Oklahoma! Tickets

About the Show:

Oklahoma! is the very first musical by Rodgers and Hammerstein, widely regarded as one of the best teams ever to write for Broadway. Drawing from Lynn Riggs' 1931 play Green Grow the Lilacs, the story largely concerns two romances: the dramatic story of the dashing cowboy Curly McLain and the lovely farm girl Laurey Williams, and the comic tale of the love triangle among the simple cowboy Will Parker, the Persian peddler Ali Hakim, and the flirtatious Ado Annie Carnes. Oklahoma! is one of the first true "book musicals," a show with songs and performance numbers that are integrated into the story and a plot that contains serious dramatic aspects and evokes a wide range of emotions. It was also one of the first musicals to use motifs, musical themes that repeat throughout the show to connect plot and character elements to the score. Now-classic songs from the score include "Surrey With the Fringe On Top," "Oh What a Beautiful Mornin'," and "People Will Say We're in Love."

Oklahoma! opened on Broadway on March 31, 1943, and set a performance record with a whopping 2,212 shows. Its innovation won it critical and popular praise, including a special Pulitzer Prize in 1944. Since its world premiere, it has been revived on Broadway, produced around the world, and enjoyed success on national tours. The 1955 film adaptation was an Academy Award-winning success, and the show remains a popular choice for regional and school theatres. Famous actors who have lent their talents to productions of the show include Barbara Cook, Shelley Winters, Patty Duke, Florence Henderson, Andrea Martin, Hugh Jackman, Alfred Molina, Christine Ebersole, and Aasif Mandvi. Oklahoma! is truly one of the great Broadway musicals; get your tickets today and get ready to head down to the prairie!

Plot Synopsis:

In the wide plains of the Oklahoma territory in 1906, dashing cowboy Curly McLain starts off his day with a positive outlook while wandering into the yard of the lovely farm girl Laurey Williams. Laurey's Aunt Eller watches as they flirt with each other until Curly asks Laurey to that night's box social. He tries to entice her by promising her a ride on a beautiful carriage, but playing hard-to-get, she refuses. Later, the dangerous farm hand Jud Fry asks Laurey to the dance, and even though Jud frightens her, she accepts to make Curly jealous .

Elsewhere, cowboy Will Parker comes home from a wild trip to the Kansas City fair, where he won fifty dollars. This is the exact amount that his girlfriend Ado Annie Carnes' father says he needs to marry his daughter, but he spent it all on presents for her. Meanwhile, Ado Annie tells Laurey that she has been seeing the Persian salesman Ali Hakim while Will has been away, and that she loves them both. When her father finds out about their relationship, he forces Ali at gunpoint to marry her and he is terrified of both options.

When Curly discovers that Laurey is going to the dance with Jud, he tries to convince her to change her mind, but she is too afraid to cancel on hi, so she tries to convince Curly that she doesn't love him. Curly visits Jud in his lonely smoke house and tries to convince him to hang himself to make people notice and appreciate him, but Jud only resolves to win Laurey over for good. In an attempt to sort through her love for Curly and fear of Jud, Laurey buys a "magic potion" (really a bottle of smelling salts) from Ali, who promises they will show her the way. After a terrifying dream in which Jud kills Curly, she realizes that Curly is the man for her, but it is too late to cancel on Jud, and she leaves with him for the box social.

At the dance that night, there is an auction of lunch baskets made by the local women. The man who wins the basket also gets a date with the lady who made it. When Will tries to win Ado Annie's basket, Ali bids himself to help the simple Will keep his fifty dollars so he can marry Ado Annie in his place. Curly and Jud bid fiercely on Laurey's basket, and Curly eventually wins by selling his possessions. But Jud doesn't take defeat lying down; Laurey fears her dream may have been a premonition of things to come as Jud plans his revenge. Can Ali push the clingy Ado Annie back into Will's willing arms? Will Ado Annie be able to get over her flirtatious ways and be faithful to Will? And will Laurey and Curly be able to escape Jud's wrath and live happily ever after? Order your Oklahoma! tickets to see the resolutions of these down-home dilemmas for yourself!

Run Time:

Approximately 2 hours and 50 minutes with one intermission

Advisory:

Appropriate for young teens and older (violence, adult themes)

Awards:

• 1980 Tony Awards: 2 nominations
• 1999 Olivier Awards: 9 nominations, 4 wins
• 2002 Tony Awards: 7 nominations, 1 win
• 2002 Drama Desk Awards: 9 nominations, 2 wins
• ...and many more...

Creative Team:

Music	Richard Rodgers
Lyrics & Book	Oscar Hammerstein II
Based On	Green Grow the Lilacs by Lynn Riggs

Oklahoma! News:

June 2, 2002

Congratulations to Shuler Hensley for winning the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for his portrayal of Jud in the Broadway revival of Oklahoma!