Pacific Overtures is a musical written by Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman. The show is set in Japan beginning in 1853, and follows the difficult westernization of Japan, told from the point of view of the Japanese. In particular, the story focuses on the lives of two friends caught in the change, preparing for the arrival of Commodore Matthew Perry, USN. The original 1976 Broadway production was staged in Kabuki style, with men playing women's parts, and set changes made in full view of the audience by black-clad stagehands. It opened to mixed reviews and closed after six months, despite being nominated for ten Tony Awards. As late as 2017, Sondheim and Weidman have continued revising and updating the text to make reference to current events.
Pacific Overtures in "The Great White Way"[]
Pacific Overtures provided Trina Hutchinson's Sondhead army with a squadron of unnamed samurai for the Sondheim-Webber battle. During the opening battle of the woodlands, the samurai began to be whittled down pretty swiftly. One had his eyes scratched out by the Webberite feline commandoes Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer, and promptly committed ritual suicide. Another was fried by a fireball thrown by Magical Mr. Mistoffelees.
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