So outstanding, it’s reborn

This national touring production of “Oklahoma!” is so good that one cynic, who has endured this old warhorse way too many times, said at the curtain: “And I never even knew I liked ‘Oklahoma!’ ”

I was that cynic. This production – based on the Cameron Mackintosh-Trevor Nunn Royal National Theatre revival – is superior in almost every way. The costumes are dusty and realistic; the sets are windblown and imaginative; the lighting evokes an Oklahoma sunset; and the Susan Stroman choreography has a Ray-Bolger-in-Oz comic exuberance.

Yet the sheer talent in the lead roles is what hooked me from the first two numbers. Spencer Plachy is the best Curly any director could ask for, with an open, good-natured face, an aw-shucks demeanor and the kind of singing voice that comes along rarely.

He has a powerful baritone, perfect pitch control and impeccable diction. He made “Oh What a Beautiful Mornin’ ” sound brand-spanking new, which is quite a feat, considering the song is 63 years old.

Plachy and the two equally marvelous female leads – Jessica Lavin, as the tomboyishly endearing Laurey, and Pat Sibley, as the lovable-irascible Aunt Eller – turn “The Surrey With a Fringe on Top” into a comic-dramatic short story. Plachy’s use of dynamics is particularly effective; he can drop to a whisper and still have us hanging on his words.

If Sibley looks familiar, it’s because she was once a Spokane actress – as Bella in the Spokane Civic Theatre’s 1996 “Lost in Yonkers,” and Madame Arcati in Interplayers’ 1995 “Blithe Spirit.” Even then, it was obvious that she had national-class talent. It’s hard to imagine any actress, with the possible exception of Patty Duke, creating a more strong-willed and admirable Aunt Eller.

I mention Duke because she played Aunt Eller three years ago in the Broadway production on which this tour is based.

Andrew Lebon displays an eerily stunted and effective speaking voice as the American theater’s ultimate creepy stalker, Jud Fry.

As for Lavin, she can not only sing and act, she has serious ballet chops as well, as she proved in the “Out of My Dreams” ballet sequence to close Act One.

That Stroman-choreographed ballet, by the way, exemplifies the difference between this and most other productions of “Oklahoma!” It is far more gritty, hallucinatory and frightening than the original, with disembodied hands beckoning Laurey into the cornfield. At one point, it descends into Fosse-like decadence, with scantily dressed dance-hall floozies representing the dark side of life, in comparison with the open and sunny American wholesomeness celebrated by “Oklahoma!”

Don’t get me wrong – this is still the beloved and cheerfully corny “Oklahoma!” with all of those tuneful Rodgers and Hammerstein songs. The plot still revolves around a box social. Yet this production manages to make it compelling instead of silly.

One final note: Spokane’s own Kasey RT Graham, the tour’s musical director, does a fine job of presiding over the seven-piece pit orchestra. He received a warm ovation from his hometown crowd.

That was followed by a standing ovation that erupted on the final “Yeooww!” of the final curtain encore. No doubt about it, people just love this show. Yeah, I get it, finally.

“Oklahoma!” continues through Sunday. Call TicketsWest outlets (325-SEAT, 800-325-SEAT, www.ticketswest.com).