DATE: Thursday, October 9, 1997             TAG: 9710100989

SECTION: DAILY BREAK             PAGE: E3   EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: Music Review 

SOURCE: BY MONTAGUE GAMMON III, SPECIAL TO THE DAILY BREAK 

                                            LENGTH:   65 lines

VMT OPENS WITH A MEMORABLE ``SOUTH PACIFIC''

A CHARMINGLY PERIOD production of ``South Pacific'' kicks off the Virginia Musical Theatre's first season under its new name. From the moment the curtain rises to reveal that the action will be framed by old-fashioned soft drops painted with lush, tropical foliage and backed by scenery of painted skies and islands upon a painted ocean, it is clear that VMT is honoring the play's status as a revered theatrical museum piece.

The play is not only a piece of history itself, but a parable of our country's historic entry into global greatness during World War II. On a Pacific island where the U.S. Navy has a base, fresh-faced young Americans encounter exotic Polynesian culture and Old World colonialism while battling the threat of Axis world domination.

In other words, how you gonna keep 'em down in Little Rock after they've seen Bali Hai?

Though the cast displays abundant professionalism, the show really belongs to Ken Parks. The wonderful voice with which he sings the role of Emile de Becque is almost all the reason one needs to attend.

Of course, de Becque is a distillation of romantic fantasies. He's the suave Continental, handsome, cultured, rich and rather mysterious. He carries a past that hints of danger and violence, but violence done only in the service of justice.

When the middle-aged de Becque falls in love with a young Navy nurse who describes herself as a ``hick,'' their wartime courtship proceeds according to every imaginable convention. A happy ending, tinged by the requisite sadness of another's death, is easily predictable even if one hasn't seen some variation of this show in the 48 years since it hit Broadway.

Harriett McClure brings to the part of Arkansas-bred Nellie Forbush all the pertness and innocence one could want, yet the perky energy one expects to find in her dancing is surprisingly subdued, except in one scene. When Forbush takes part in a Navy variety show, McClure suddenly blossoms as a vaudeville entertainer. One wonders why all that vivacity had been kept under wraps.

The de Becque-Forbush affair is counterbalanced by the tragic sub-plot about the heroically doomed Marine Lt. Joseph Cable and his native lover, Liat. But the suggestion of a commercial transaction when the money-minded Bloody Mary introduces the two overpowers the image of heady young love.

All the performers acquit themselves well in 1949 musical style. Actors and actresses alike strut through chunks of the show with elbows and shoulders back, chins high and chests thrust forward, a bit like sprinters nearing the tape. Their voices are as clear as their broadly drawn motivations, with a tunefulness rarely harshened by the ever-present, electronic amplification.

The painted scenery is as pretty as can be, sometimes discretely wrinkled and waving ever so gently now and then. The lighting is carefully designed to accent the lush colors, filling the stage with warmth, though not always picking out facial features precisely.

Director Jeff Meredith has created a show of unity and stylistic coherence, rich in nostalgia and traditional appeal. Memorably sung, smoothly performed and filled with lovely images, it speaks well for the future popularity of the Virginia Musical Theatre. ILLUSTRATION: Graphic

REVIEW

What: ``South Pacific,'' by Rodgers, Hammerstein and Logan.

Presented by Virginia Musical Theatre.

When: 8 p.m. Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday

Where: Virginia Beach Pavilion Theater

Call: 340-5446

Send Suggestions or Comments to webmaster@scholar.lib.vt.edu