Oklahoma staring Hugh Jackman, gets cinema release
Rodgers & Hammerstein's classic gets the silver screen treatment🎥
Last updated 10th May 2023
Trafalgar Releasing, in partnership with Concord Originals and The Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization, announced the international cinema release of the National Theatre’s acclaimed, Olivier Award-winning production of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Oklahoma! Starring then-newcomer Hugh Jackman (Les Misérables, The Greatest Showman) as Curly, this riveting stage revival was filmed following its record-breaking 1998 run in London.
Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Oklahoma! is the first musical written by Rodgers & Hammerstein. The musical is based on Lynn Riggs’ 1931 play Green Grow the Lilacs. Set in farm country outside the town of Claremore, Indian Territory, in 1906, it tells the story of farm girl Laurey Williams and her courtship by two rival suitors.
The film will be screened in more than 800 cinemas around the globe for two days only, on Sunday July 16th and Wednesday, July 19th – including the United Kingdom United States, Canada, Ireland, Norway and Australia.
This 25-year-old production of Oklahoma! – coinciding with the 80th anniversary of the musical’s groundbreaking 1943 premiere on Broadway – features some of the most delightfully hummable songs by the legendary team of composer Richard Rodgers and librettist/lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II, including “Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’,” “The Surrey with the Fringe on Top,” “People Will Say We’re in Love” and the joyous title tune, “Oklahoma.”
The 1998 production is considered Hugh Jackman’s breakout musical role. Hugh Jackman said "Oklahoma was the beginning for me, I absolutely loved it. I have to give props to the whole cast. I would love to come back"
Talking about the West End Hugh also said "I love it here, I love theatre here. Broadway and West End they are the two pinnacles"
The original Broadway production opened on Broadway on March 31st, 1943. It was a box-office smash and ran for an unprecedented 2,212 performances, later enjoying award-winning revivals, national tours, foreign productions and an Academy Award-winning 1955 film adaptation. Oklahoma! redefined and revolutionized the American musical, and launched the most successful songwriting partnership in Broadway history.
Directed by three-time Tony Award winner Trevor Nunn (CATS, Les Misérables) with new choreography by five-time Tony Award winner Susan Stroman (The Producers, Crazy for You), the film also stars Maureen Lipman as Aunt Eller, Josefina Gabrielle as Laurie, Tony and Olivier Award winner Shuler Hensley as Jud Fry, Vicki Simon as Ado Annie, Jimmy Johnston as Will Parker and Peter Polycarpou as Ali Hakim. The stage production transferred to London’s West End in 1999 and won four Olivier Awards, including Outstanding Musical Production.
Kymberli Frueh, SVP of Content and Programming Acquisitions at Trafalgar Releasing said: “The 80th anniversary of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Oklahoma! allows us to share this quintessential slice of Americana with global fans.
This particular production is acknowledged as one of the best through the eight decades of performances in theatres around the world. All the talent in this classic version of Oklahoma! hit their mark brilliantly and musical theatre fans can experience for themselves why it is credited with launching Hugh Jackman’s stage career. We’re proud to be a part of this momentous anniversary”.
Tickets for the limited screenings are available on the Oklahoma in Cinemas website.
Have a look at more Rodgers & Hammerstein musicals
Oklahoma!
The first musical the legendary writing duo worked on was Oklahoma! which was based on Lynn Riggs' 1931 play, Green Grow the Lilacs. The musical first opened on 31st October 1943 at the St. James Theatre and went on for 2,212 performances which was unprecedented at the time.
Oklahoma! continues to be revived to this day with the most recent UK revival being the 2022 revival at the Young Vic.
Carousel
The second musical that Rodgers and Hammerstein wrote was Carousel. The musical was based on the 1909 play Liliom by Ferenc Molnár and told the story of carousel barker Billy Bigelow 's romance with millworker Julie Jordan. Carousel premiered at the Majestic Theatre on 19th April 1945.
Carousel features the song 'You'll Never Walk Alone' which has become a football anthem with Liverpool F.C. fans since the 1960s.
The most recent UK production of Carousel was Regent's Park Open Air Theatre's revival which ran in the summer of 2021. Their version of the show moved the story's setting from the American state of Maine in the 1870s to the UK in the mid-20th century.
South Pacific
Based on James A. Michener Pulitzer Prize-winning novel 'Tales of the South Pacific', South Pacific opened at the Majestic Theatre on 7th April 1949.
The most recent revival seen in the UK was the Chichester Festival Theatre's 2021 production which returns in 2022 for a West End run and UK tour.
The King and I
Based on Margaret Landon's novel Anna and the King of Siam, The King and I tells the story originally inspired by Anna Leonowens' memoirs of her time as the governess to the children of King Mongkut of Siam (now Thailand) in the 1860s.
The musical first opened on Broadway in 1951 at the St James Theatre and first arrived in the West End two years later with a run at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane.
The musical hit the big screen in 1956 with Deborah Kerr as Anna and Yul Brynner reprised his role as King Mongkut of Siam which he originated on Broadway.
Cinderella
Rodgers and Hammerstein took on the classic fairy tale of Cinderella for a musical that first went to the small screen instead of the stage. Cinderella was originally broadcast live on CBS in the United States in 1957 and starred Julie Andrews in the titular role.
Two more television films were made in 1965 and 1997 with the latter starring Whitney Houston as the Fairy Godmother.
The musical finally got the Broadway treatment decades later when it ran at The Broadway Theatre in 2013 with an updated book by Douglas Carter Beane. The production is set to get its UK premiere in late 2022 when it runs at the Hope Mill Theatre in Manchester.
The Sound of Music
The Sound of Music is one of the most beloved musicals written by Rodgers and Hammerstein. Based on Maria Von Trapp's memoirs The Story of the Trapp Family Singers.
The musical opened at the Shubert Theatre with Mary Martin as Maria, the musical opened in London two year later at the Palace Theatre.
The 1965 film adaptation starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer is regarded as one of the most beloved movie musicals of all time.
Oscar Hammerstein II passed away nine months after the musical premiered on Broadway making The Sound of Musical the last musical written by the pair.
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