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==Reception and success== ===Critical reception=== Reviewers gave the original production uniformly glowing reviews; one critic called it "South Terrific".<ref>Nolan, p. 194</ref> [[Steven Suskin]] wrote that the show was one of only eight musicals that opened on Broadway between 1943 and 1964 to "unanimous raves from the major first-night newspaper critics".<ref>[[Steven Suskin|Suskin, Steven]]. [https://playbill.com/article/on-the-record-spotlight-on-mary-martin-and-beatrice-lillie-com-166077 "On the Record: Spotlight on Mary Martin and Beatrice Lillie"], ''[[Playbill]]'', 21 February 2010</ref> The ''[[New York Herald Tribune]]'' wrote: {{blockquote|The new and much-heralded musical, ''South Pacific'', is a show of rare enchantment. It is novel in texture and treatment, rich in dramatic substance, and eloquent in song, a musical play to be cherished. Under Logan's superb direction, the action shifts with constant fluency. ... [He] has kept the book cumulatively arresting and tremendously satisfying. The occasional dances appear to be magical improvisations. It is a long and prodigal entertainment, but it seems all too short. The Rodgers music is not his finest, but it fits the mood and pace of ''South Pacific'' so felicitously that one does not miss a series of hit tunes. In the same way the lyrics are part and parcel of a captivating musical unity.<ref name=Suskin>Suskin, pp. 639β643</ref>}} The ''[[New York Daily Mirror]]'' critic wrote, "Programmed as a musical play, ''South Pacific'' is just that. It boasts no ballets and no hot hoofing. It has no chorus in the conventional sense. Every one in it plays a part. It is likely to establish a new trend in musicals." The review continued: "Every number is so outstanding that it is difficult to decide which will be the most popular."<ref name=Suskin/> The review in ''[[New York World-Telegram]]'' found the show to be "the ultimate modern blending of music and popular theatre to date, with the finest kind of balance between story and song, and hilarity and heartbreak."<ref name=Suskin/> [[Brooks Atkinson]] of ''[[The New York Times]]'' especially praised Pinza's performance: "Mr. Pinza's bass voice is the most beautiful that has been heard on a Broadway stage for an eon or two. He sings ... with infinite delicacy of feeling and loveliness of tone." He declared that "Some Enchanted Evening", sung by Pinza, "ought to become reasonably immortal."<ref name=Suskin/> [[Richard Watts, Jr.]] of the ''[[New York Post]]'' focused on Mary Martin's performance, writing, "nothing I have ever seen her do prepared me for the loveliness, humor, gift for joyous characterization, and sheer lovableness of her portrayal of Nellie Forbush ... who is so shocked to find her early racial prejudices cropping up. Hers is a completely irresistible performance."<ref name=Suskin/> When ''South Pacific'' opened in London in November 1951, the reviews were mixed. London's ''[[Daily Express]]'' praised the music but disliked other elements of that show, writing, "We got a 42nd Street ''Madame Butterfly'', the weakest of all the Hammerstein-Rodgers musicals.<!-- The source does not give the name of reviewers on these two: --><ref name = "M156" /><ref>"Alas, some not entirely enchanted evening", ''[[Daily Express]]'', November 2, 1951, p. 3</ref> The ''[[Daily Mail]]'' suggested, "The play moved so slowly between its songs that it seemed more like ''South Soporific''."<ref name="M156"/> ''[[The Times]]'' applauded the songs but indicated that "before the end the singing and the dancing have dwindled to almost nothing, while the rather sad little tale is slowly and conventionally wound up."<ref>"Drury Lane Theatre: ''South Pacific''. ''[[The Times]]'', November 2, 1951, p. 7</ref> ''[[The Guardian|The Manchester Guardian]]'', however, noted the anticipation in advance of the opening and concluded that "there was no disappointment ... the show bounces the audience and well deserves the cheers."<ref>"South Pacific", ''[[The Guardian|The Manchester Guardian]]'', November 2, 1951, p. 5</ref> Drama critic [[Kenneth Tynan]] of ''[[The Spectator]]'' wrote that ''South Pacific'' was "the first musical romance which was seriously involved in an adult subject ... I have nothing to do but thank Logan, Rodgers and Hammerstein and climb up from my knees, a little cramped from the effort of typing in such an unusual position."<ref name = "M156" /> A 2006 review asserted: "Many are the knowledgeable and discriminating people for whom Rodgers and Hammerstein's ''South Pacific'', brilliantly co-written and staged by Joshua Logan, was the greatest musical of all."<ref>[http://www.broadway.com/buzz/5882/rodger-hammersteins-south-pacific-in-concert-from-carnegie-hall/ "Rodger & Hammerstein's ''South Pacific'' β In Concert from Carnegie Hall"], Broadway.com, July 5, 2006, accessed June 5, 2013</ref> In 1987, [[John Rockwell]] of ''The New York Times'' reviewed the City Opera production, commenting that while ''South Pacific'' had been innovative for 1949, "[[Stephen Sondheim|Sondheim]] has long since transcended its formal innovations, and the constant reprises of the big tunes sound mechanical. In 1949, ''South Pacific'' epitomized the concerns of the day β America's responsibilities in the world and the dangers of racism. ... At its 1967 State Theater revival, the show struck many as dated. It still seems that way, with ''M*A*S*H'' having contemporized this same setting".<ref>Rockwell, John. [https://www.nytimes.com/1987/03/02/arts/music-a-new-south-pacific-by-the-city-opera.html "Music: A new ''South Pacific'' by the City Opera"], ''The New York Times'', March 2, 1987, accessed June 5, 2013</ref> A 2008 ''[[Huffington Post]]'' review criticized the play as having an Orientalist and Western-centric storyline in which stereotypical natives take on "exotic background roles" in relation to Americans, and it characterized the relationship between Cable and Liat as underage prostitution, charging that she "speaks not a word in the whole musical, only smiles and takes the Yankee to bed."<ref>Ayers, Rick. [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rick-ayers-/emsouth-pacificem----musi_b_99550.html "''South Pacific'' β Musical Orientalism"], ''[[Huffington Post]]'', May 1, 2008</ref> ''South Pacific'' is the only major American musical set in World War II,<ref name = "b3">Butler, p. 3</ref> but former Marine [[Robert Leckie (author)|Robert Leckie]] wrote his memoir of that conflict, ''[[Helmet for My Pillow]]'', after he walked out of a performance: "I have to tell the story of how it really was. I have to let people know the war wasn't a musical."<ref>Di Ionno, Mark. [http://blog.nj.com/njv_mark_diionno/2010/02/hbo_series_shines_light_on_nj.html "HBO series illuminates N.J. Marine's book on World War II experience"], NJ.com, February 21, 2010</ref> ===Box office and awards=== {{Main|List of awards and nominations for the musical South Pacific}} ''South Pacific'' opened on Broadway with $400,000 in advance sales. People were so eager to obtain tickets that the press wrote about the lengths people had gone to in getting them. Because "house seats" were being sold by [[ticket resale|scalpers]] for $200 or more, the attorney general's office threatened to close the show. The parties who provided the scalpers with the tickets were never identified, and the show ran without interference. The production had a $50,600 weekly gross, and ran for 1,925 performances. The national tour began in 1950 and grossed $3,000,000 in the first year, making $1,500,000 in profit. The [[Cast recording|original cast album]], priced at $4.85, sold more than a million copies.<ref>Nolan, p. 195</ref> The original production of ''South Pacific'' won ten Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Best Male Performer (Pinza), Best Female Performer (Martin), Best Supporting Male Performer (McCormick), Best Supporting Female Performer (Hall), Best Director (Logan), Best Book and Best Score.<ref name=Tonys1950>[https://www.tonyawards.com/winners/year/1950/category/any/show/any/ Winners 1950], Tony Awards official website, accessed May 23, 2019</ref> As of 2016, it is the only show to win Tonys in all four acting categories.<ref>Haun, Harry. [http://www.playbill.com/article/quiz-oscar-has-tony-ties-challenge-your-awards-knowledge-com-342229 "Quiz: Oscar Has Tony Ties, Challenge Your Awards Knowledge!"], ''Playbill'', June 15, 2016</ref> In 1950, the musical won the [[Pulitzer Prize for Drama]], the second musical to do so after ''[[Of Thee I Sing]]'', which won in 1932.<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date=May 9, 1962| page=1| title=Pulitzered ''Succeed'' Is 2d Musical in 3 Seasons to Clean-Sweep Awards}}</ref> Rodgers became the first composer of musical comedy to win the Pulitzer, as composer [[George Gershwin]] had not been recognized for ''Of Thee I Sing''.<ref name = "M153">Maslon, p. 153</ref> The Pulitzer Prize was initially given only to Rodgers and Hammerstein; Logan was later recognized in an amended announcement, much to his annoyance.<ref name=Nolan190/> The 2001 London revival garnered a [[Laurence Olivier Award]] for [[Philip Quast]] (Emile).<ref> [http://www.olivierawards.com/about/previous-winners/view/item98540/olivier-winners-2002/ "Olivier Winners 2002"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131016131843/http://www.olivierawards.com/about/previous-winners/view/item98540/Olivier-Winners-2002 |date=2013-10-16 }} , Olivier Awards official website, accessed April 7, 2012 </ref> The 2008 revival won seven Tony Awards, including Best Revival (Sher and Szot also won, and the show won in all four design categories), and five [[Drama Desk Award]]s, including Outstanding Musical Revival. The late [[Robert Russell Bennett]] was also honored that season for "his historic contribution to American musical theatre in the field of orchestrations, as represented on Broadway this season by Rodgers and Hammerstein's ''South Pacific''."<ref>{{cite web |title=Tony Awards Winners 2008 |url=https://www.tonyawards.com/winners/year/2008/category/any/show/any/ |website=Tony Awards official website |access-date=13 April 2021}}</ref><ref>[http://livedesignonline.com/theatre/20072008-drama-desk-awards-winners-honored 2007β2008 Drama Desk Awards Winners Honored], Livedesign.com, accessed June 11, 2013.</ref> As of 2016, this was the musical revival with the most Tony Awards.<ref>[http://www.tonyawards.com/en_US/history/facts/index.html "Quick Facts"], Tony Awards official website, accessed August 5, 2016</ref> The 2011 London production received three [[Olivier Award]] nominations, including Best Musical Revival, but won none.<ref>Singh, Anita. [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/theatre-news/9146000/Olivier-Awards-full-list-of-nominations.html Olivier Awards: Full list of nominations], ''[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]]'', March 15, 2012, accessed June 11, 2013</ref><ref>Singh, Anita. [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/culturenews/9205615/Young-stars-steal-the-show-as-Matilda-sets-Olivier-records.html Young stars steal the show as ''Matilda'' sets Olivier records], ''[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]]'', April 15, 2012, accessed June 11, 2013</ref>
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