Heartbeat of Broadway

The Story Behind the Story: Oklahoma

English · Performing Arts, Drama

“The Story Behind the Story: Oklahoma” points listeners toward the history behind the Broadway musical Oklahoma!, the landmark collaboration by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. The show follows farm girl Laurey Williams and cowboy Curly McLain as they navigate courtship and rivalry in Oklahoma Territory, with the surrounding community shaping the story.

Rodgers and Hammerstein’s musical blends songs and dance with a dramatic plot, drawing on Lynn Riggs’s play Green Grow the Lilacs. Its familiar musical numbers and the ballet sequence help establish the characters’ hopes, tensions, and sense of place.

This title suggests a program about the story and background of Oklahoma!. The musical’s combination of romance, community life, and theatrical storytelling offers a listener a way to encounter the work beyond its best-known songs.

This recording is part of the Old Time Radio collection.