Review – Oklahoma! 2005

“Oklahoma! OK: The fun is as high as an elephant’s eye”

By:	Michael D. Reid, Times Colonist Staff
For:	Oklahoma!
Who:	The Victoria Operatic Society
Where:	McPherson Playhouse
When:	November 2005
Rating:	4 out of 5

Oh, what a beautiful evening.

Apologies to Oscar Hammerstein for tampering with his opening ballad, but it describes what fans of Oklahoma! can expect from the Victoria Operatic Society’s lively and respectful production of the ageless Rodgers and Hammerstein classic, about a stubborn cowboy and farm girl who fall in love on the eve of Oklahoma’s statehood after the turn of the century.

Cringe as you might at the prospect of seeing yet another production of the groundbreaking 1943 musical, one of the most beloved in American musical theatre oeuvre, it’s easy to see why producers just can’t resist this show.

Aside form the appeal of its cornpone humour and legendary, infectious score – from Oh, What a Beautiful Morning to its rousing title song – there’s an endearing familiarity to Oklahoma! that makes you feel like you’re visiting an old friend.

It seems it’s hip to be square again, which might explain why Oklahoma! has even made it into an episode of The Simpsons, with a morale-boosting suggestion from Millhouse triggering a Farmer and the Cowman singalong.

A bumper crop of local talent anchored by Jeffrey Stephen’s remarkably assured and deftly comic performance as Curly, the smitten cowpoke, proves there’s still a “bright golden haze” on his meadow.

A suitably dashing cross between Patrick Swayze and David Keith, with a robust baritone, Stephen – in tandem with an impressively tight orchestra that rarely missed a beat under Hilary Coupland’s direction – got Oklahoma! off to a confident start at a preview with a pitch-perfect reading of that classic pen to frontier life, Oh What a Beautiful Morning.

Mercifully absent was that sinking feeling you can get when a show appears beyond a company’s reach. From the exquisitely rendered overture, so thunderously familiar it sends shivers down your spine, to crowd-pleasing highlights like the Kansas City number, this production provides plenty of foot-stomping fun with just a few hiccups.

Stephanie Gill is right on the money in her role as Laurey, the farm girl who unwittingly sparks a rivalry between Curly and Jud Fry, the creepy hired hand.

Winston Lanyon plays this classic villain with hints of humour and sensitivity, but there’s a downside, in that his character seems less monstrous than intended.

Lanky VSO regular Craig Wilson adds considerable comic aplomb as country bumpkin Will Parker. He energetically fronts the classic production number in which he sings of how Everything’s up to Date in Kansas City, segueing into an impressive tap dance routine. He also impresses on All ER Nothin’, where hapless Will tries to rein in Ado Annie, his promiscuous girlfriend portrayed with comic verve by Emily Scott. (An exception at a preview was her Can’t Say No number, which lacked oomph.)

Other noteworthy performances are turned in by Pamela Miller, effectively feisty and humorous as Aunt Eller; Jaymes D. Goodman, amusingly hamming it up as the womanizing peddler Ali Hakam; and Emily Heayn, suitably sassy as man-eating Gertie Cummings.

If the non-musical actin in Oklahoma! lags here and there, it has more to do with this being a dialogue-heavy book musical than Mitch McGowan’s breezy and inventive direction. It’s complemented by Elise Hoeppner’s inspired choreography, with some square dance, high-steppin’, ballet and even can-can routines thrown into the mix.

Adding to the esthetic appeal is Rick Thomas’cheerful set, strong on bright red, yellow, and green depicting a farmhouse, barn, expansive rural landscape and gated clusters of that corn “as high as an elephant’s eye.” Adam Wilkinson’s lighting design is also spot-on, both drenching the setting with bright sunlight and evoking a salmon-coloured night sky.

A tip of the Stetson as well to Marnie Spencelayh’s well chosen costumes that add to this show’s frontier spirit.