South Pacific - June 2018
Set against the dramatic background of an idyllic South Pacific island during WWII, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s South Pacific intertwines the themes of romance, duty, and prejudice to create a story that is all at once hilarious, heartbreaking, and thought-provoking. Based on the anecdotes of a real-life U.S. Navy commander who was stationed on an island, the musical follows two intercultural love stories: Nellie, a nurse from Arkansas, falls in love with Emile, a French plantation owner on the island who has two half-caste children; at the same time, U.S. Lieutenant Cable falls for a beautiful Tonkinese named Liat. Both Americans find themselves struggling to reconcile their own cultural prejudices with their feelings, all the while under the dark cloud of a war that is coming ever closer to their island paradise.
“Deian Ping’s production is reverential to the source material with some good performances all round but an outstanding song and dance turn by Louise Drysdale as Nellie Forbush sets the bar extremely high. ”
“Queensland Musical Theatre’s production was performed with sincerity and genuine warmth.”