“South Pacific”: Why I Loved It
Did you catch the PBS broadcast last night of “South Pacific”? I was lucky enough to be in the audience, and I can tell you that it was thrilling, for a final time before the show closes on Sunday, to hear singing on a Broadway stage with a big orchestra. (Click here to see if there’s a PBS re-broadcast in your area.) That’s a practice that’s going the way of cloth-bound books, I can tell you. Not only was it glorious to hear all the live musicians, it was almost shocking to hear singing that so often relied on softness rather than the amped-up Broadway belting audiences are so conditioned to accept these days. I like a good rock ‘n’ roll show as much as the next bloke, but I can tell you that cranked-up volume is only useful for expressing joy and rage. When you have the full range of dynamics, as we did last night in “SP,” you can express the full range of human feelings.
i am so happy i decided to watch south pacific last night. i felt like i was watching it on broadway. i also remembered when my husband and i fell in love and can still feel how good it was. i’m a new yorker and have seen some plays. this was a great performance.