Ohio Light Opera season opens with enchanted evening
Sarah Best and ensemble perform in Ohio Light Opera’s opening of their 2019 season with a production of the Rogers and Hammerstein musical, “South Pacific.”
It truly was an enchanted evening recently when the College of Wooster’s Ohio Light Opera opened their 2019 season with a top-notch production of the Rogers and Hammerstein musical, “South Pacific.”
The story, based on James Michener’s Pulitzer Prize-winning book from 1947, “Tales of the South Pacific,” remains sadly relevant today with its themes of war and learned prejudice.
The house was full for the season opener with a widely diverse crowd. Everyone was captivated from the first moment when the OLO turned even the ritual of asking audience members to turn off their cell phones and refrain from chatting during the performance into a fun part of the performance.
The orchestra, conducted by J. Lynn Thompson, was startling in its splendor with the expansive score. And the harp, as always, was a joy to watch, as it remained visible to the audience’s left during the whole evening.
From the opening scene, Aidan Smerud, in his second season with the OLO, captivated the audience as Emile with his powerful voice and delightfully easy to understand French accent.
Smerud and Michelle Pedersen as Bloody Mary both nearly stopped the show along the way through the moving and powerful story.
OLO veteran Sarah Best, always a shining presence on the stage, made the part of Nellie fantastically her own rather than attempting to mimic the role as played on Broadway and in the film.
Kyle Yampiro, back for his fourth season, is once again an utter and complete delight. His performance as Luther Billis is perfectly spot on without stealing the show.
Pedersen as Bloody Mary also delivers a stellar performance in her character role.
There are too many names to mention in the rest of the cast, and all deliver a top-notch evening of theater.
The fellas definitely convince us that there is indeed nothing like a dame. And the ladies include the audience in the fun they have helping Nellie wash that man out of her hair.
Costumes and set were elegant in their simplicity, setting the scene and not stealing it.
The production overall delighted the audience, from the magic of Nellie actually having wet hair after washing that man out of it, to the sound effects that made everyone feel like a plane was truly taking off directly over the audience’s head.
Perhaps as the season progresses, audiences will remember the show isn’t over until the OLO’s world-class orchestra has played that last chord. Only a handful of audience members remained to offer well-deserved applause after the curtain call as the final bit of the score was completed.
There’s no need to drive to the big city for a fabulous night of theater. All one need do is call the Ohio Light Opera box office and arrange to be magically transported to the South Pacific with both feet firmly planted in Wayne County.
Ohio Light Opera tickets are available online at www.ohiolightopera.org/buy-tickets/ and at the box office, 329 E. University St., Wooster, Monday through Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. or by calling 330-263-2345. All shows are presented at Freedlander Theatre on the College of Wooster campus, 303 E. University St., Wooster.