See it if Wish for an intelligent scaled-down production of an overlooked Sondheim musical
Don't see it if Want flash.
See it if How the west, esp. US, politically colonized Japan. Amazing all Asian cast with impeccably sung complex songs.
Don't see it if George Takei narrates and plays smaller, non-singing characters. Some Orientalism annoys you. More political than regular plot.
See it if You love Sondheim. Gorgeous score
Don't see it if If you don't appreciate Sondheim
See it if You like learning about other cultures history and great acting.
Don't see it if You don't like Asian history.
See it if You're a fan of Sondheim.
Don't see it if You don't want to see a musical set in the 1800s.
See it if you want to see excellent work by an excellent cast
Don't see it if you don't like Sondheim
See it if you like George Takei, Stephen Sondheim, or innovative musical theater. Superb ensemble cast & musicians. Clever staging and choreography.
Don't see it if you don't like musicals, abridgements, or Sondheim. Read more
See it if You enjoy Sondheim and/history.
Don't see it if You wanted to see an unabridged version of the play or an elaborate production.
"Pomp and grandiosity have been replaced by simplicity and lucidity in John Doyle’s stunning new production of 'Pacific Overtures'...Doyle has made the story of the Westernization of Japan in the 1850s as clear as a freshly Windexed mirror...Chief among the show’s standouts is the fabulous Steven Eng...While Doyle’s less-is-more approach to the material works most of the time, it doesn’t do justice to the show’s finale 'Next'...So, no one bats 100 percent."
Read more
“Doyle creates lots of imaginative business, such as the precise snapping open and shut of fans by the men playing girl prostitutes in ‘Welcome to Kanagawa’...Doyle's production tears away so many visual elements that it endangers clear comprehension of the book's many transitions in time and place. Following the story without clear markers of character and location puts the onus on the music and lyrics, which, however well-done, are not a sufficient substitute for narrative clarity.”
Read more
"An elegantly ritualistic treatment of the musical...Now, the two-act 'Pacific Overtures' runs 90 minutes, no intermission. Thus, the weakening of Japan’s resolve against allowing entry to foreigners feels faster than it should...The austere tunes bear the weight of convincing authenticity, even when they run the risk of blurring into one another after awhile...Performing with the somber affect and measured pace Doyle is after, the cast members are uniformly good and true."
Read more
"Doyle has made the inspired choice to cast Ann Harada in a number of roles, and she brings her inimitable wry panache to several scenes...You will appreciate the traditional casting of Megan Masako Haley. She unleashes one of the purist soprano voices to be heard outside an opera house. The male actors, unfortunately, fail to make much of an impression...In addition to Harada and Haley, the other bright spot of this 'Pacific Overtures' is the orchestra."
Read more
"With its reduced orchestra, modest singing style, and low-key spectacle, Doyle’s approach has its strengths. We really hear those dense lyrics; we lean in to appreciate the subtleties of the caste system. But this production, while scrupulously acted, seems to be having a conversation with itself, not the audience. There’s anger and irony in the material that dissipates in Doyle’s hermetic coolness…Mixed though the results may be, this earnest experiment proves the piece infinitely adaptable."
Read more
"By paring the show to its roots, Doyle’s 'Pacific Overtures' makes for altogether terrific theatergoing...By removing the stylistic wall that we have previously viewed the proceedings through, it enhances the dramatic power...At many spots through the evening, you might well notice that your fellow playgoers are positively beaming. Not because the show is full of chuckles; it’s just that it’s enthralling to see Sondheim’s 'Pacific' songs work so magically well."
Read more
"No matter what you do to Sondheim, his genius shines through...The work emerges as very much of a mood piece simply staged. The score is played beautifully...The singing has a poetic quality, as does the overall mood...And yet this comes across as 'Pacific Overtures' light, a work that begs to be seen in its original scope...But if someone has never attended other productions, seeing this version can be a gratifying experience."
Read more
"Chunks of the talkiest parts of Weidman’s book have been cut, somehow without sacrificing clarity, humor or the complexity of mixed emotions...With little more than the occasional parasol or fan, the tiny but mighty production shows the fascinations and sorrows of modernization and trade...The gorgeous music still mingles the foreign sounds of wooden flutes with Western vaudeville...Questions about progress have seldom felt as authentic."
Read more