgers and Hammerstein’s greatest musical, “South Pacific” is more than just a
World War II drama. It’s an exploration of a topic that is still as relevant
today as it was sixty years ago. Can two people overcome the boundaries of race
to find true love?
“South
Pacific” is directed by Jeff McGrath whose previous TWS directing credits
include “The Real Thing” (2006),
“Oliver!” (2006), and “Laughter on the 23rd Floor” (2003).
Performances
are Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm and Sundays at 2 pm. To purchase individual
tickets visit The Western Stage online at westernstage.com or call the box office
at 831-375-2111.
TWS Literary Associate, Dan
Tarker