The cast of "Oklahoma!" gathers around the surrey in the final scene of the show.

This Friday, July 30, is opening night for the Springville Community Theater’s production of “Oklahoma!” The cast of 50 strong includes ages ranging from 5 to 70+.  Actors, dancers, costumers, builders, and animal wranglers are all hard a work to make this production the biggest and best yet for the 34-year old group. Complete with horses and chickens, the pioneer village of Homestead Hollow will be the backdrop for the show.  Beginning with a barbeque dinner, the audience will move from scene to scene throughout the village, watching the tale unfold.

 “Oklahoma!”  by Rodgers and Hammerstein, was the first collaboration by the musical writing team. This show remains, in many ways, their most innovative, having set the standards and established the rules of musical theatre still being followed today. Set in a Western Indian territory just after the turn of the century, the high-spirited rivalry between the local farmers and cowboys provides the colorful background  against which Curly, a handsome cowboy, and Laurey, a winsome farm girl, play out their love story. Although the road  to true love never runs smooth, with these two headstrong romantics holding the reins, love’s journey is as bumpy as a  surrey ride down a country road. That they will succeed in making a new life together we have no doubt, and that this new life will begin in a brand-new state provides the ultimate climax to the triumphant OKLAHOMA!

Tickets are $10 for adults and $8 for children ages 12 and under. Ticket prices include a barbeque dinner and the show. Performances will run July 30, 31 and August 5, 6, and 7, with dinner at 6:00 p.m. Advance reservations are required. For reservations, email springvilletheater@windstream.net, call Joanne at 919-3198 or Sherry at 467-7670.