MUSICAL THEATRE REVIEW:
SOUTH PACIFIC
20 FEB/11

JOHN COULBOURN - QMI Agency
Rating: 4 out of 5

As any auto mechanic will tell you, preventative maintenance can save you a bundle, ensuring as it does that it's not going to cost you a bundle for major repairs down the road. And after kicking the tires on the opening night performance of SOUTH PACIFIC at the Toronto Centre for the Arts on Friday, one couldn't help but think that it might be time for Tony Award-winning director Bartlett Sher to drop by for a 10,000 km. tune-up on his road show. You know - tighten up a few belts, check the timing and otherwise ensure that everything is running shipshape.

To refresh your memory, this is the self-same production that created a tsunami of praise last summer in a too-brief stint at the Four Season Centre as part of Dancap's summer season there. And even though there's been a whack of casting changes, it's still a pretty impressive show with a high wow factor, thanks not only to that enduring score and book by Richard Rodgers, Oscar Hammerstein II and Joshua Logan, but also to the designs of Michael Yeargan (sets), Catherine Zuber (costumes) and Donald Holder (lights), all streamed into Sher's fresh and vital vision of the show.

Despite the cast changes, there are still some impressive performances too, not the least of which would be Carmen Cusack's reprise of her delightful turn as Ensign Nellie Forbush, the young American nurse who finds herself stationed on an island in the middle of the South Pacific at the height of the Second World War. She also finds herself in love with local planter Emile de Becque (played until March 6 by David Pittsinger, who then surrenders the role to local boy Jason Howard, who played the part last summer, for the remainder of the run) -- but his past keeps getting in the way. While Pittsinger brings his own spin to the part, he also brings a powerful voice, so those who miss seeing Howard in the role needn't worry that they are being shortchanged.

There's good work too from Jodi Kimura, reprising her turn as the Tonganese huckster known as Bloody Mary, and if Timothy Gulan tries just a bit too hard in his role as Luther Billis, it's easy to overlook, especially once Aaron Ramey finds his key and settles into the role of Lt. Cable, the marine who suffers from many of the down-home prejudices that plague Ms. Forbush and threaten her happiness.

But while the production still runs like a clock, one might notice that it is idling slow -- not so much road weary as stuck in a state of languor that seems to keep it from reaching maximum power. It's as though Cusack et al have lost all memory of opening night tension and are allowing themselves just a few too many moments to savour the quality of their performances. Right now, though this show still seems to purr right along, it's easy to detect a few missing beats, if one listens closely. If Sher deals with it soon, there's still a lot of mileage in this production -- but if he ignores it, it could cost him a bundle down the road.