A review of the Lincoln Center Theater's Production of "South Pacific" at DeVos Performance Hall
If you can forget the Second World War for a moment, there's hardly trouble in this paradise.
South Pacific hasn't lost any of its original gusto in 60 years, though the production shows its age a bit as the racial prejudices that drive the conflict seem, well, a tad antiquated. It is a flaw easily forgiven, however, as Rodgers and Hammerstein's beloved score, Michael Yeargan's astounding sets and Joshua Logan's eclectic cast of characters carry the musical quite handedly.
When the grass-skirt and shrunken-head seller Bloody Mary (played by Jodi Kimura) entices the libidinous American sailors to travel to her home island with visions of tropical decadence during her rendition of "Bali Ha'i," the legendary volcanic island in the backdrop wavers in and out of view thanks to magical lighting work by Donald Holder. And Bloody Mary never fails to add a layer of unease to every scene, as she hawks her daughter, Liat (Sumie Maeda, who appears to be on the wrong side of adolescence for romance), like she hawks her wares.
Because the slightly rigid Christopher Johnstone plays the role of Lt. Cable in place of the regular Anderson Davis (who's taking the week off for vacation), Matthew Saldivar as the boisterous, something-always-up-the-sleeve Luther Billis steals the stage. He especially shines when he cross-dresses and shakes his coconuts in the Marines' Thanksgiving Day talent show or whenever he leads the sailors in rousing numbers like "There is Nothin' Like a Dame." Ensign Nellie Forbush (Carmen Cusack), the self-proclaimed hick from Little Rock, brings a little heehaw to the tropics, yet rings like a mellifluous Southern belle whenever she breaks into song.
Though their tour is nearing the one-year mark, the cast seems not to be fatiguing, but picking up steam.
"The length of the tour actually affords the opportunity to adapt and try out the characters in different ways and see what works best for the audience," said actor Gerry Becker, who plays Capt. George Brackett, or "Ol' Iron Belly" as his platoon nicknamed him.
With that optimistic sort of work ethic pumping through this cast, it's no wonder Brooks Atkinson's description of the original production still stands true today. South Pacific, even in its revived form, is "a tenderly beautiful idyll of genuine people inexplicably tossed together in a strange corner of the world."
