a little dopey

Well for someone who likes a good musical I've discovered I was a little dopey when it came to Oklahoma. I always thought that the big showstopping title number was the finale...but it seems not. (I'm guessing the majority of the cast were aware of this long before me!) As we worked our way through Act 2 last night it seems that the song is the high point of the second act after which there are two fights, one resulting in a death - and then the actual finale. I think this is an unusual dramatic arc for a musical...and perhaps explains why Oklahoma is considered a classic - for the way it developed the genre.