To your piece on oklahoma!, all I can say is: This is what I mean when I say the ending doesn't sit well with me! Like, I always read "Pore Jud is Daid" as Curly suicide-baiting Jud; even in different productions of Ok! (I saw it back around 2015-ish done by a local college) while Jud's actions weren't justified, Curly was particularly antagonistic to him. Curly I think doesn't quite seem like the incel-type Nice Guy, but the guy who's genuinely nice...until he isn't, if that makes sense?
yeah yeah! Pore Jud Is Daid is definitely meant to be unsettling. and i think with the way they’ve redone the ending it’s definitely not supposed to sit well with the audience at all. honestly, i love that. i like a show that makes me as an audience member uncomfortable and thoughtful. i do agree with your reading -- i think that makes the show stronger, in all honesty, and i think the 2019 production really went hard on pushing this point (especially in the wedding & trial scenes) about how neither man is wholly innocent; in fact, no one is.
oklahoma 2019 was actually the first time i saw the show in any format but i’ve been aware of the general story and music and the show’s overall impact on and place in musical theater history for years. it is in many ways the show that founded the modern concept of the “broadway musical”! but it’s fascinating to me that it’s still so relevant, without changing any of the original text. it’s a show that’s meant to make us consider sexuality and social responsibility. it’s interesting that a 1943 musical about territory folks still rings so true to us today, isn’t it?
(did i imply curly was an incel-nice-guy-type on accident? i didn’t mean to! i meant jud. i typed that essay when i was very tired lol)