Pacific Overtures

E363289

Pacific Overtures is a 1976 Broadway musical by Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman that explores the Westernization of Japan in the 19th century through a stylized, Kabuki-inspired form.

All labels observed (2)

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (64)

Predicate Object
instanceOf Broadway musical
stage musical
actStructure two-act musical
awardNomination Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical
Tony Award for Best Costume Design
Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical
Tony Award for Best Musical
Tony Award for Best Original Score
bookBy John Weidman
composer Stephen Sondheim
countryOfOrigin United States
criticalReputation considered one of Stephen Sondheim’s most experimental works
depictsCountry Japan
United States
director Harold Prince
genre musical theatre
hasOriginalCastRecording Pacific Overtures (original Broadway cast recording)
linked to: Pacific Overtures
language English
lyricist Stephen Sondheim
musicalFormInfluence Japanese musical idioms
Kabuki theatre
linked to: kabuki theater
narrativeDevice recitation by the Reciter
notableProduction 2002 Japanese-language production
notableSong A Bowler Hat
Chrysanthemum Tea
linked to: Chrysanthemum

Four Black Dragons
Next
Pretty Lady
Someone in a Tree
There Is No Other Way
Welcome to Kanagawa
openingYearOnBroadway 1976
orchestrator Jonathan Tunick
originalBroadwayCastMember Alvin Ing
Isao Sato NERFINISHED
Mako Iwamatsu NERFINISHED
Sab Shimono
Soon-Tek Oh
Yuki Shimoda
originalBroadwayChoreographer Patricia Birch NERFINISHED
originalBroadwayClosingDate 1976-06-27
originalBroadwayCostumeDesigner Florence Klotz
originalBroadwayLightingDesigner Tharon Musser
originalBroadwayOpeningDate 1976-01-11
originalBroadwayPreviews 13 previews
originalBroadwayRunLength 193 performances
originalBroadwayScenicDesigner Boris Aronson
originalCastRecordingLabel RCA Victor
originalLanguageOfLyrics English
portraysEvent Commodore Perry’s arrival in Japan
opening of Japan to the West
premiereDate 1976-01-11
premiereLocation Broadway
premiereTheatre Winter Garden Theatre
producer Harold Prince
revival 1984 Off-Broadway revival
2004 Broadway revival
2017 Classic Stage Company revival
settingPeriod 19th century
subject Westernization of Japan
linked to: Meiji era
theatricalStyle Kabuki-inspired
theme clash between tradition and change
cultural imperialism
modernization

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (4)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Stephen Sondheim notableWork Pacific Overtures
Harold Prince notableWork Pacific Overtures
Harold Prince notableWork Pacific Overtures
subject linked to: Harold Smith Prince
Pacific Overtures hasOriginalCastRecording Pacific Overtures (original Broadway cast recording)
linked to: Pacific Overtures