Any chance we'll see Daniel Fish's Oklahoma! again?

I ask because I just got reminded of it on my snapchat memories. The 2021-2022 was my first experience with the show, and was my first theatrical experience all around (probably explains a lot.) And would like it to see it somewhere in it's original form and not in the huge 2000 or 1200 seat touring houses that the show came too in Alabama, even though 13 year old me saw all the performances in Alabama as I convinced my family for tickets during the holidays. Now nearing 3 and 2 years since since I saw it, I ask if we'll ever see it again in any North America theatre.

Updated On: 2/17/24 at 07:57 PM

If only. One of my favorite theatre going experiences of the last 20 years.

I believe he is currently developing a production of THE MOST HAPPY FELLA, which i would LOVE to see.

I don't think it's been done in Australia yet, although I have no idea of the likelihood. I was not a fan, but to each their own.

blaxx said: "Broadway Flash said: "I hope not it was dreadful. Oklahoma is not supposed to be a tragedy. It’s better when you stick to the script and happy."

On the contrary, Fish was able to truly show the dark piece it is."

There is no way on earth Rodgers and Hammerstein would agree had they seen it.

I think there is room for interpretations like this because Oklahoma! is a classic that can survive any interpretation, but it is absolutely not true to what the work was intended to convey.

Updated On: 2/16/24 at 01:15 AM

The Distinctive Baritone said: "To piggy-back on what joevitus said, it was a “deconstructionist” take. These definitely-not-what-the-author-intended productions can be fun experiences for theatre fans, but this Oklahoma was specifically a response to a cultural moment in time. I don’t think it would have the same effect in 2024. Similarity, if the recent 1776 had premiered a few years earlier, it probably would have been better received."

It recently closed in the West End, the same effect was there.

While the tone in Fish's production may have differed in intention, the original dark plot was onstage. Fish just put emphasis on it. In reality, this approach just brings out deeper interpretation of the classics.

If anything, Fish's take highlights the original author's intention when adapting Green Grow the Lilacs, the piece is more profound than the fluff we usually get with it.

I'm just glad it was so well received. Not only the Renaissance works allow for diverse approaches and I'm glad to live in times where directors can take a risk with other classics, and ignore the purists.

unlikely unless some major regional theater in a place that didn't get the tour wants to recreate his staging ect

I doubt anyone really expected it to be a favorite on the road, where I’m sure many people - and especially older subscribers - were expecting a more traditional production.

But even the most traditional of revivals run their course, in New York City and on the road.

Updated On: 2/16/24 at 05:07 AM

tacotheatrelover said: "I ask because I just got reminded of it on my snapchat memories. The 2021-2022 was my first experience with the show, and was my first theatrical experience all around (probably explains a lot.)

I predict that somewhere between 2045-2050 some hot shot director will revive Oklahoma in a production that, while not an exact replica of Fish's production, will be strongly informed by their memories of seeing Fish's production when they were 13 or 14 years old.

I saw it in London just to make sure I hated it as much as I had told everyone I did and turns out I hated it even more and we didn’t even get cold chili there.

Same. I always say with older shows i love to see new takes on them. Sometimes they work and sometimes they don’t and for me, this one was just ridiculous.

I enjoyed it on Broadway. But it made me want to see a very traditional version to just compare stories.


that said, I’d be curious what he does next? Seems like Jamie Lloyd is churning them out but Fish is taking his time.

I thought it was revelatory. And hey, if nothing else, it succeeded in stirring passionate responses about the oldest chestnut in the canon, a show so ingrained in culture it’s basically part of the furniture.

No. Time marches forward.