Oklahoma!
Rodgers and Hammerstein's first musical collaboration.
Oklahoma! is a musical by the team of Rodgers and Hammerstein. It is based on Lynn Riggs’s 1931 play *Green Grow the Lilacs* and takes place in 1906 on farms near Claremore, in Indian Territory. The plot follows farm girl Laurey Williams as she is courted by two rivals: the cowboy Curly McLain and the menacing farmhand Jud Fry. A side story involves cowboy Will Parker and his flighty fiancée, Ado Annie. The show first opened on Broadway on March 31, 1943, became a major hit, and ran for an extraordinary 2,212 performances. It earned a special Pulitzer Prize in 1944 and remains a staple of school and community theater.
The musical was the first collaboration between Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. By the early 1940s, both men had already created successful Broadway shows with other partners. Rodgers had worked with Lorenz Hart on hits like *Babes in Arms* and *Pal Joey*, while Hammerstein had written lyrics for *Rose-Marie*, *The Desert Song*, *The New Moon*, and *Show Boat*. However, Hart’s alcoholism and unreliability led Rodgers to ask Hammerstein if he would become his new collaborator.
The idea for the musical came from the Theatre Guild. In 1941, producer Theresa Helburn saw a summer-stock version of *Green Grow the Lilacs* that included folk songs and square dances. She thought it could become a musical that would help the struggling Guild. Rodgers obtained the rights and initially planned to work with Hart, but Hart lost interest, finding the rural setting uninspiring. He went to Mexico and suggested Hammerstein as a replacement. Hammerstein had already considered adapting the play himself but had been turned down by composer Jerome Kern. He eagerly joined Rodgers.
Their partnership allowed each to work in his preferred way: Hammerstein wrote complete lyrics first, and Rodgers then set them to music. This was a reversal of Rodgers’s previous method with Hart, where the music came first. It also differed from Hammerstein’s earlier collaborations, where composers wrote music before lyrics. This new approach let the songs deepen the story rather than interrupt it. Rodgers and Hammerstein agreed that their choices would be guided by the source play, not by standard musical comedy formulas, which usually relied on big numbers, novelty acts, and humor with little dramatic weight.
For casting, Rodgers and Hammerstein chose singers who could act
- opened
- March 31, 1943
- original_run
- 2,212 performances
- based_on
- Lynn Riggs's 1931 play Green Grow the Lilacs
- setting
- farm country outside Claremore, Indian Territory, 1906
- creators
- Rodgers and Hammerstein
- award
- special Pulitzer Prize (1944)
Lore & Background
By the early 1940s, Rodgers and Hammerstein were each well known for creating Broadway hits with other collaborators. Rodgers, with Lorenz Hart, had produced over two dozen musicals since the 1920s, including such popular successes as Babes in Arms (1937), The Boys from Syracuse (1938) and Pal Joey (1940). Among other successes, Hammerstein had written the words for Rose-Marie (1924), The Desert Song (1926), The New Moon (1927) and Show Boat (1927). By the early 1940s, Hart had sunk into alcoholism and emotional turmoil, prompting Rodgers to approach Hammerstein to ask if he would consider working with him. In 1941, Theresa Helburn, a producer of the Theatre Guild, saw a summer-stock production of Green Grow the Lilacs supplemented with traditional folk songs and square dances and decided the play could be the basis of a musical. Rodgers wanted to work on the project and obtained the rights for himself and Hart. Hart lost interest in the musical, preferring contemporary, urbane shows, and advised Rodgers that Hammerstein would be a good choice of a new collaborator.
Reader's Guide
Oklahoma! was Rodgers and Hammerstein's first pairing on a musical. Building on the innovations of the earlier Show Boat, it epitomized the development of the 'book musical', a musical play in which songs and dances are fully integrated into a well-made story with serious dramatic goals. It features musical themes, or motifs, that recur throughout the work to connect the music and story, and a fifteen-minute 'dream ballet' reflecting Laurey's struggle with her feelings about two men. The show opened on Broadway to raves from the critics, sold out, and won a special Pulitzer Prize. Brooks Atkinson wrote in The New York Times that the show's opening number, 'Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'' changed the history of musical theater. The show's creativity stimulated Rodgers and Hammerstein's contemporaries and ushered in the 'Golden Age' of American musical theatre.
Did You Know?
- The original title of the work was Away We Go! before being retitled after the musical number 'Oklahoma'.
- The show had no stars in its original Broadway production, an unusual step at the time.
- The choreography was by Agnes de Mille, her first musical on Broadway.
- Producer Mike Todd walked out after the first act during tryouts and said, 'No girls, no gags, no chance.'
Frequently Asked Questions
Who created Oklahoma!?
Oklahoma! is the first musical written by the songwriting team of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. Their partnership on this show launched a long collaboration that reshaped the American musical theatre landscape.
What is the plot of Oklahoma!?
The story centers on farm girl Laurey Williams, who becomes the object of a love triangle between her cowboy suitor Curly McLain and the unsettling farmhand Jud Fry. A parallel subplot follows cowboy Will Parker as he tries to win back his fickle fiancée, Ado Annie.
Where and when is Oklahoma! set?
The action takes place in 1906 on the farms surrounding the town of Claremore in Indian Territory, just before the region's admission as a state.
How successful was Oklahoma! on Broadway?
The production opened on March 31, 1943, and went on to play 2,212 performances, making it one of the longest-running shows in Broadway history at that time.
What is Oklahoma! based on?
Rodgers and Hammerstein adapted the book from Lynn Riggs's 1931 stage play Green Grow the Lilacs, transforming its dialogue into a full sung-through musical. The show also earned a special Pulitzer Prize in 1944.
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