A musical named after the state itself is finally getting staged the way it was born to be, out under the open sky along the Mother Road. Southwest Playhouse is presenting Rodgers & Hammerstein's Oklahoma! outdoors at the historic amphitheater in McLain Rogers Park in Clinton, with nine performances running across three weekends from Sept. 18 through Oct. 4.
The production is performed live and outdoors at the historic McLain Rogers Park amphitheater, according to travelok.com, and is billed as one of the signature events of Oklahoma's Route 66 Centennial celebration. As KFOR reports, the cast is performing Oklahoma! outdoors for the first time in decades, using a huge amphitheater near the historic highway to bring the show to life with a live orchestra, a surrey, and a singing cast building toward a wedding at the end.
All nine shows share the same curtain time. Per KECO-FM, curtain for Oklahoma! is 7:30 p.m. on all nine performance nights: Sept. 18-20, Sept. 25-27, and Oct. 2-4. The run is presented in partnership by Southwest Playhouse, the Clinton Chamber of Commerce and the City of Clinton, the station notes.
A Broadway Classic on a WPA Stage
The venue itself carries its own history. The amphitheater is the WPA-era amphitheater built in the 1930s and preserved along the Mother Road, the same station's report states, meaning the cast is singing beneath a structure built by Depression-era federal workers along Route 66. Route 66 is turning 100 this fall, and Clinton is marking the milestone with the production, the outlet adds.
For the actors, staging a beloved indoor classic in the open air has changed how the show feels. Wesley Javorsky, who plays the male lead Curly McLain, said the outdoor production is unique and unlike productions he has seen in western Oklahoma, according to KFOR. Angela Nichols, who plays Laurey Williams, said the outdoor setting is more freeing because the actors have more space, per the same KFOR report.
The revival also carries personal weight for at least one cast member. Julie Williams, who plays Aunt Eller in the current production, played a background ensemble role in Southwest Playhouse's 1989 and 1990 productions of Oklahoma!, KFOR reports. Williams said returning to the production was special and something she could not decline, the station notes.
Local Officials Tie the Revival to Route 66's Centennial
City leadership has framed the reopened amphitheater as more than a one-off show. Clinton Mayor David Berrong said the amphitheater's revival is significant for the city during the Route 66 centennial, according to KFOR, with the outlet describing the venue as one of the real assets Clinton has to show for the milestone year.
Dinner, Parking and Ticket Details
Before curtain, organizers are running a chuckwagon dinner from 5 to 7 p.m. at the baseball field next to McLain Rogers Park, according to the event's official show page. The meal features three meats, two sides and a drink for $25 per plate, with children 12 and under priced at $15, KECO-FM reports. Show tickets are $25 plus tax and fees and are available through Southwest Playhouse, the station adds, while the show page notes guests can park at The Edge Church and ride golf-cart shuttles to and from the amphitheater.
Because the show takes place outdoors, weather remains a factor organizers are planning around. The production takes place outdoors and is subject to weather, and canceled performances will be exchangeable for another date subject to availability, according to KECO-FM. The show page also lists the production as presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of The Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization.
