The Royal National Theatre's revival of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical South Pacific will open at the Olivier Theatre on Dec. 12, following previews from Dec. 3.

Set on a small island in the South Pacific, this musical tells the story of Nellie Forbush a U.S. Navy nurse who falls for a mysterious French planter and Lt. Joe Cable who is befriended by a Tonkinese trader, Bloody Mary.

The Rodgers and Hammerstein score includes the songs 'Some Enchanted Evening," "I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Outta My Hair" and "There Is Nothin' Like A Dame."

South Pacific was a hit on Broadway when it first appeared in 1949, and a successful film version followed in 1958. Adapted from James A. Michener's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, it combines romance in the South Seas with the realities of a world at war.

Trevor Nunn directs Rodgers and Hammerstein's musical masterpiece in the Olivier Theatre, with designs by John Napier and musical staging by Matthew Bourne.

Bourne is one of the co-founders of Adventures In Motion Pictures. His interpretations of established classics such as the all male Swan Lake and The Car Man have earned him wide acclaim.

Trevor Nunn recently directed My Fair Lady for the National, which has now transferred to the West End.

Booking opens on Oct. 1. The production will play for a strictly limited run until April 27, 2002.

—by Theatrenow