Rodger & Hammerstein's South Pacific - In Concert from Carnegie Hall

Many are the knowledgeable and discriminating people for whom Rodgers and Hammerstein's South Pacific, brilliantly co-written and staged by Joshua Logan, was the greatest musical of all. But is there anyone whose top ten list can withstand its inclusion?

South Pacific has everything. Its songs range from children's ditty to Polynesian exoticism, from passionate love ballad to heartrending elegy, from sprightly wit to riotous burlesque, and even rousing social critique. The plot includes comedy and tragedy, military thriller and star-crossed as well as happy lovers. There are terrific chorus numbers for men and also women, and solos that unobtrusively approach the operatic. And all this in top form.

Moreover, there have been numerous stage revivals and a couple of movie versions. Such operatic stars as Ezio Pinza and Giorgio Tozzi have sung Emile de Becque, and there have been any number of stellar Nellie Forbushes from the great Mary Martin on. All of these have their rabid fans, including some who, like Karen Ziemba, starred in a one-night stand few were privileged to catch.

And what profusion of anecdotes attaches to various productions! Who was or wasn't cast; who was, rightly or wrongly, dubbed by whom; who, knowing no English, had to learn his role phonetically; which tenor had to have his hair curled by the leading lady so as not to wash out as Lt. Cable; and much, much more. As a result, every new version of the show has to run the gauntlet of all those past ones--many preserved on screen, tape, or CD-thus incurring the added excitement of heated comparisons.

So now we get the Rhino DVD of the June 9, 2005 Carnegie Hall concert version, with many high points as well as a few low ones, which certainly merited preserving. And more than just preserving: presenting in a somewhat improved form.

Obtruding on the concert were a few missteps owing to extraordinarily, and perhaps unavoidably, few rehearsals. This especially affected the wonderful Reba McEntire, who wasn't entirely (or McEntirely?) ready. She had been a superlative Annie in the Broadway revival of Annie Get Your Gun; here she was somewhat less suited as well as underprepared. The former couldn't be helped, but her several slips in the lyrics could have been, and were so (with one exception) on the DVD, which had happy recourse to a rehearsal tape where Reba, unfazed by the awesome Carnegie Hall audience, was more at ease.

Well, yes: McEntire displays a Tennesseean hayseed accent and aspect that Texan Mary Martin, the original Nellie, naturally had in a subtler version. Still the greatest Nellie for my money, Martin's acting and singing-without today's electronic boost-were matchless, and she avoided Reba's slightly, albeit cutely, goony look and excessively jocular presence.

As Emile, Brian Stokes Mitchell lacks (who wouldn't?) Ezio Pinza's voice, but sports a nonetheless compelling baritone, and is a winning actor unencumbered by a thick Italian accent grating to Francophile ears. Be that as it may, Rodgers & Hammerstein's central couple and their music survive persuasively enough.

As Lt. Cable, Jason Danieley emerges superiorly, especially in the anthem-like "You've Got to Be Carefully Taught," which he infuses with strong indignation. Lilias White is a jolly Bloody Mary, but without the commanding presence of the original's Juanita Hall. As the wily opportunist Luther Billis, Alec Baldwin gets the funny operator aspect, but neither the singing nor the insinuating sexiness of Ray Walston.

Nor am I sure that the gifted conductor, Paul Gemignani, got all the intricacies of the score. But the limitations of a concert staging were doughtily combated by David Ives (adaptation), Walter Bobbie (direction), Case Nicholaw (musical staging), John Lee Beatty (scenic consultant) and Catherine Zuber (costume consultant). No one acquiring this DVD will have misspent his money or, even after frequent resavorings, regret its purchase.