Broadway loves Reba McEntire. The redheaded Oklahoma firebrand took on the one-night-only role of Nellie Forbush on June 9, 2005—the role Mary Martin immortalized in the 1949 Rodgers & Hammerstein classic South Pacific—and the Rialto’s toughest critics, led by The New York Times’ Ben Brantley, instantly surrendered. “Open-voiced and open-faced, she was born to play Nellie,” Brantley wrote of the Carnegie Hall benefit performance, adding that the entire production was performed “in a state of nearly unconditional rapture. It was one of those nights when cynicism didn’t stand a chance.” That enchanted evening can be shared with fans everywhere with the South Pacific In Concert From Carnegie Hall DVD. Completing the luxury casting are Broadway and Hollywood icons Brian Stokes Mitchell and Alec Baldwin as French planter Emile de Becque and wise-guy sailor Luther Billis. After her successful performance as Nellie Forbush at Carnegie Hall, Reba joined Brian Stokes Mitchell for a three-night run of South Pacific at the Hollywood Bowl in August 2007.
