Sat 8/24
Perfect weather and Rodgers and Hammerstein’s South Pacific combined to create a delightful and (dare one say?) “enchanted” evening. It was the first (and one hopes, not the last) collaboration between the Cleveland Orchestra and the Baldwin Wallace University Music Theatre program at Blossom.
The concert production (orchestra on stage, leading characters sitting or standing near microphones, and chorus shifting around) was directed by Victoria Bussert. Andy Einhorn conducted the very slightly reduced, but always fine orchestra, placed center stage.
The musical event that resulted demonstrates that a beautiful score and a clear story make elaborate sets unnecessary. It was easy to forget that there weren’t any fake palm trees or sand on stage; it was also easy to overlook that the vocal soloists held scripts. Although the pros did steal a glance at their scripts, the student leads rarely relied on them as they threw themselves into their roles.
It helped that the musical, based on James Mitchener’s Tales of the South Pacific, delivers a straightforward narrative about wartime, loneliness, prejudice and love that lends itself to a concert production. It also helped that many audience members knew the beloved score so well they were humming along (but not obnoxiously so — there was just a tiny vibe). The pavilion space was filled, and the lawn was covered with the picnickers, all enjoying the first cool snap of the summer. All in all, it was a special evening.
From the minute nurse Nellie Forbush (Kailey Boyle) appears and claims she’s “A Cockeyed Optimist,” the BW senior shines like the star she will be (if she isn’t already). The golden-voiced Boyle, a BW student, makes us believe in every up and down twist in Nellie’s life, from her falling in love with wealthy planter Emile De Becque (Elliot Madore) to her falling out (“I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Out of My Hair”) to falling back when she realizes she truly loves him.
Madore, last seen in Cleveland in 2017 in Pelléas and Mélisande, charms Nellie and the rest of us with his smooth baritone, especially in “Some Enchanted Evening” and “This Nearly Was Mine.” (Poor Emile, how clueless to tell Nellie after much romancing “Oh, I have a surprise for you!” And poor Nellie when she discovers it’s not a ring he’s surprising her with, but instead reveals “Oh, I have two children!” But that’s on R & H and the 1940s — the children, young Avery Pyo as Emile’s daughter and Sun-Hee Smith, as his son, are sparkly and adorable.)
The other romantic pair, Broadway performer Ryan Silverman as the conflicted Lieutenant Joseph Cable, and Hanako Walrath (an incoming freshman at BW) as the quiet and graceful island girl Liat, grab what happiness they can. Silverman’s moving “Younger Than Springtime” reveals Cable’s yearning for Liat. As Liat, Walrath touchingly relies on gestures and dance to convey her feelings.
As Bloody Mary, a rather formal Loretta Ables Sayre (veteran of numerous South Pacific revivals), sings the key song that tempted Lt. Cable and the sailors to sail to “Bali Hai.” It still sounds like a magical place to be.
But the big laughs went to BW junior Gordia Hayes as Billis, the energetic (and entrepreneurial) sailor who leads chorus members in “There is Nothing Like a Dame” and later becomes Nellie’s little “Honey Bun.” Hayes’ light touch as the fun-loving sailor — and his considerable physical comedy skills — added a necessary leaven to what might otherwise have been a sad tale of sailors far from home. While Billis didn’t make their situation fun exactly, he did generate laughs, especially as he pursued his obsessive quest for shrunken heads that he could sell as souvenirs to his fellows.
Choreographer Nick Drake (also a BW student) effectively employs the chorus members to create merry scenes. The troupe of a dozen nurses (all students) scamper around the stage running workout circles around the orchestra and soloists as the sailors (also a dozen) sing “Nothing Like a Dame.”
BOTTOM LINE: An excellent collaborative production that reminds us why South Pacific remains a top favorite and that mixing established and new performers creates a special magic of its own.
[Written by Laura Kennelly]
Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Cuyahoga Falls, OH 44223