Talk:Oklahoma!

In Popular Culture section

There are some significant issues with the "In popular culture section", but my attempts to clean them up were reverted by Ssilvers. Most of this section fails MOS:POPCULT, as items in an "In popular Culture" section require citations to sources that give in-depth coverage of the subject of the article (i.e. the musical Oklahoma!), not just a mention of "In this scene, so-and-so sang this song". --Ahecht (TALK
PAGE) 21:03, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

The guideline states that, when including information about cultural impact, "A source should cover the subject's cultural impact in some depth". I agree with this, but I don't see that a serious effort has been made to find appropriate references for the material that you propose cutting. Oklahoma! is perhaps the most famous and enduring Broadway musical, since WWII, and its songs and story have been referred to, performed, quoted and pastiched in countless media. I agree that the current references are too listy and otherwise requires improvement and curating, but I object to simply deleting items that discuss a significant reference, unless they have been examined carefully to see whether they are appropriate and an appropriate source can found that discusses the cultural impact of the item. -- Ssilvers (talk) 22:32, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

When Harry Met Sally

The use of "Surrey with the Fringe on Top" is limited to that specific song, and makes no mention of the musical itself. If anything, this should be in the The Surrey with the Fringe on Top article, not here. --Ahecht (TALK
PAGE) 21:03, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

I totally disagree with you, if you are implying that reference to a single song cannot be an important cultural reference. However, I would not be opposed to a statement like "various media have commented on, reproduced, pastiched, etc The Surrey with the Fringe on Top (giving a few good refs), and then move the more detailed discussion of each one to the The Surrey with the Fringe on Top article.

Twister

Incidental use of a single song is claimed but not verified (as written the claim is false, as Beltzer isn't singing anything when he's introduced, but I don't feel like watching the rest of the movie to see if another scene is being referenced). If there were a citation, and this isn't an "unremarkable mention" per WP:IPCEXAMPLES, this would belong in the Oklahoma (Rodgers and Hammerstein song) article, not here. --Ahecht (TALK
PAGE) 21:03, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

As above, but I would be happy to be informed with confidence that Beltzer does not sing any song from Oklahoma! in the film, which would save me having to google around to find a good source. -- Ssilvers (talk) 22:32, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

Not even looking for it, I see this and this and this, for starters, as if Twister is one of the two most significant examples. -- Ssilvers (talk) 22:58, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

@Ssilvers Then the item should be updated just to say that the film references the musical, as those sources do, since Beltzer certainly isn't singing it when he's introduced (the song Talula is playing in the background, but no one is singing anything). --Ahecht (TALK
PAGE) 00:30, 25 October 2022 (UTC)

Dave

Incidental use of a single song is claimed but not verified. If there were a citation, and this isn't an "unremarkable mention" per WP:IPCEXAMPLES, this would belong in the Oklahoma (Rodgers and Hammerstein song) article, not here. --Ahecht (TALK
PAGE) 21:03, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

As above. -- Ssilvers (talk) 22:32, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

I Can Only Imagine

Use of a single song is claimed but not verified. If there were a citation, and this isn't an "unremarkable mention" per WP:IPCEXAMPLES, this would belong in the Oklahoma (Rodgers and Hammerstein song) article, not here. --Ahecht (TALK
PAGE) 21:03, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

As above. -- Ssilvers (talk) 22:32, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

3rd Rock from the Sun

Incidental use of a single song is claimed but not verified. If there were a citation, and this isn't an "unremarkable mention" per WP:IPCEXAMPLES, this would belong in the Oklahoma (Rodgers and Hammerstein song) article, not here. --Ahecht (TALK
PAGE) 21:03, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

As above. It does not say that it is "incidental"..-- Ssilvers (talk) 22:32, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

Faulty Towers

Incidental use of a single song is claimed but not verified. If there were a citation, and this isn't an "unremarkable mention" per WP:IPCEXAMPLES, this would belong in the I Cain't Say No article, not here. --Ahecht (TALK
PAGE) 21:03, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

As above. It does not say that it is "incidental", and it is impossible to judge without, again, doing the research for good sources. -- Ssilvers (talk) 22:32, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

Band of Brothers

Incidental use of a single song is claimed but not verified. If there were a citation, and this isn't an "unremarkable mention" per WP:IPCEXAMPLES, this would belong in the Oklahoma (Rodgers and Hammerstein song) article, not here. --Ahecht (TALK
PAGE) 21:03, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

Same. -- Ssilvers (talk) 22:32, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

Oklahoma, U.S.A

Incidental reference a single song is claimed but not verified. If there were a citation, and this isn't an "unremarkable mention" per WP:IPCEXAMPLES, this would belong in the The Surrey with the Fringe on Top article, not here. --Ahecht (TALK
PAGE) 21:03, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

Agreed and deleted, as my search did not turn up any good sources, and the song itself does not seem to have charted. I note that "Oklahoma U.S.A." has a WP entry, even though it seems incredibly non-notable. -- Ssilvers (talk) 22:32, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

Breakfast at Tiffany's

Unremarkable mention. Holly is never actually depicted singing any of the songs, the entirety of the reference is the single sentence She knew all the show hits, Cole Porter and Kurt Weill; especially she liked the songs from Oklahoma!, which were new that summer and everywhere. --Ahecht (TALK
PAGE) 21:03, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

Are you certain that our statement is simply false that in the novella Holly "sings music from Oklahoma! while accompanying herself on her guitar"? If you are certain of that, then I would agree that this need not be researched further and can be deleted. -- Ssilvers (talk) 22:32, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

@Ssilvers That sentence was in the context of talking in general about what she likes to sing with her guitar, but there's no actual scene in the novella in which she's singing it, and it's never mentioned again. --Ahecht (TALK
PAGE) 00:27, 25 October 2022 (UTC)

Then I have no objection to deleting the item. -- Ssilvers (talk) 00:32, 25 October 2022 (UTC)

Schmigadoon!

We should add a mention of Schmigadoon!, which parodies several of the characters and tropes of Oklahoma!. See this, and I'll find more refs. -- Ssilvers (talk) 23:36, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

And YouTube political parodies. -- Ssilvers (talk) 23:45, 24 October 2022 (UTC)

Euphoria

Euphoria's "funniest scene" (also this this, and these 15,000 results). -- Ssilvers (talk) 00:02, 25 October 2022 (UTC)

A case for notability of UNCSA production

While there are plenty of college productions of Oklahoma! out there, the UNCSA's notability lies in it being a direct, deliberate recreation of the original 1943 Broadway production, with the involvement of Gemze de Lappe recreating the choreography, use of original costume and set designs, and recreation of the original orchestrations and staging. Ted Chapin, then-president of the Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization, says this in an article published about the production: "For John Mauceri to conceive the idea of an Oklahoma! as close to exactly how it was when it opened may seem like a simple idea, but no one has had it before. It is sure to add an invaluable piece to both the historic and performance history of a musical that has long been acknowledged as the one that galvanized an entertainment genre into an American art form." Plenty of colleges may put on a student production, but none to such an extent and with the involvement of the Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization. Muppet321 (talk) 02:26, 13 August 2023 (UTC)

What do you think about this User:Wehwalt and User:Flami72 and User:Epicgenius and User:4meter4 and anyone else? Notwithstanding what the Yahoo! article says, it seems to me that replicating original productions is actually done to death. Plus, this production ran for only a couple of weeks and, based on the source selected, apparently did not get much attention from the media or theatre community. -- Ssilvers (talk) 13:46, 13 August 2023 (UTC)

If there are no or few other commentators, I wouldn't think it was very notable, especially given the brevity of the run. Wehwalt (talk) 13:50, 13 August 2023 (UTC)

I agree with Wehwalt. The fact that this run attracted little media coverage, and didn't last more than two weeks, seems to indicate that the UNCSA production isn't noteworthy at all. If this production won an award, maybe, but as it stands, an entire paragraph about this seems pretty WP:UNDUE. Epicgenius (talk) 16:04, 13 August 2023 (UTC)

@Ssilvers, Epicgenius, and Wehwalt This is not a Yahoo News article, it's from Playbill and by a notable theatre journalist. Here is the original source and here is another Playbill article covering its broadcast on local television, and the recording's IMDB listing. There is also coverage of the production in Mordden, Ethan, "The Rodgers and Hammerstein Handbook, Anything Goes: A History of American Musical Theatre (New York, 2013; online edn, Oxford Academic, 26 Sept. 2013), https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199892839.003.0012, accessed 13 Aug. 2023. I would say the production deserves a mention based on the last source; although a paragraph long mention isn't warranted. One or two sentences should be fine.4meter4 (talk) 18:01, 13 August 2023 (UTC)

Where in the article would it go? Once again as a section in "other notable productions"? Or as an addition under "Original Broadway"? Also, a possible way to write it out: "The University of North Carolina School of the Arts staged a recreation of the original Broadway production April 28-May 8, 2011, utilizing original designs, choreography, orchestrations, and interviews with then-surviving members of the original cast (including Celeste Holm and Joan Roberts) to present the show as close as possible to how it looked in 1943. The production, which was directed by Terrence Mann and included frequent de Mille-collaborator Gemze de Lappe as choreographer, was later filmed and broadcast for North Carolina public television." --Muppet321 (talk) 05:44, 4 February 2024 (UTC)

I'm afraid that 4meter4's argument has not persuaded me. This is a very short run of an amateur production. Not WP:NOTEWORTHY, given the tens of thousands of productions of this musical, including regular regional productions with notable cast and creatives that have much longer runs. The only thing of any encyclopedic interest about this production was that Mann got de Lappe to collaborate. The fact that he tried to replicate the original production was a marketing gimmick and/or an indulgence of the director that is not uncommon in the world of musical theatre -- Ssilvers (talk) 01:50, 5 February 2024 (UTC).

Small correction: if we're to write this off as a vanity project, it would be that of John Mauceri: Mann was brought in to replace Gerald Freedman. For what it's worth the coverage of the production in Anything Goes: A History of American Musical Theatre is a footnote where the author states that having a 1:1 replica of the original production was notable for historical documentation purposes: "...Not till 2011, when the University of North Carolina School of the Arts staged a replica revival of the original Oklahoma!, did we of today get a look at Curly’s mango shirt and orange tie, Ali Hakim’s loud checked suit, or Ado Annie’s orange-and-white layered skirt and jacket combo, the white stippled with polka dots".

I will add I've been wracking my brain and I cannot recall many cases of musicals having exact replica productions of the original, or if they do it would be more accurate to call them a remount because they have the participation of the original team (Cabaret, both the Hal Prince and Roundabout revivals, is one that comes to mind + some operas). Could you list some examples? Muppet321 (talk) 07:18, 5 February 2024 (UTC)

An addendum: the 2012 public television broadcast of the production won a National Educational Telecommunications Award and was evidently broadcast on both UNC-TV and Oklahoma Educational Television Authority (OETA). Granted, the award is for the recording, not the production itself. Muppet321 (talk) 07:02, 5 February 2024 (UTC)