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Regent’s Park Open Air theatre, LondonTimothy Sheader’s production relocates the musical from New England to the north of England and dismantles the fatal romance at its heartIt is no surprise that Carousel was Richard Rodgers’ favourite of all his collaborations with Oscar Hammerstein. However, his exquisite score sits awkwardly with the dark kitchen-sink drama at the musical’s heart. The fatal romance – a blend of vicious masculinity and female acquiescence – is downright ugly, especially in the wake of a pandemic which has seen a dramatic increase in domestic violence.It is debatable whether Rodgers and Hammerstein unwittingly romanticised a cliched version of brutish working-class manhood but Timothy Sheader’s production is all too aware of the queasiness it might create for contemporary audiences. Continue reading...