More Dance Rehearsals
Despite the fatigue, repetitiveness, and strain of practicing and performing in a musical number, the dancers practice to make it look effortless. In this image from dress rehearsals for Oklahoma! dress in the late 1960s, most of the dancers have a broad smile on their face, concealing what they may be feeling beneath the surface. The dancers are practicing the nightmare ballet sequence from Oklahoma! where the main character, Laurey, must choose between two suitors, Curley and Jud.
She falls asleep after drinking an elixir she hopes will help her choose, but instead propels her into a bad dream with a terrifying wedding and being thrust into a world of vice and hedonism complete with a saloon and scandalous dancing girls. The sequence moves from serene to joyful to nightmarish, a testament to Rodgers and Hammerstein’s innovative storytelling technique.