Oklahoma! (Touring) Tickets

I grew up listening to Oklahoma. I knew changes had been made, but I was appalled at the poor quality. The set looked like a high school musical-or junior high. The sound was awful. It seemed to be failing at a modern version when the old sons were sung. I left at intermission.

Dallas Summer Musicals you should be ashamed for putting this on your schedule. As a season ticket holder I have to rethink my support because I feel DSM has some obligation to protect the classics and by promoting this hideous show, especially with Rodgers and Hammerstein on the billing, you are doing more harm than good by promoting this as the musical Oklahoma! I don’t think there could have been anything that would have made this show worse.

Given that I love the movie version of "Oklahoma!" and enjoyed a local theatrical performance as a teenager, I had high expectations for a Broadway production. Boy, were my hopes dashed! Right from the start, I knew something wasn't right. There was just one set on the stage, with wooden chairs and picnic-like tables, plus racks of guns (lots of them!) on the side walls. (I could argue that the acting was wooden, too!) A 7-member band (if you can call the group of musicians that) was positioned in the back of the stage. The cast of 12 actors (if you can call them that) sat on the wooden chairs. When the performance began, one of them (Curly) got up with his guitar and began singing "Oh What a Beautiful Morning". (The actor has an excellent voice though.) After the song ended, the actress who played Aunt Eller said something while seated on the other side of the stage, supposedly talking to Curly. Eventually, the actress who played Laurey chimed in, also while seated. At times, it was difficult knowing who was talking to whom, particularly while they were all seated. It was as if the actors were merely reciting their lines in a rehearsal. During some songs, the singer(s) planted themselves in front of a microphone stand, as if it was karaoke night. In the second act, when the namesake song of the musical was sung, the actors' performances lacked the rousing energy that Rodgers & Hammerstein intended. The musical was dark, figuratively and literally. The stage and house lights were turned off when Curly and Judd met in the smokehouse. You only heard the voices, forcing you to imagine the scene as if it was a radio drama. Then the backdrop became a black-and-white projection of the actor as he spoke. Eventually, I realized that someone was holding a camera (infrared?) in front of the actors' faces on stage. Creepy! "Oklahoma!" is a period piece that is supposed to take place in the early 20th century in a conservative part of the country. You cannot impose liberal 21st century mores and maintain the same plot lines. You cannot cast Ado Annie, a "floozy" of a character, to be a big black trans-woman who literally stands above the male actors and expect the subplot of "I Cain't Say No" to make sense. You cannot sing "Out of My Dreams" at the end of Act 1, break for intermission, then perform the so-called dream sequence, which was more gymnastics than ballet, at the start of Act 2. Worst of all, (SPOILER ALERT) you cannot end the show with Laurey standing on stage with fake blood on her wedding dress. Ugh! This was definitely not how I want to remember the musical "Oklahoma!" I hope I can see the movie version again soon.

Terrible terrible terrible, R & H are turning over in their graves...which is where this show should go. Sorry.

Although we were entertained, we were disappointed in this reimagining. I enjoyed the musicians on stage, rather than in the pit. At one point the conductor was asked by Jud if he wanted to buy a gun. Sadly, the pace was plodding. The energy level was low with most of the characters. I enjoyed specifically, Will and Ali Hakim whose portrayal was similar to the original story. And THEY were the funniest, understated characters with the best lines. The choreography was sparse, except for a lengthy interpretive modern dance (Twyla Tharp) which seemed very out of place. Having characters just sit quietly on stage until their scene began seemed lazy and confusing. Also, why use an Igloo cooler and call it a "basket"? (Baskets can easily be found.) Why have a big masked stage hand walk on the stage to deliver beer then turnaround and leave? He could have been another character just as easily. I wonder have any of the cast seen the original musical? Try it , you'll like it...

I did not like the changes in the arrangement of Oh What a Beautiful Morning and the Oklahoma closing song. I was terribly disappointed in the stage design (or lack there of)! It really took away from the true Broadway experience. The re-styled Judd character (emo inspired I suppose) was very underwhelming. The Peddler lacked the charisma and comedy of the original show… he is usually one of my favorite characters but I was very underwhelmed by him. The “dream” scene in the second Act was very confusing. I still am not sure how it contributed to the show. There were many instances of awkward silence and long pauses. I loved Sis as Ado Annie! Totally unexpected but LOVED this new take on the casting for the show! The actress playing Laurey had an amazing voice but the changes to her portrayal made her seem very dark and heavy. My guess is the story was meant to highlight and portray the mental health crisis and in America today but made the show way too dark and depressing as opposed to a light hearted comedy.

First, the good. It was great to see such a diverse cast. Sis as Ado Annie knocked it out of the park. The actor playing Jed had a great voice but mumbled his non-singing lines and was unintelligible. I knew they were going for a contemporary take, but it's staged like a high school musical in a school with no drama budget. EVERYTHING takes place in the one set-What is supposed to be a town hall looks more like a high school cafeteria, and the mostly modern costuming (Jed in a hoodie? Come on!) is off putting. I was triggered back to my high school's 1972 production of Guys and Dolls by the wall projections. The performances were generally lack luster and couldn't overcome the no-budget look of the stage. I left at intermission, as did a multitude of others. First time in my life I didn't see a show to the end, and I've attended many.

This is not the “Oklahoma” you know and love. If I had read the reviews before purchasing the tickets, I would not have purchased them. I would get this negative stars if I could.

This was the worst show I’ve seen! I thought it was a lighthearted happy show and took my mom and daughter to see it. We were warmed when walking in that it’s a very dark interpretation with gunshots, smoke, and blood. This isn’t even what made it so awful. The storyline of them innocently murdering a guy that was different but had really done no wrong is just not appropriate with everything that’s going on in the world today. It was also our first time at Winspear and it was an excellent venue!

Worse play I’ve seen. We left at intermission. Plot was terrible and singing was just as bad.

Truly and experience...with a 21st Century flavor! Funny, heartwarming, and exhilarating, and wish I could see it again!

Loved the venue. Loved the evening with my daughter. Hated the adaptation.

As my partner and I said throughout the evening, this is Oklahoma and it isn't. It possesses the beloved songs and keeps numerous comedic moments, but the final product is one that contains a complexity, anxiety, and ambiguity that is absent from the original brilliance of Rogers & Hammerstein. I shall be blunt: many people in our audience did not return to the show after intermission, and of those that did stay, even fewer chose to give a standing ovation to a cast and crew that implemented emotional, innovative, and immersive twists in a show that many people thought they knew through and through. Let the reader not be dissuaded or afraid, however, from this experience. This Oklahoma has grown up on the frontier and is not interested in being romanticized or idealized in any way. It is brutal and strong and it will buck you much like the broncs and bulls that character Will Parker probably rode. For those who hang on, this show delivers an unforgettable ride full of raw emotion and honesty. Of note, the Dream Ballet and Pore Jud is Daid are particularly powerful.

Winspear was a great venue - Musical was good, but modern interpretation kinda left me ambivalent - Dance portion of the second act was irrelevant and unnecessary - Many in audience for first act did not return for second - Classic songs are still crowd pleasers but this trend on touring companies to modernize/update these classics are not a turn on - Felt the same way with Jesus Christ Superstar at the Fairground Playhouse, after seeing it 12 times over the years, that same trend left me unmoved.

The venue is very nice. We got to be in the 5th floor. It was hard to hear as the cast were not wearing mics. I thought it was a musical, but actually had a lot, lot of dialogues. I understood it was a comedy, not even close, most likely a very long drama. The video effects were difficult to see or understand from the 5th floor. I heard very few laughs from the public, we clapped out of courtesy. The only thing that was loud and clear were the shots.

Extremely disappointed, oven the years we have seen more than 50 Broadway shows and I must say this this was probably the worst. The plot is very uninteresting, but this is not the major problem: the cast was mediocre at best, the decor had nothing interesting, and the costumes were plain. I understand that this is taking place in rural Oklahoma, but nevertheless, Broadway is supposed to sell dream and this had nothing to dream about. In addition the Winspear (Dallas) was terribly cold that night so it was not on any level an enjoyable experience. Sorry for the harsh words, but so many of the shows we saw, from the most avantgarde to the most classic, have been unforgettable experiences and this one is just one to be (quickly) forgotten about.

We left at intermission because we could not stand to watch the second act! I was expecting some production value, costumes, dancing etc. befitting a musical. But there was nothing. I don't even have any words. I would not waste my money. The star is only because I couldn't submit without at least one.

I haven't seen the original so I'm not sure what I expected but it definitely was not this. It was directorial experimentation taken to the EXTREME. My party ledt early. Beautiful venue!

To be honest...We were not aware this was not the original story...the acting was good but just not what we expected. Not sure that we would have went had we knew what we were getting into...most of the patrons left the theater at intermission and did not return for the second act...we stayed and it honestly just got more weird.

I was looking for a special event to take my brother for his 50th birthday. He enjoys anything that has to do with the performing arts, so when I saw that OKLAHOMA was going to be at the Windspear and it was a Broadway cast, I jumped at the chance to purchase my tickets. I am a Rogers & Hammerstein fan and am very familiar with the play. I was not expecting a contemporized version of this American classic. The following are the reasons why I did not care for this version of OKLAHOMA: 1. did not like that the scene never changed 2. whoever did the casting did not do a good job; Ado-Annie did not fit the character and neither did Gertie Cummings (she didn't get the laugh right) 3. Did not care for the rock style rendition of the songs 4. the dream ballet ............well, I didn't get it 5. I thought the scenes with no lights on the stage was too long and the scenes with the weird dark light on the faces projected on the back screen was a no go for me as well. I was ready to keep my opinions to myself but that quickly changed when we got on the elevator and a lady said "I am just curious, Did anyone else NOT like the performance?" that's when almost every hand went up, including mine