Concert Adaptation of 'South Pacific' Unveiled at Southampton Cultural Center Thursday

SOUTHAMPTON, NY - The well-loved score of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s classic, “South Pacific,” is set to come gloriously to life in a new production by Center Stage at the Southampton Cultural Center.

The show debuts on Thursday, March 3 and runs through Sunday, March 20th in Southampton Cultural Center’s Levitas Center for the Arts. Thursday performances are at 7:30 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 p.m. and Sundays at 2:30 p.m..

Michael Disher will direct the show, and Amanda Borsack Jones serves as musical director.

“Set on an island paradise during WWII, two parallel love stories are threatened by the dangers of prejudice and war. Nellie, a spunky nurse from Arkansas, falls in love with a mature French planter, Emile de Becque. Nellie learns that the mother of his children was an island native and, unable to turn her back on the prejudices with which she was raised, refuses Emile’s proposal of marriage,” a release says. “Meanwhile, the strapping Lt. Joe Cable denies himself the fulfillment of a future with an innocent Tonkinese girl with whom he’s fallen in love out of the same fears that haunt Nellie.”

The concert adaptation was created by David Ives for the Carnegie Hall benefit concert of South Pacific in 2006. The well-known, hummable score includes tunes such as “I’m in Love With a Wonderful Guy”, “Younger Than Springtime”, “I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Outta My Hair”, “This Nearly Was Mine”, and “Some Enchanted Evening”.

Center Stage’s cast includes Deniel Becker, Jose Coropuna, Julie Crowley, Shannon Dupuis, Jonathan Fogarty, Richard Gardini, Joey Giovingo, David Hoffman, Aaron Kaufman, Brianna Kinnier, Darren Ottati, Dakota Quackenbush, Douglas Sabo, Jack Seabury, Kimet Speed, Christina Stankewicz, Josephine Wallace, Kristin Whiting, Scout Whiting and Edna Winston.

General admission tickets are $25 and student tickets, under 21 with ID, are $12. Tickets can be purchased online at www.scc-arts.org or by calling (631) 287-4377.

Dinner/theatre packages are available Thursdays through Saturdays. Brunch/theatre packages are available on Sundays.

Photo by Dane DuPuis.