SOUTH PACIFIC, Hale Centre Theatre, West Valley City, through July 3 (984-9000). Running time: 2 hours, 20 minutes (one intermission).
WEST VALLEY CITY — Hale Centre Theatre goes "back to the future" for its revival of this 1949 Rodgers and Hammerstein classic — back to the '40s for big-band orchestrations and into the future with more high-tech scenery.
Music director Anne Puzey is utilizing an all-new arrangement of the score that gives the familiar songs a big-band, Glenn Miller sound, lending a much more appropriate "period" feel to the show instead of a lush, symphonic sound.
And more than half a century after "South Pacific" debuted on Broadway, HCT's Andrew Barrus delivers some futuristic, high-tech touches as well — a spectacular, dormant volcano for Bali Ha'i and real sand on the beach. (The promised ocean tides weren't ready on opening weekend.)
But what really kicks this show into high gear are Mearle Marsh's fast-paced direction, Marilyn May Montgomery's snappy choreography and a stellar cast in the lead roles.
OK, there were a few opening-night glitches — a momentary blackout at the beginning of one scene and flubbed lines (mostly in the dialogue between Capt. Brackett and Commander Harbison, played by Jim Gastelum and Bob McGregor), and in one bit, near the end, when Luther Billis (Bryon Finch) mistakenly called another nurse Miss Forbush.
The key players in Saturday night's cast were terrific — especially Cliff Cole as French plantation owner Emile de Becque; Kami Stallings as the energetic, "cockeyed optimist" Ensign Nellie Forbush; understudy Seth Larson as Lt. Joseph Cable; Sandy Thuy Jensen as Liat; and Laura Hirose Olson as Bloody Mary.
In a musical filled with well-known tunes, the one that packs the strongest message is "You've Got to be Carefully Taught," and Lt. Cable's intensity drives it home.
One clever bit of staging is the juxtaposition of Cable's heartfelt "Younger Than Springtime" along with Nellie and Emile's duet of "This Is How it Feels," with the focus alternating between Bali Ha'i and the terrace of de Becque's home. In this context, they're more than just pretty songs, they both propel the story.
And in a time when war and conflict are in the daily headlines, revisiting James A. Michener's tale of this earlier war, and its impact on those involved, is topical and relevant more than 50 years later.
Due to the production's complicated scenic effects, a taped score is being utilized instead of a live "pit" orchestra.
MIke Williams' sound, Spencer Brown's lighting and Scott Michelson's costuming are all first-rate.
E-mail: ivan@desnews.com