The 2008 revival of South Pacific was a Broadway sensation. The production won seven 2008 Tony awards (out of eleven nominations) and enjoyed great popular and critical support in its run at the Lincoln Center Theatre. The musical tackles issues of racial prejudice against the backdrop of the American war effort in the South Pacific during World War II.
The original Broadway production premiered in 1950 and won all ten Tony Awards for which it was nominated. It also received the Pulitzer Prize for drama in 1950. It was the fifth collaboration between composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II. They based their work on two short stories by James A. Michener from his book Tales from the South Pacific.
This video of Harry Connick Jr. introducing the 2008 Tony Award performance pretty much sums up the show’s cultural and musical value:
Here is a full band performance of Robert Russell Bennett’s arrangement:
Now some other links:
Richard Rodgers biography on Wikipedia.
Oscar Hammerstein biography on Wikipedia.
Rodgers & Hammerstein on Wikipedia.
Arranger Robert Russell Bennett biography on Wikipedia.
New York Times review of Broadway revival.
Finally, a bonus video: “Some Enchanted Evening” very convincingly performed on The View in 2008: