Oklahoma!

In 1943, "Oklahoma!" debuted on Broadway, and in doing so reinvented music theater. Roughly fifty-five years later, Trevor Nunn reinvented "Oklahoma!". The result is something very rare indeed: a production that not only captures the original appeal of its source, but also brings new facets and dimentions to a familiar work.

The story itself remains simple, almost quaint: young pioneers Laurie (Josefina Gabrielle) and Curly (Hugh Jackman), like a prairie-school Beatrice and Benedick, tease, flirt, goad each other, and otherwise go out of their way to avoid admitting their obvious mutual attraction. But hired hand Jud Fry (Shuler Hensley) nurses a much less wholesome desire for Laurie, and his obsession starts to boil over into a serious threat. Meanwhile in the comic subplot, cowboy Will Parker (Jimmy Johnston) tries to prove himself worthy of his sweetheart Ado Annie (Vikki Simon) before her father can marry her off via shotgun to an unwilling Persian peddler.

But presentation is everything, and it is here that Nunn's genius shines through. Gone are the clean gingham gowns and pristine landscapes of so many productions past. The sets have a weathered, hard-used look to them, with a cast to match. One can almost feel the sweat and dust clinging to them. This is a harsh frontier we're entering, where there is certainly joy and laughter but also lots of hardship, poverty, and desperation. It's no wonder so many characters cling to their pride, risking everything on a single grand gesture--their pride is one of the few things they can truly call their own.

The three lead actors are excellent, easily some of the best I've seen in the material. From the moment he strides onstage singing "Oh What a Beautiful Mornin'," Jackman is a captivating and fully-developed hero. He brings much of the same cocky bravado that has defined Curly over the years, but balances it with healthy doses of anxiety, bitterness, and sensitivity. Not to be outdone, Hensley's Jud (a creation which quite justly earned him a Tony Award) starts out as a somewhat sad and pitiful creature, but gradually reveals the explosive rage buried inside him. As the woman who comes between them, Gabrielle balances nicely between naivitee and cleverness, and sings in a clear, beautiful soprano.

Of the supporting cast, Maureen Lipman is the standout as that quintessential pioneer matriarch, Aunt Eller. Wise as her years, hard as her life and tender as a sunset, she is the story's moral compass. Simon and Johnston are good, albiet rather conventional in their interpretations. As the peddler Ali Hakim, Peter Pollycarpou is the one false note in the cast, with a huckster attitude and an accent that sounds nearer to Manhattan than the Middle East.

Is this "Oklahoma!" better than the 1955 film with Gordon MacRae and Shirley Jones? Arguments will abound for both sides, but at some point the comparison becomes superfluous. The two were created several decades apart, with different approaches and ideas about the story. Suffice it to say, this is and excellent performance, with solid direction, good choreography, and a strong cast. That is recommendation enough.

Re: my one line summary - I was wrong, so very wrong! Minor warning: it still hasn't lost the feel of a filmed stage musical, but the good news is that this fact won't probably impair your enjoyment of this wonderful revival of 'Oklahoma!' I find the cast much to blame. Maureen Lipman is sublime, the best Aunt Eller ever! Hugh Jackman is cheeky enough and masculine enough as Curly, and in astounding revelation to my humble self proves he can sing, truly and powerfully sing. Josefina Gabrielle is a sweet yet wilful Laurey and I just love what Shuler Hensley does with Jud and Peter Polycarpou as Ali Hakim is simply wonderful. Considering that this belongs to the stage and all I still think it deserves a 10 out of 10. Certainly much better than the so-called classic film adaptation. Those films put me off Rodgers & Hammerstein with all their big budget distractions and sometimes poor acting(with singers dubbing the actors or not)to tarnish the beauty of much of their work. This? This is beautiful and does the words&lyrics justice.

I have never seen the old version of "Oklahoma" but I know a pretty good bit about it. I saw "Oklahoma" put on by a church in my town when I was about six, but I don't remember much about it.

I really enjoyed this version, the British know how to do musicals! I loved how they made Laurey a tomboy in the beginning to show us how strong and willful she is. Josefina Gabrielle is like a younger, brunette Shirley Jones. She has a beautiful singing voice, she is a beautiful dancer, and a great actress. Did I mention that she's beautiful? I really liked how the actors did their own dancing in the Dream sequence.

I thought Hugh Jackman was amazing. To think that this is the guy who plays Wolverine!!!! This man is is an amazing actor. He's good-looking (very), he can sing, he can dance, and he can really act. He does a very good southern accent. He's also a very believable romantic hero.

Jud was great. That voice...oh my gosh! Such a rich voice, it's like "Lonely Room" was written for him. And Aunt Eller....oh I looove Aunt Eller. She steals the show. She's perfect.

I have nothing bad to say about this show. It's well-done. I just wish Hollywood and Broadway could do more things like this. I got the DVD for Christmas, by the way.

As exuberant and wonderful as Kenneth Branagh's 1993 "Much Ado About Nothing", this amazing production deserves a "15"; alas, I can only give it a "10". Hugh Jackman is a revelation, leaping into the film with cheerful high energy from his first appearance on the set. A must-see for lovers of musicals and for all others too. A sure cure for depression!

Not that I would ever proclaim heresy against the "original" Gordon McRae movie, but those folks looked too clean - meaning, the main characters are too well dressed, too refined, too ... clean. The London stage production of the play is well set, and the characters look like roustabout cattle drivers, rough-hewn farm hands, floozy girls, and hard-worn ranchers from turn of the century Oklahoma. Shuler Hensley is wonderful as Jud Fry, and Maureen Lipman makes an Aunt Eller you just want to take home with you! The use of a rotating set for scene changes allows for a wonderful continuity of the story Everyone I know who has been involved in a production of OKLAHOMA! on a local theater level (you know, folks like you and me!) say that this is the best OKLAHOMA! ever!