by Linda Chin

‘Pacific Overtures’ – Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim; Book by John Weidman; Directed by Spiro Veloudos; Music Direction by Jonathan Goldberg; Scenic Design by Janie E. Howland; Costume Design by Gail Astrid Buckley; Sound Design by Andrew Duncan Will; Lighting Design by Karen Perlow; Choreography by Micheline Wu. Presented by Lyric Stage at 140 Clarendon St., Boston through June 16

Boston’s Lyric Stage caps its 10-production-in-20-seasons journey through the Stephen Sondheim songbook with Pacific Overtures, the story of the westernization of Japan – starting with Commodore Matthew Perry’s arrival at the port of Uraga in 1853. Arguably the most sophisticated of the composer’s scores, bold in its portrayal of American intrusion from the perspective of the Japanese, and a challenge to cast, Pacific Overtures is also the least performed. The 1976 Broadway production involved a large cast of Asian actors (mostly male), elaborate staging, choreography, sets and costumes, and incurred a large financial loss when it closed after 6 months. Other Greater Boston companies (North Shore Music Theatre, 2003; BU’s School of Theatre, 2012) have staged revivals with mixed reviews and audience reception, including some criticisms about casting non-Asian actors to portray Asians and other instances of stereotyping and cultural insensitivity. Pacific Overtures is not everyone’s cup of chrysanthemum tea.

Read more “All-Asian Cast Conquers Sondheim’s Ambitious All-American Musical ‘Pacific Overtures’ at Lyric Stage”