STAGE REVIEWS : RIP-ROARING REVIVAL OF ‘OKLAHOMA!’

Elizabeth Howard’s Curtain Call Dinner Theatre strips “Oklahoma!” down to its nuts and bolts, but fortunately Rodgers and Hammerstein provided some remarkably durable nuts and bolts. The 1943 musical classic still manages to rip and roar in all the right places in this joyous version, the result of judicious editing, a solid cast and exceptional vocal work.

Director John J. Ferola briskly steers this pared-down version from song to song. Gone is the dream ballet; gone, too, is much of the dark subtext. What remains are the plot essentials--cowboy loves girl, cowboy loses girl to evil farmhand, cowboy gets girl--and a wealth of memorable songs. It is immediately evident that “Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’ ” is in good hands when Scott Wedekind strolls on stage as Curly, rolling back on his heels and pushing up the brim of his hat, a stage cowboy who actually looks comfortable bursting into song. Wedekind gives an agile performance, backed by powerful vocal work, and is well-matched with Jane Elizabeth Ethridge as Laurey, the farm girl who toys with his affections. Ethridge is affecting as a young woman emerging from sheltered girlhood, and when she lends her resonant voice to duets with Wedekind, they can raise goose bumps at will.

The young lovers’ confrontations with Jud, the malevolent hired man, offer the only dark edges in this predominantly good-humored production. Tony Richards takes Jud beyond the stereotype of a brooding loner, using his forceful voice to eerie advantage in “Pore Jud” and “Lonely Room.” But the darker corners of this version aren’t dark for long, with Tracey Rowe and Tim Nelson around for spirited comic relief as Ado Annie, the girl who “cain’t say no,” and Will Parker, the thick-skulled cowhand in hot pursuit. Rowe is as gloriously silly as she is warmly endearing, and Nelson is a likable screwball and decidedly hyperkinetic as the lovesick cowpoke.

Bette Rae is nicely convincing as Laurey’s sage old aunt, and Dale Jones is comically slick as a traveling salesman trying to evade Ado Annie’s clutches. The chorus is excellent, providing strong vocal support and high-stepping footwork. Laura Insley’s effective choreography produces hoedown fever, spilling out into the aisles and onto the table tops.

“Oklahoma!” will play through Aug. 17 at Elizabeth Howard’s Curtain Call Dinner Theatre, 690 El Camino Real, Tustin. For information, call (714) 838-1540.