The musical opens on a grand ship in the middle of the stage and on it are Miss Anna ( played by Kelli O'Hara ) and her young son Louis. They are on their way to Siam as Miss Anna is to become the school teacher of the King's children.
Once she arrives she argues with the King about her accommodation arrangements, establishing a far more equal relationship than the King has yet experienced with a woman. As the story unfolds, Miss Anna helps the King prove to the British officials that he is not a barbarian and the two appear to be falling in love. That is, until he persecutes a girl (that had been given to him as a gift) for being in love with another man. Losing Miss Anna ultimately leads to the King's death through a broken heart amongst other things.
Once she arrives she argues with the King about her accommodation arrangements, establishing a far more equal relationship than the King has yet experienced with a woman. As the story unfolds, Miss Anna helps the King prove to the British officials that he is not a barbarian and the two appear to be falling in love. That is, until he persecutes a girl (that had been given to him as a gift) for being in love with another man. Losing Miss Anna ultimately leads to the King's death through a broken heart amongst other things.
Kelli O' Hara is excellent and sings beautifully. As she started one of the musical's most famous songs, "Getting to Know You", the entire audience gave a sigh of delight and began to bob their heads. All the songs were sung with great energy and were very fun to listen to indeed! The costumes, as you might expect from such a big production, were superb, especially for the performance that is given to Sir Edward Ramsay when he comes to visit. The choreography was entrancing and the set was opulent. One of the highlights for me though had to be the march of the Siamese children. It was so entertaining to see the different characters, and the littlest one was so cute- she could just about keep up with the other children during their dances. If she was as young as she looked from the top of the Grand Circle then I'm very impressed that she remembered all of her lines and stage directions!
Overall this lavish production of the King and I was really entertaining with wonderful performances from the cast. There aren't really any surprises, if you know the musical then you know what you are in for. And you are in for a treat! A superbly executed and performed production of this much loved musical that is full of life. Recommended to people of all ages for a fun summer's day out.
Just as a heads up; the show runs at around 3 hours, which might be difficult for some younger audience members.